Reality TV

A friend of 'Bachelor' Matt James body-shamed one of his contestants -- Victoria Larson -- but she doesn't really seem to care all that much ... if anything, she's almost excusing it.

We got Victoria Friday night in Bev Hills and asked her about Matt's golfing buddy making a remark about her body in a surfaced clip that was apparently shot after his season wrapped. The guy's name is Jerry, and he seemed to be trying to distract Matt.

Shortly after the clip was posted, Victoria wrote ... "Cute... I love my body :)" and later posted a body shot of herself in a bikini, to silence the haters. Plus, she threw up a meme of men commenting on beautiful women's bodies ... almost as commentary.

As fired up as she seemed at the time, Victoria was NOT nearly as enthusiastic to shut down the body-shaming in our clip ... like we said, she almost chalked it up to "boys will be boys" or "locker-room talk." She didn't use those words exactly, but the sentiment was there.

Watch for yourself ... she tells us she actually doesn't think it was Jerry -- the dude who made the comment -- who shamed her, and she gets that in a competitive environment, sometimes you say things to throw your opponent off. Hmmm ... okay.

She went on to write off all the talk of it as "noise" ... and when we asked if she hoped Matt himself had learned his lesson, and if the franchise would try to get more inclusive ... Victoria was careful not to cast a stone, actually praising Matt and dodging the question.

It's interesting ... Matt was silent in the moment when his buddy made the body comment about Victoria, but was later quick to condemn it during an appearance on "The Real." He said he needed to surround himself with better friends, but he didn't seem all that bothered by it in real-time.

We've learned the cause of death for the 'Wipeout' contestant who collapsed shortly after completing the obstacle course, and it underscores the hidden dangers of extreme sport game shows.

The contestant, 38-year-old Michael Paredes, died from a heart attack which was brought on by coronary artery disease ... according to the Los Angeles County Coroner.

The autopsy report, obtained by TMZ, notes Paredes was running an obstacle course built over a body of water when he fell down into the depths. He swam to the edge of the water but was unable to pull himself out, and when he was eventually pulled out he was placed in a wheelchair.

Paredes leaned side-to-side in the wheelchair and went into cardiopulmonary arrest. He was resuscitated before being rushed to a hospital, the report says.

The contestant died about 24 hours after being hospitalized. The autopsy reveals extensive blockage in his coronary arteries. The right coronary artery had up to 90% stenosis -- narrowing or restriction -- and the other coronary arteries had issues as well. An acute case of pneumonia is also mentioned as a secondary factor.

When we broke the story back in November, production sources told us 'Wipeout' contestants underwent medical exams before participating ... and the autopsy notes Paredes had no reported medical history.

Just weeks before the country went into lockdown because of COVID, the cast of "Little Women: Atlanta" got in one last hurrah, which left a cast member bloodied and slashed.

The brawl went down in February of last year at Nouveau Bar & Grille. The initial fight pitted Amanda and Andrea against Abira. Ms. Juicy initially tried to act as peacemaker, but that went to hell quickly.

Unclear what started this and, for that matter, most fights on the show. Someone spit on someone and that was pretty much all she wrote. Glasses started flying, conking Juicy on the noggin, and leaving a big gash and a bloody mess. She ended up taking a trip to the ER where she got a CAT scan and stitches.

As we first reported ... Abria started clowning the twins over their plan to get in the rap game. As true 'Little Women' fans know ... they've been at each other's throats for some time ... but things really took a turn for the worse during their hangout that night.

Kanye West's cooking up something with his futuristic foam footwear ... with a little spray.

A Yeezy employee was spotted outside Ye's Calabasas office Monday spraying on what appears to be a new Yeezy Foam RNNR Ararat prototype. It's unclear what exactly the employee's trying to accomplish, but the sole's getting the bulk of the spray. Non-stick spray? Who knows.

Either way, this is the first look at Kanye's new Adidas RNNR prototype ... 7 months after the foam shoe's first release.

Some of Kanye's biggest pals have been seen wearing the Foams ... including Justin Bieber on a yellow Vespa and his wife, Hailey, during a recent shopping spree with Kendall Jenner.

Even though the shoe was soundly ridiculed when they were first released, they've made a killing on the resale marked ... going for as much as $800. The retail price was only around $100.

Joe Exotic is NOT living it up on the Vegas strip with 'Tiger King' stars Jeff and Lauren Lowe -- he's still behind bars, and the guy hanging with the couple is all about show biz.

'Tiger King' fans went nuts over the weekend when Jeff and Lauren started posting photos and videos with someone who looked a lot like Joe, leading folks to believe he was free. No dice.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the photos show Jeff and Lauren at lunch in Sin City with Vegas Joe, a Joe Exotic lookalike who was recently hired to impersonate the 'Tiger King' star in an upcoming Vegas show.

Vegas Joe is a dead ringer ... he's got the clothes, mannerisms, piercings, tattoos and voice of Joe Exotic down to a T. We're told Vegas Joe didn't even have to audition for the lead role after production crew members saw him on the strip.

As for the show ... we're told it's basically going to be an hour-long parody play with dancers and performers, plus an escape room. The hope is for a mid-summer premiere, or whenever Nevada allows live shows to fully reopen amid the pandemic.

Our sources say Jeff will be featured in the show, along with other 'Tiger King' alums making appearances from time to time ... including alleged hitman-for-hire Alan Glover, the nanny and Lauren.

Charlie Balducci -- best known for his time on the MTV reality show, "True Life" -- died from a drug overdose ... TMZ has learned.

The New York City Medical Examiner's Office tells TMZ ... Charlie's cause of death is acute intoxication by the combined effects of oxycodone, hydrocodone and alprazolam. The manner of his death has been ruled accidental.

TMZ broke the story ... Balducci was found unresponsive in his bed back in July and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene. When we spoke to his mom, she told us his death came unexpectedly since he hadn't exhibited any kind of sickness.

For the non-hardcore reality TV aficionados out there ... Balducci is known as a trailblazer of sorts in the reality TV world after appearing in "True Life: I'm Getting Married." He allowed MTV cameras to follow him for 4 months before marrying Sabrina ... which ultimately produced one of the most infamous rants ever caught on TV.

Child star JoJo Siwa just confirmed she's part of the LGBTQ+ community -- but isn't quite ready to label herself with a letter just yet.

The former 'Dance Moms' star published a lengthy video Saturday, which pretty much hit the point home that she had, in fact, come out after much speculation these past few days. She says she's gotten tons of support, and has never been happier in her life to be her true self.

At one point, one of JoJo's fans asks how she identifies in terms of sexual orientation ... and she says she doesn't know yet. That's interesting to note, because everyone assumed she'd come out as gay ... mostly due to her own wardrobe, which literally had the word printed on.

JoJo showed off a shirt she received the other day, which reads ... BEST. GAY. COUSIN. EVER. Many took that as signaling, not to mention her lip-syncing to Gaga's "Born This Way."

It's a big deal, BTW. JoJo -- who's 17 years old -- has a massive audience with kids, so this is gonna reach them in some shape or form. Many think it'll help children be more comfortable with owning their sexuality, since one of their on-screen heroes now has.

Kristin Cavallari and Jay Cutler are telegraphing things are copacetic with them, and maybe even more than copacetic ... and they're suggesting their divorce has somehow been mischaracterized.

Kristin and Jay each posted this pic of the 2 of them hanging out together, with the caption, "The world is full of users. 10 years. Can't break that."

There's a lot that's unclear here. Are they back together? Are they just saying they're still a family and will happily co-parent? And, who exactly are the "users."

It seems the "users" comment is directed at the media/social media, which characterized the divorce as contentious. If that's the case, it's a little bizarre.

As we reported, Jay filed for divorce back in April after 7 years of marriage. He asked for joint custody, but when Kristin filed her answer, the bitterness was apparent. She alleged "misconduct" on Jay's part. Her answer read, Jay "is guilty of such inappropriate marital conduct as renders further cohabitation unsafe and improper."

Kristin then insinuated Jay had accused her of "inappropriate marital conduct." Her lawyer wrote, "any misconduct alleged or implied against her in the complaint for divorce was in response to and/or as a result of misconduct on behalf of the Husband." That's weird, because Jay never mentioned misconduct on Kristin's part in his divorce petition.

Kristin had initially asked for sole physical custody of their 3 kids and only wanted Jay to have visitation.

Fast forward to September, when Kristin said there was NO scandal regarding Jay, saying it was simply a case where the marriage "just didn't work out."

It did seem like they were getting over the anger, because they agreed in September to joint custody and seemed to lower the temp.

Kristin had been linked to comedian Jeff Dye since October, but their latest post now suggests ... well, actually, we're not sure.

When Emma Roberts' baby boy arrived he was brought into this world by a doctor who did the same for Khloe Kardashian and Kylie Jenner's kids.

Emma and actor Garrett Hedlund's son, Rhodes Robert Hedlund, was delivered by Dr. Thais Aliabadi ... according to the birth certificate, which also shows he arrived at 5:07 PM on December 27.

The birth certificate, obtained by TMZ, says Dr. Aliabadi delivered Rhodes on familiar turf ... L.A.'s famed Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. We say it's familiar because it's the same place where Stormi Webster was born.

You'll recall ... Dr. A flew from L.A. to Ohio to deliver True Thompson for Khloe and Tristan.

TMZ broke the story ... Rhodes weighed in right around 9 lbs on the day he was born. It's Emma and Garrett's first child. During her pregnancy ... Emma wasn't shy about showing off her baby bump, as she was seen out and about town frequently.

Kylie and Kendall Jenner are living like queens south of the border ... soaking up the sun in a castle by the sea.

The billionaire and her model sister are treating themselves to a Mexican getaway, shacking up in the super luxurious Ocean Castle Sol de Oriente in Costa Careyes ... and ya gotta see their digs.

The 6-bedroom villa sits atop the Peninsula de las Estrellas -- that's Spanish for stars -- and it's surrounded by a 360-degree infinity pool offering panoramic views of the ocean and beach.

The private estate goes for $6,500 a night and has room for 12 ... but this girls' trip is reserved for Kylie, Kendall and Stassie Karanikolaou.

The fortress is very camera-friendly too ... Kylie, Kendall and Stassie all have been posting tons of pics out by the pool, from sunrise to sunset.

The Tiger King is not free to run wild again ... President Trump snubbed Joe Exotic's request to be pardoned, and he and his team aren't taking it well.

What seemingly started as a pipe dream way back in April 2020 -- when Trump said he'd "take a look" at pardoning Joe -- turned out to be exactly that. Joe's team tells TMZ ... "140 million Joe Exotic fans had a hard time getting out of bed this morning."

Yeah, that 'Tiger King' viewers stat might be inflated -- and assumes all of them were rooting for Joe's release -- but you get the point ... they're bummed.

His team added, "We are as disappointed that the President did not sign Joe’s pardon, as we were confident yesterday that he would." Joe's team adds ... it's only because of his fans that the pardon was even a possibility.

As we reported ... shortly after Trump's comment, Team Tiger -- led by P.I. Eric Love -- produced a video asking to free Joe and hopped in a customized tour bus to head to D.C. in hopes of pitching Trump for a pardon.

Those early efforts didn't yield success, but Love and the team were persistent ... and he returned to D.C. in September to hand-deliver Joe's pardon request. As we reported ... the 257-page case to Trump included Joe's claims that he'd been sexually assaulted in prison.

Again, there was silence from Trump about a possible pardon, but Joe continued to publicly plead for one as recently as 2 weeks ago ... when he asked to be pardoned in time to attend his father's funeral.

It didn't happen, and Joe's patience and persistence was all for naught ... because he didn't make the cut for Trump's list of 73 pardons and 70 commutations. In other news -- Steve Bannon, Lil Wayne, Kodak Black and the co-founder of Death Row Records all did.

As you know ... Exotic's been doing hard time for the murder-for-hire plot, and though he's maintained his innocence, he'll remain behind bars.

Team Tiger says they're not giving up though ... and spent 2 hours on the phone with Joe this morning listening to his Direct Appeal Oral Arguments. Love says they "will never leave Joe’s side and will continue to work until his freedom is gained."

The winner of season 20 of "Worst Cooks in America" has been arrested for allegedly killing a toddler.

Ariel Robinson and her husband, Jerry Robinson, have been charged with homicide by child abuse in South Carolina, according to police, and are being held at the Greenville County Detention Center without bond.

They're accused of inflicting multiple blunt force injuries on a 3-year-old girl named Victoria Rose Smith, resulting in her death.

Police say they responded to a call about an unresponsive juvenile victim last Thursday, and the child was pronounced dead after being transferred to the hospital.

Cops arrested the couple based on their investigation, which is ongoing.

Donald Trump's in jeopardy of losing another vote -- this one with Hollywood's labor union -- and it could cost him a return to his beloved 'Apprentice.'

Trump is facing expulsion from SAG-AFTRA, with the union's board of directors set to gather Tuesday for a special session that could decide DT's fate ... according to Deadline.

There's a lot riding on Tuesday's meeting regarding possible disciplinary action for Trump ... if he's expelled from the Screen Actors Guild, he couldn't do "The Apprentice" again.

As you know, Trump starred in "The Apprentice" and 'Celebrity Apprentice' before becoming President, and he's been a union member since 1989.

Trump's expulsion requires a two-thirds vote from the national board, and Tuesday's emergency meeting is just the first step in a long process, which includes a hearing on the charges he's facing.

The SAG-AFTRA Constitution says members can be expelled or suspended for "engaging in actions antagonistic to the interests or integrity of the union." Trump's repeatedly labeled the media an enemy of the people, but the insurrection seems to be the tipping point here.

Stay tuned.

"Teen Mom" star Jenelle Evans says she's regained custody of her son, Jace, but her mom begs to differ.

Jenelle posted a bunch of TikTok videos Saturday, claiming her eldest son is now in her custody. As you probably know, Jenelle's mom, Barbara, has had custody for years.

Jenelle said, "I have custody of Jace. He lives with me now full-time.  My [3] kids are happy, they're healthy. That's all that f***ing matters."

She went on to talk about how "stupid" she was as a young woman and all the mistakes she made, including with men ... but now, she says, things are very different.

Barbara tells TMZ she still has full custody of Jace. She got custody a decade ago when Jace was just a baby, because of Jenelle's erratic behavior. Jenelle has only had visitation rights ever since.

Barbara says Jace has recently been going back and forth between her house and Jenelle's due to the pandemic ... Jace goes to Jenelle's house for 3-4 days at a time, in part just so he has a change of scenery. He'll go over there to do his schoolwork ... then he comes back to Barbara's.

Barbara tells us she called Jenelle after her daughter announced she regained custody, and Barbara says Jenelle told her she "misspoke" and recognized Barbara still had custody.

Netflix left a controversial episode from one of MTV's most popular shows on the cutting room floor ... an episode infamous for some severe bullying.

Here's the deal ... the streaming giant just added 2 seasons of MTV's 'Real World/Road Rules Challenge,' but fans will instantly notice something's missing ... some behind-the-scenes clips featuring 3 female cast members going after another female contestant.

The episode was titled "To Hell and Back: Hot Gossip From The Inferno 2" ... and the troubling scene showed Veronica, Rachel and Tina ganging up on Tonya Cooley by snapping nude photos of her while she was sleeping.

They later showed those pics to other houseguests. That episode was the show's finale in 2005, and aired instead of the usual end-of-season reunions.

As for why Netflix cut it? Well, there's the obvious ... 2005 was just a different time, and things that might have been seen as funny or entertaining back then, just don't fly today.

We reached out to Netflix and MTV for an explanation, but neither responded.

Former "Real Housewives of New Jersey" star Siggy Flicker is calling BS on the internet sleuths who say she was at the Capitol riots ... and she's got an alibi.

Siggy tells TMZ ... she was never near the Capitol during last week's attempted coup, despite some social media users claiming she was there. She says she wasn't even in D.C.

SF claims she's been holed up with her family at their home in Boca Raton, FL for the last 2 months and she was at the Boca Hotel and Resort with her kids and husband while the mob was busy storming the Capitol.

Siggy's on the defense because actress Vivicca Whitsett sent a tweet to the FBI, alleging Siggy is the woman wearing a MAGA beanie in this grainy picture from inside the Capitol. Siggy tells us the tweet is a "blatant lie."

Siggy also posted video of a Jan. 5 flight to D.C. showing a plane full of people singing "The Star-Spangled Banner," which seems to have gotten the ball rolling on the allegations ... but she tells us it's not her video, and she downloaded it from Twitter and reposted it on her IG because she thought it was "beautiful."

A diehard Trump supporter, Siggy tells us she last went to a Trump rally Oct. 16 in Ocala, FL and she doesn't support or condone the violence ... she says anyone who caused damage inside the Capitol during the insurrection should go to jail, no matter their political beliefs.

Siggy says she wouldn't be caught dead at a mass gathering like the Capitol riots because she's gearing up for another surgical procedure on her ankle and isn't supposed to be around large crowds.