TV

Nicole Eggert's sexual assault allegations against Scott Baio will now be reviewed by the L.A. County District Attorney ... TMZ has learned.

As we reported, Eggert filed a police report claiming Baio repeatedly molested her during the run of "Charles in Charge."

She claimed she was as young as 14 when the alleged molestation occurred.

Baio insists he had sex with Eggert only once ... when she was 18.

She went on a very public campaign making her allegations and appeared on various TV shows.

Nicole and her lawyer, Lisa Bloom, met with detectives from LAPD's Sexual Assault Section at Bloom's office back in February.

Alexander Polinsky, another star of "Charles in Charge," came out in support of Eggert, claiming that he not only witnessed Baio harassing Eggert ... but, he was also a victim of Baio's sexual misconduct. He claimed Scott called him a "f****t" and pulled down his pants "in front of over 100 people" on set.

As we reported, LAPD is referring all sexual assault cases involving celebrities to the D.A. for review ... regardless of the statute of limitations or merit. The LAPD sent the case over to the D.A. for review. No charges have been filed at this point.

Answer -- This charismatic bartender became a "Jeopardy!" sensation last Fall after winning $411k during a 12-show win streak ... and could be starring in a new TV car show.

Who is Austin Rogers?

CORRECT!

Sources familiar with the project tell TMZ ... Austin's currently in high-level talks with a major cable TV network ... developing his idea for a car show for the "every man."

The series will showcase cars that didn't resonate with the public, but were the precursors to whips that were wildly successful. We're told Austin pitched the 1968 Honda CVCC, which was supper buggy and noisy but became a blueprint for the successful Honda line. He also talks about the Subaru Brat Pickup, which quickly fizzled.

He'll travel the country looking for rare but inexpensive cars, and when he finds the right one he'll go on a road trip, exploring the city where the owner lives.

There will be no $400,000 Ferraris or tricked-out Rolls-Royces ... just cars that have been long ago rejected by the public but have a great story.

We're told Austin came up with his idea -- which couples his love for cars with American history -- after his 'Jeopardy' run ended in October and, after pitching it with a production team ... a major network caught wind and has now partnered up.

The show's described as "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" meets "Top Gear" ... and we're told the project is in the funding stage now, but a big announcement is expected soon.

Looks like Austin wasn't lying about Hollywood calling.

Kristin Cavallari has returned to Mexico ... she's back on the beach -- only this time, she left her NFL hubby at home.

The former 'Hills' star grabbed a bunch of her girlfriends and jetted over to Tulum ... where they've been soaking in the sun and drinking wine on the sand. Good times.

Kristin even posted a bikini pic captioned, "Bummin' around."

Funny, considering the last time Kristin was in Mexico she convinced Jay Cutler to go full naked on the beach and posted a bare ass photo of the QB for all the world to see.

In fact, it appears the Cutler butt pic was shot at the same resort where KC's staying now.

As for Jay, someone's gotta stay home with the kids ... and since he doesn't have a job at the moment, might as well be him.

A former CNBC producer was killed when his e-cigarette exploded and lodged in his skull ... according to an autopsy.

Tallmadge Wakeman D'Elia died on Cinco de Mayo in St. Petersburg, FL after his vape pen ignited a fire in his bedroom. The autopsy results just came out and reportedly showed the e-cig not only exploded and sparked the blaze, but it also made a "projectile wound" in D'Elia's skull.

The 38 year old's vape pen was reportedly a device made in the Philippines that is unregulated and not recommended for beginners. It is still unclear what caused the pen to explode.

FEMA, which keeps stats on electronic cigarettes, says D'Elia's death is the first in the U.S. caused by a vape pen.

Marvel says it's bringing its first Muslim superhero to the big screen, and a couple of the universe's smaller screen actors say it's about time ... 'cause we need a new normal.

We ran into Coby Bell and Emma Dumont at LAX -- who both star in FOX's "The Gifted," which is a spin-off of the X-Men series -- and they give their bosses at Marvel major props for discussing how to bring their Pakistani-American character, Ms. Marvel, to life.

The president of Marvel, Kevin Feige, told the BBC this week that the studio plan on introducing Kamala Khan once they got Brie Larson's movie, "Captain Marvel," out of the way in 2019. Coby and Emma are looking forward to it for a few different reasons.

Coby says he wants his kid growing up to see heroes of color as the standard, not the exception ... even shouting out Obama in comparison. Emma's take is ... more broad strokes.

The competition on the 'Amazing Race' and "Big Brother" mash-up is gonna be fierce, because it's stocked with a lot of previous winners and fan favorites hauling ass around the world.

Sources tell us James Huling, who won America's Favorite Houseguest on season 17 of "Big Brother," will be partnering with Corey Brooks, who appeared on season 18. James also appeared on season 18, but didn't win.

As we previously reported ... "Big Brother" alums Caleb Reynolds and Rachel Reilly are also in the race. Rachel won season 13 of 'BB' and Caleb's got experience from being on two seasons of "Survivor" too.

Damon Wayans is blasting his former "Lethal Weapon" costar, Clayne Crawford, as a menace to everyone on the show's set, and blaming him for the stunt that left him bloodied.

Damon claims Clayne smashed a male costar in the mouth with a bottle, and insists it was not an accident. Before he was fired, Clayne also directed some episodes of the FOX drama, and Damon claims he "Relished in making females cry. And struck fear in cast and crew."

During a since-deleted Twitter rant, Damon posted a pic of a sticker he says other staffers posted around the set referring to Crawford as an "emotional terrorist."

He's also really pissed about a stunt during a Crawford-directed episode where shrapnel cut the back of his head. Damon is blaming him for a lack of safety measures on set.

Crawford did cop to having angry outbursts, but added, "I am incredibly sorry if my passion for doing good work has ever made anyone feel less than comfortable on our set."

Damon says he waited until FOX picked up the show for its third season before dancing on Crawford's TV grave. When they start shooting the new season ... Seann William Scott will take over as Murtaugh's partner.

Safe to say ... Damon's feeling too old for this s**t.

Pamela Anderson channeled her inner Bruce Wayne to slam rideshare companies ... no joke, or Joker for that matter.

Pamela stars in the new PSA -- obtained in advance by TMZ -- dubbed "The Closer" ... which calls into question the hiring practices and alleged misleading hiring tactics deployed by ride-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft to lure drivers.

The ad -- produced by Ride Responsibly -- starts with a potential ride-hail driver walking into a futuristic underground garage ... the same one used in "The Dark Knight Rises." Pamela later appears and makes her "questionable" pitch.

Anderson tells us, "Ride-hail app services not only endanger passengers, they continue to violate their drivers as well, failing to provide a living wage and offering no benefits that are standard for most employees in any other industry."

She continues, "I’ve spoken to transportation and employment experts in the course of my research, and these companies are very clearly (and knowingly) in the wrong. The control that ride-hailing services exercise over their drivers defines them as employees; these drivers deserve to be treated fairly."

'Star Trek' icon Nichelle Nichols will have a new team handling her financial affairs in response to her son's claims she's battling dementia ... TMZ has learned.

According to court docs, an L.A. County judge signed off on Kyle Johnson's request to have 4 fiduciaries be his mom's conservators until mid-August, when there will be a court hearing. The hope is Nichelle will be able to attend that hearing.

As we first reported ... Kyle says his mother, who famously played Lt. Uhura, suffers from severe short-term memory loss, and needs court-ordered protection to block people from taking advantage of her.

Meghan Markle's extended family wasn't invited to the Royal wedding, but that didn't stop them from jetting off to London.

Meghan's nephew Tyler and his brother, Thomas Dooley, arrived at London Heathrow Airport along with their mother Tracy Dooley, who was the wife of Meghan's half brother, Thomas Markle Jr. Despite no invite, the family does have a purpose there -- they will be special correspondents on "Good Morning Britain" ... presumably dishing family deets for Saturday's big day.

Also not going to the wedding? Meghan's father, Thomas. TMZ broke the story ... Thomas decided not to go because he doesn't want to embarrass the Royal Family or his daughter. The decision comes on the heels of the fallout over him selling photos of himself.

Porch pirates are those douchebags who steal packages left at your front door, if you didn't know ... and "Gotham" star Jessica Lucas just got hit by one.

Law enforcement sources tell us Lucas recently had a package with a few hundred dollars' worth of clothes delivered to her home in L.A. A neighbor saw a man take the package, but realized too late that it wasn't Lucas' fiance.

When Lucas' fiance got home shortly after, the neighbor explained what happened and it was clear it had been stolen, so they called the cops.

Chrissy Metz says she'd love to throw on a cape and save the day on camera -- now the harder question ... DC or Marvel?

We got the 'This Is Us' star Saturday at LAX, where we asked about a revelation she made in her novel 'This Is Me' regarding abuse she suffered as a child. She offers some heartfelt advice to girls going through similar situations ... and then pivoted to spandex tights.

Larry King wanted to talk about some serious stuff, but the convo got jacked by a woman dressed as the Statue of Liberty and a dude calling himself Sexy Vegan who's running for Prez in 2020.

We got the talk show king Saturday night in WeHo outside Craig's, and he showed disdain for Kelly Sadler's despicable comment about John McCain. And on the subject of McCain, King believes torturing prisoners has no place in a civilized society ... something front and center with CIA nominee Gina Haspel.

But then ... King is interrupted by some bizarre folks who generally make Hollywood Blvd. their hangout.

At least one late-night TV talk show host will have insider access at the upcoming Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ... and that lucky guy is James Corden.

Sources close tell TMZ ... Corden and his producing partner, Ben Winston, are on the guest list for next Saturday's wedding at St. George's Chapel in England, and BOTH receptions to follow.

This includes the reception immediately after the ceremony at Windsor Castle, and later in the evening at the more exclusive party at Frogmore House ... where Meghan and Harry snapped their engagement pics.

James and Prince Harry have been friends for years, but Corden previously implied he didn't think he'd get an invite to the wedding ... but he just wanted to go to Harry's bachelor party anyway.

Bill Cosby's criminal behavior should not overshadow the cultural impact "A Different World" had in the '80s and '90s -- and could still have today -- according to one of its stars, Kadeem Hardison.

We got Kadeem, aka Dwayne Wayne, at LAX and asked him about the show he and Lisa Bonet made a huge hit. Of course, it was a 'Cosby Show' spin-off -- but Kadeem insists Cosby's sexual assault conviction can't drag down the show.

Kadeem does give Cosby credit for one thing and one thing only. Beyond that ... he says the show's impact on black culture stands on its own, and says it can't be tarnished by its creator.

John Barrowman's hatched an idea that'll benefit the homeless while simultaneously shading Target for an embarrassing incident.

We got the "Arrow" star Friday at LAX, and got an update on what happened after Target employees in West Hollywood tried to stop him from buying a homeless man a t-shirt, grooming kit and gift card. The store publicly promised to take some helpful action after the story went viral.

But, John tells us Target all but went radio silent -- so he decided to take matters into his own hands.

He's partnered up with the folks at Represent to sell t-shirts with 100% of proceeds going to help the homeless.