TV

Michael K. Williams' family is convinced a posthumous Oscar and Emmy is in the cards ... based on not-yet-released projects he starred in before his tragic passing.

Dominic Dupont, Michael's nephew, tells TMZ ... while the family's bummed Michael didn't win Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for "Lovecraft Country," they're hopeful a few upcoming projects could clinch him the coveted gold statues.

For starters, Dominic points to two upcoming films Michael starred in ... the Indi thriller "892" and Civil War-era drama "Surrounded." Dominic hasn't screened either film but believes the flicks give Michael a chance for an Oscar. As for why Dominic feels this way ... he says it's because Michael had the unparalleled ability to bring characters to life.

As for a future Emmy ... Dominic says his role in season 2 of the Vice TV docuseries "Black Market" could sway voters. Dominic, who traveled with Michael during the filming of "Black Market," says after 5 Emmy nominations ... everything teed up for an Emmy win next year.

Dominic says everyone at the Emmys was gracious to him and his wife ... and that they felt Michael's energy in the room. Dominic tells us Billy Porter and Jurnee Smollett greeted him and his family and expressed their sympathy ... while also making it clear they wanted Michael's legacy to live on.

We caught up with Dominic after the Emmys and he told us he was bummed his uncle didn't get an Emmy (it went to Tobias Menzies for his portrayal of Prince Phillip in "The Crown"), but he told us he very much appreciated Kerry Washington's gesture in honoring him onstage.

Seth Rogen's rant suggesting the Emmys broke COVID safety rules is misguided ... at least according to the L.A. County Department of Health, which is refuting some of his comments.

The Health Dept. tells TMZ ... yes, the current mandate in L.A. requires everyone to wear a mask indoors -- whether vaccinated or unvaccinated -- but it also says exceptions are made for film, TV and music productions.

The county says the Emmy Awards qualify as a TV production, and all the people appearing on the show are considered performers ... so masks were not a must for attendees.

Additionally, the Dept. of Health says there were extra safety modifications in place for the event. Yes, everyone had to be fully vaxxed ... but they also had to have a verified negative COVID test within 48 hours of the show. Crew members were either fully vaccinated or recently tested as well.

Overall, the Public Health office says the Emmys reached out to share its safety protocols and they "exceeded the baseline requirements for television and film productions."

Still, Rogen's speech during the ceremony was about more than just the optics of all the maskless celebs sitting close to one another. He also claimed Emmy officials promised them the show would be outdoors, and it wasn't.

Roman Reigns is only hours away from a rare appearance on WWE's Raw -- reigniting a new rivalry with The New Day and The Bloodline -- and Kofi Kingston says it's gonna be crazzzy!!

TMZ Sports talked to Kingston Monday afternoon ... and we asked the former WWE Champion about Roman Reigns, Jey & Jimmy Uso taking on KK, Xavier Woods and newly crowned WWE Champion, Big E.

"Big E is the WWE champion right now. Roman Reigns the Universal Champion. And we're getting to see the two people are at the top of our industry go toe-to-toe, not to mention with the Uso's and myself and Woods going at it 1 more time, as we have all grown. That in and of itself is gonna be well worth the price of admission," Kofi says.

Of course, The Uso's and The New Day have history ... as did The New Day and The Shield.

But, if you're looking for a lot of trash talk, this ain't the clip for you ... 'cause Kofi says the men have brought out the absolute best in each other over the years.

"[The Bloodline] are the best versions of themselves right now, and then you have [The New Day], probably the strongest bond in the history of WWE," Kofi says.

"I don't know if there's ever been a stronger bond than us. And all the things we've been able to do, and now we are back together, and we're doing it at a high level."

Two great tag teams clashing at the height of their powers.

We also talked to Kingston about watching his best friend, E, beat Bobby Lashley and take his belt ... a very anxious moment for Kofi.

"I feel like I was wayyy more nervous for E in this situation than I was for myself a couple years ago. But I look over at E in gorilla [position] and he's just like cool as a cucumber, at least on the outside, not nervous at all."

Seth Rogen said out loud what lots of people were thinking ... how did all the celebs at the Emmys Sunday night get a pass when it came to wearing masks indoors?

Seth kinda joked he would have rethought even going to the Emmys had he known it would be held in a hermetically-sealed tent and there was not a mask in sight. He flat out called the Emmy honchos liars, saying, "They said this was outdoors. It's not. They lied to us."

The L.A. County Health Dept. says everyone at indoor events must wear masks ... what with the Delta variant still out of control in these parts. It seems undeniable -- that precaution was ignored as the gussied-up stars were like super-upscale masses huddled together as they cheered each other on. In fact, Seth groused, "There are way too many of us in this little room."

The only possible out for the Emmys is to argue the event was a "television production," but that's a stretch for everyone in the audience. Even if that were the case, it's sure bad messaging to viewers.

"West Wing" star Bradley Whitford begged to differ, saying he thought everything was COVID hunky-dory.

Cedric the Entertainer actually challenged Seth, saying, "It actually feels amazing in here, unlike what Seth was talking about." He noted everyone inside was vaxxed, joking that he didn't have an adverse reaction like the dude Nicki Minaj was talking about.

True enough ... they were all vaxxed, but it sure seems hypocritical to ignore the rules of the COVID road because it spoils a good look.

The Emmy organizers say tables in the room were 6 feet apart and the audience was smaller than normal. Nevertheless, what about masks?

Jason Sudeikis and Kate Winslet know the only one way to celebrate bringing home a shiny, wing-woman trophy is to hit up the after-parties ... with that Emmy in hand, of course.

Jason and Kate were among the throng of celebs who kept the night going after the Emmys were awarded. Jason ended up at the famed Sunset Tower in L.A. ... and looked pretty damn sharp rocking his Tom Ford tux.

He snapped selfies with fans before going inside. Jason won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his role on the hilarious Apple TV+ series, "Ted Lasso." The series also won for Outstanding Comedy Series.

Anya Taylor-Joy didn't let getting snubbed at the Emmys for her role in "The Queen's Gambit" bring her down ... she was also at Sunset Tower partying it up.

About a mile or so down the road ... Kate hit up the San Vicente Bungalows in WeHo with her hubby, Abel Smith. She looked pretty stoked carrying around her statue after winning the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie category for HBO's "Mare of Easttown." The Weeknd also joined the Bungalows celebration.

Madonna, Teyana Taylor and Normani have triggered complaints to the FCC ... over what some say were raunchy displays at the VMAs.

TMZ's obtained the complaints, and it seems like these folks primarily had two artists in their crosshairs ... Normani and Teyana for their performance of Normani's hit single, "Wild Side."

Someone from Kansas felt it was bad enough seeing a woman in a leotard spreading her legs, writhing on the floor, dancing like a stripper and putting "her fingers near her vagina." But, what really pissed off this viewer was seeing Teyana and Normani simulating a brief makeout sesh and Normani practically giving Teyana a lap dance.

The person said, "This programming was on at 9pm, our children were with us watching TV. We had to make them leave the room during this porno ceremony."

A viewer from Tennessee described seeing Normani "move upward until she was able to stick her crotch directly in [Teyana's] face and on the girls lips exhibiting oral sex."

The viewer said, "this was so extreme and should NEVER have been allowed to be on any TV show." Ditto for a viewer from Weatherford, Texas ... who said Normani glamorized and mimicked sex, bondage and assault rape.

A parent from Michigan said the performance was so awful they "had to keep changing the channels so my 12-year-old son wouldn't watch that s***!"

As for Madonna ... there's a complaint from someone in Illinois who said Madonna appeared drunk at the start of the show and wore sexually explicit clothing. The viewer was upset MTV didn't issue warnings that it might be inappropriate for small children.

Jamie Foxx gave a street eulogy for Michael K. Williams, and it was emotional, stirring and clearly heartfelt.

Jamie was leaving Caffe Roma Friday in Bev Hills, and our photog asked if Williams, who died earlier this month of an apparent drug overdose, should finally win an Emmy. That opened the door to a flood of emotions.

Jamie says MKW was better than the rest ... that he was in the league of Joe Morton and Samuel L. Jackson.

It was clearly hard for Jamie to process Williams' death ... he says they broke bread and talked about life just a few weeks back.

Jamie waxed poetic, saying Michael lived an artistic life and should be honored with the elusive award.

Michael is nominated for best supporting actor for his work on "Lovecraft Country." Fact is ... he was considered the shoo-in even before he died.

If he wins, his nephew, Dominic Dupont, will accept the award in Michael's honor. Jamie has some simple advice for Dominic on what to say and how to say it.

Darnell Ferguson has come a long, long way to become a Food Network star and big-time restaurateur -- success not a lot of people would've predicted when he was living out of his car.

The man best known as SuperChef joined us Friday on "TMZ Live" to break down his new competition show, "Tiny Food Fight." No, contestants aren't throwing raisins at each other, they're cooking real food, but on a nearly microscopic scale. It's freakin' wild, and DF says it takes a ton of skill.

The new show -- streaming now on Discovery Plus and hosted by comedian Mamrie Hart -- pits contestants facing off in tiny food-themed challenges. The winners take home $5k and a trophy. A tiny one, at that.

Darnell's no stranger to food and food competitions ... having won Giada De Laurentiis' "Ultimate Thanksgiving Challenge" and Guy Fieri's "Tournament of Champions."

They don't call him SuperChef for nothing!

'Tiny Food' is just the latest success for Darnell who told us what it took for him to overcome homelessness to launch his own culinary empire ... starting with a breakfast pop-up joint he almost seemed embarrassed to operate.

Watch the video ... SuperChef explains why it was so humiliating, and also reveals how he got himself outta several bad decisions and into really good ones.

Wendy Williams was taken to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation one day before it was announced that the new season of her show would be delayed due to COVID issues ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Wendy tell us the talk show host was voluntarily admitted to an NYC hospital Tuesday for a psych evaluation. Our sources say Wendy has struggled with mental health issues for some time, so this was not a big shock.

On top of that, Wendy does have COVID, but she's asymptomatic, and doctors continue to monitor her physical health as well.

It's uncertain when she'll be released, but we're told her mental health continues to improve each day. And, our sources say, her COVID is still in check with no real symptoms.

Wendy's 13th season was set to premiere Sept. 20, but that's been pushed to Oct. 4.

However, last week producers revealed she was dealing with "ongoing health issues" and would not be able to make it to promotional activities as she was being evaluated.

"The Mountain" is looking more like a sculpted rock ... 'cause he's lost a TON of weight over the past two years -- and check out his new bod, he's SHREDDED!!!

Hafthor Bjornsson -- who starred as the big beast on "Game Of Thrones" -- has transformed his body since retiring from strongman competition in 2019 ... moving to the boxing world, and the results are impressive as hell.

Just two days out from his big celeb tilt with arm-wrestling legend Devon Larratt, Bjornsson -- a 3x Arnold Classic and 2018 World's Strongest Man winner -- showed off all the progress he's made with his physique, revealing chiseled abs, pecs and arms.

6'9" Bjornsson told Muscle And Health earlier this month he's down to about 328 pounds -- roughly 120 pounds under the 450-or-so pounds that he used to tip the scales at when he was lifting competitively.

It's all been an effort to dominate in the ring ... with Bjornsson initially setting out to fight fellow strong man Eddie Hall -- his heated rival -- this weekend.

Hall, though, tore his bicep while training in July ... so Bjornsson is now scheduled to fight Larratt -- a dude he once lost to in an arm-wrestling competition.

Mike Richards has one incredibly influential celeb in his corner despite leaving "Jeopardy!" amid a shroud of controversy ... and it's his old pal Drew Carey.

We got Mike and Drew Thursday in L.A. after they wrapped up a power breakfast of sorts -- we're told they broke bread for 2 hours at Swingers on Beverly Blvd.

The old pals obviously have lots to catch up about after Mike got the boot -- first as "Jeopardy!" host, and then as its executive producer -- and they presented a very united front as they walked to their cars.

First, we asked Mike himself if he felt like he'd gotten a raw deal. Remember, he was fired over 8-year-old comments -- things he'd said to his female co-host on their podcast. Watch ...  he took the high road, and refused to say anything disparaging about his former employers at Sony.

As for Drew ... we also asked him about Mike's ouster, and he pled the Fifth. However, he'd already said plenty just by being out in public with Richards.

Murdaugh just appeared in a South Carolina court, going in front a judge and being read the charges against him.

Murdaugh has just turned himself in. He reportedly pulled up to the Hampton County Law Enforcement Center in a beige SUV.  Murdaugh was booked at the Hampton County Detention Center and is expected in court later in the day.

The disgraced lawyer faces a slew of charges ... including insurance fraud, conspiracy to commit insurance fraud and filing a false police report.

"Dateline" correspondent Josh Mankiewicz knows the bizarre murder/assisted suicide case of South Carolina's Murdaugh family is right up his show's alley -- and he's totally into it -- but he says the location is a bit off.

Josh was leaving The Palm in L.A. Wednesday when we got his take on the endless twists surrounding prominent lawyer Alex Murdaugh, and the unsolved murders of his wife and son.

For starters, Josh, like everyone else, says the case is riveting and people are asking him about it nonstop. Comes with the territory when you're the go-to guy covering true crime cases.

For the uninitiated ... Murdaugh found his wife, Margaret, and 22-year-old son, Paul, shot dead outside their home in June -- and police have yet to make any arrests in that case.

Fast forward to September 4 ... when Murdaugh got shot in the head, but survived. He now admits he hired a hitman to kill him so his surviving son could collect a $10M life insurance policy. The shooter's already been arrested and charged with assisted suicide, and Murdaugh's expected to surrender to authorities Thursday.

Josh is blown away by all of this, and that's coming from a "Dateline" vet who's seen it all ... so, ya know we're in uncharted true crime waters. In fact, he says one of the strangest parts of the case is that it's NOT happening in Florida!

Apologies to the Sunshine State, but y'know ... some insane stuff does happen there. 'Memba this and this??? Anyway, Josh also has a tip for Alex Murdaugh, although we suspect it's too late to help him now.

BTW ... S.C. officials announced they're also opening a new investigation into the 2018 death of a housekeeper at Murdaugh's home. 😲

"Jeopardy!" won't be going back to its revolving door of guest hosts after the quick exit of Mike Richards -- TMZ's learned it'll be Mayim Bialik and Ken Jennings for the rest of 2021.

Sony production sources tell us the quiz show is going to keep it semi-consistent from here on out -- at least for this year -- with Mayim on hosting duty for more than half of the episodes, and Jennings shooting a few weeks worth of episodes.

We're told execs have not decided about next season yet, but are still searching for a full-time, permanent replacement for Alex Trebek, and as we've told you ... Mayim still seems to be the frontrunner.

When Richards stepped down as host, he suggested -- in an internal memo to staffers -- "Jeopardy!" would return to a series of guest hosts. However, he was also ousted as Executive Producer less than 2 weeks later ... so it's clear his plan no longer carried weight.

As you know ... Richards was tapped to replace Trebek on the syndicated daily version of the game show, but controversial comments he made years ago on his podcast resurfaced shortly afterward, and he quit after shooting just 5 episodes.

Similarly, while former champ Jennings is still guest hosting, we're told he's not seen as a real contender for the permanent gig ... due to past controversial tweets.

Meanwhile, LeVar Burton's still out there ... but Sony honchos already decided he's not their guy.

Julianne Hough's blackface scandal is resurfacing ... some 8 years later as she faces new criticism over her role on a new CBS reality show that has her judging real activists.

The dancer and actress addressed the backlash Tuesday, saying many people are just now becoming aware she wore blackface in 2013 when she dressed up as Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren from "Orange is the New Black" for Halloween.

She said, "Wearing black face was a poor choice based on my own white privilege and my own white body bias that hurt people and is something I regret doing to this day."

The renewed backlash stems from Julianne's role -- alongside Usher and Priyanka Chopra Jonas -- for a new reality competition series, "The Activist" premiering next month, where she judges 6 activists competing to bring attention to their causes.

The show was slammed as tone-deaf ... and Julianne addressed the concerns head on. She said, "I heard you say that the show was performative, promoted pseudo-activism over real activism, felt tone-deaf, like Black Mirror, The Hunger Games, and that the hosts weren’t qualified to assess activism because we are celebrities and not activists."

Julianne said that with some people only now finding out about her blackface scandal ... it "only further added insult to injury."

"You f***ing a**hole, Jimmy Kimmel. Honestly Jimmy, f*** you. bro."

Logan Paul just went scorched-earth on Jimmy Kimmel for dissing him last week ... saying the late-night host is "so f***ing lame" for making him the butt of a joke.

In case you missed it, Kimmel name-dropped the YouTube superstar during one of his opening monologues ... when he made a reference to former President Donald Trump's wildly expensive appearance at Triller Fight Club.

"Between Logan Paul and Donald Trump, boxing is once again the top source of income for the very worst people," Kimmel joked.

But, LP ain't laughing ... in fact, he's calling out the host for bashing him after he was a guest on the same show just 3 years ago.

"F*** you, Jimmy Kimmel. F*** you," Logan said on his "Impaulsive" podcast Tuesday.

Paul has received similar treatment recently -- he was mentioned in Bo Burnham's song, "That Funny Feeling," during his popular Netflix special, "Inside" ... which LP says he was cool with.

Paul also takes aim at Kimmel's staff ... saying, "Your writers are so lacking content and creativity they had to do some lame-ass Paul joke??"

Former "Smallville" star Allison Mack couldn't wait to start serving her prison term ... or so it seems, 'cause she showed up more than 2 weeks early to begin serving her sentence.

Allison reported to the facility Monday, according to the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, CA. She was supposed to begin serving her sentence on September 29.

Mack was sentenced to 3 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of racketeering and one count of racketeering conspiracy in her highly publicized sex cult case. She recruited and directed women to have sex with the leader of the cult.

After her release ... Allison will be on supervised release for another 3 years.

BTW, if FCI Dublin sounds familiar it's because that's where Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman served their sentences for their roles in the college admissions scandal.

As we reported ... Allison was sentenced back in June. The sex cult leader, Keith Raniere, was sentenced to 120 years in prison. Mack was with him in Mexico when he got busted back in 2018.