Weird News

Lionsgate is dropping John Travolta's upcoming movie -- a John Gotti biopic -- just 10 days before it's scheduled release date.

The studio did not give any explanation for selling "Gotti" back to the production company in the 11th hour. The Kevin Connolly directed flick was set to come out on Dec. 15. It also co-starred Travolta's real-life wife Kelly Preston.

Retail giants Walmart, Target and Costco and others are getting sued for blowing out toilets and sewer systems with allegedly "flushable" wet wipes.

Here's the straight poop ... a homeowners association in NY state is making a big stink over several brands of flushable wet wipes sold at the stores. According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, the wipes claim to be safe for sewers and septic tanks because they break down easily after flushing.

Not so, according to the suit. The HOA says these wipes are built to hold up under the "pressure of scrubbing" ... your anus, that is. That's great news for the wiper, but horrible for the wiper's toilet system, allegedly.

The lawsuit includes several photos of damaged sewage systems, and lays blame squarely on the increased use of flushable wipes.

The HOA says the wipes are costing NY state $18 million a year in dookie damage ... no s**t.

Samuel L. Jackson's name was invoked during a crazy arrest at LAX this weekend, where cops say weapons were found on a guy claiming SLJ's his uncle.

An unidentified man got busted at the airport Sunday for carrying what police say were multiple weapons, including knives, a long piece of rebar and a handful of tools.

During the arrest, you can hear him say, "My uncle's Samuel Jackson. Samuel L. Jackson!" It's unclear what, if any, relation the actor might have been to him.

Law enforcement sources tell us police were alerted to a suspicious man hanging around the airport with a bow and arrow. When cops approached, we're told he booked it which set off a brief chase ... which ended when cops tazed him and took him down.

The man was taken to a hospital by ambulance, apparently having suffered injuries during the arrest. He was booked for possession of a dagger and resisting arrest.

As for Samuel ... he's probably tired of these motherf****** mentions.

The CEO of a company that begins with "Snap" is a wanted man by residents in a San Fernando Valley neighborhood because he's terrorizing them with his driving ... and they've wrongly targeted poor Evan Spiegel.

The owner of this Lambo is being accused of breaking just about every traffic law known to man ... from speeding to erratic lane changes. Folks in the Chatsworth area have assumed the offender is Evan, because he has the most famous company that begins with "Snap".

The Chatsworth Neighborhood Watch has been skewering Evan on Facebook, saying things like:

"That's Evan Spiegel, Snapchat CEO. The police shouldn't have a hard time finding him"

"This asshole was flying down vanowen 2 days ago."

"I don’t care who this jackass is or how much money he has... Dont drive like an ass...."

"What a jerk! Wondering if you can file an online report?"

"I’ve also seen this jerk once before! He almost hit us when we were pulling out from the shopping plaza at De Soto & Lassen. This was like a month ago but I recognize the f***er instantly!!"

Turns out Evan's getting a bad rap, because we found out the car actually belongs to Snap Liquids CEO Nathan Daneshrad ... whose company sells vape liquid flavors.

We reached out to Nathan ... he had no comment.

As for Evan ... he has an alibi, because he lives in Brentwood and no one in their right mind would hang out miles away from Miranda Kerr.

Meredith Vieira brought up a "bag of sex toys" she once found in Matt Lauer's office -- and you gotta see how Matt expertly tap danced out of the awkward convo.

The now-cringeworthy moment went down in 2016 when Matt and Savannah Guthrie were guests on Meredith's talk show. She put Matt on blast by bringing up the bag she says she found back when she was co-hosing the "Today" show with him.

Matt was quick on his feet, and blamed a sex therapist who had appeared on "Today" -- although Meredith and Savannah don't seem to be buying his memory of it.

The anecdote is interesting now after one of Lauer's accusers told Variety he once gifted a sex toy to a female employee.

Not mentioned during Matt's guest spot on Meredith's show ... the video TMZ posted of Matt creepily whispering to Meredith, "Keep bending over like that. It's a nice view."

Texas Congressman Joe Barton sent nudes and illicit text messages to a woman, and he's apologizing for the graphic image first revealed by a Twitter user.

Barton, a Republican, sent the nude photo showing his penis. The Twitter user censored the image, and also revealed a sext that reads, "I want u soo bad. Right now."

Barton now says, "While separated from my second wife, prior to the divorce, I had sexual relationships with other mature adult women. Each was consensual. Those relationships have ended."

He adds, "I am sorry I did not use better judgment during those days. I am sorry that I let my constituents down."

The Twitter user who posted the naked shot and graphic text claims to also have several videos of Barton masturbating -- and tagged the Twitter accounts of President Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz. It's unclear if the tweeter is the woman to whom Barton admits sending the photos -- but the person claims he/she is being "harassed" by Barton.

Representative Barton has served in the House for 32 years. He recently announced a re-election bid, but now tells the Texas Tribune he's reconsidering.

David Foster quickly hit the reject button when some random chick -- to him, anyway -- tried to get in his car to leave with him ... and it FREAKED him the hell out.

The bizarre incident went down Monday night as the legendary producer was leaving Craig's. Things got super weird at his car -- while David was talking to our guy, 'Real Housewives of Orange County' star Kelly Dodd, walked up the passenger side and said, "You're gonna have another housewife."

You've gotta see David's reaction. Yeah, he was married to Yolanda Hadid, but he's definitely NOT looking for an encore 'Housewife' performance ... which Kelly learned the hard way.

Ass. Kicked. To the curb ... in this awesome video.

David's spokeswoman tells TMZ, "In today’s environment, what Kelly did was careless, inappropriate and disrespectful. David drove away in his car, alone and shaken. The video and her remarks speak for itself."

Police beelined it for Tyrese's home early Monday morning after he posted a video showing a man tied up in his underwear, looking distressed in Tyrese's home ... as Tyrese eats ramen.

The video -- posted at 3 AM -- shows the man bound and gagged and it looks like he's being held hostage. The man on the couch is comedian Michael Blackson ... whose own vid, infamously mocking Tyrese's breakdown, went viral a couple weeks ago.

LAPD got a flurry of calls after Tyrese posted his vid of Michael bound and gagged -- people felt he had finally lost it, and kidnapped Blackson out of revenge ... now that he has 50/50 custody of Shayla.

When cops arrived at Tyrese's home they spoke with his security and were told the video was a well-produced "joke" -- and Blackson was totally in on it.

Crisis averted. And well played ... by Tyrese and Blackson.

UFC star Fabricio Werdum attacked another UFC fighter with a boomerang in Australia.

Seriously -- we're not making this up.

It all went down at the UFC fighters' hotel in Sydney ... when rising welterweight star Colby Covington allegedly called Werdum a "filthy Brazilian" in the lobby.

FYI, Covington hurled a similar insult at a Brazilian crowd after his last fight in Sao Paulo ... and Fabricio's one of the UFC's biggest Brazilian stars.

So, Werdum did what any angry Australian tourist would do -- he took it outside and UNCORKED HIS DAMN BOOMERANG!!!

Later on, Covington recorded himself going on a racist and homophobic rant against the former heavyweight champ ... where he claimed Fabricio also punched him in the face.

"Look at you, f**king f**got," Colby said. "F**k Brazil. F**k Fabricio Werdum ... and they wonder why they get talked to like that -- 'cause they’re a bunch of animals."

But Werdum says he didn't punch Covington ... claiming Colby got physical first by throwing a kick.

Super Bowl 52's taking its slogan seriously ... and it'll be EVERYWHERE for EVERYONE to see and buy.

TMZ Sports obtained docs filed by the Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee outlining where it wants to place its slogan "Bold North." There's the obvious -- key chains, magnets, wallets, umbrellas, portable chairs, jigsaw puzzles, toys, temporary tattoos, clothing, etc.

Basically, it looks like everything you'll buy at the stadium will feature the slogan, even the menu items. The trademark gets super specific with the foods they're giving the Bold North name to, including:

-- Sandwiches (brisket, turkey, beef and vegan, too!)

-- Fried chicken

-- Pretzels

-- Pizza, calzones

-- Hot dogs, corn dogs

-- Donuts

-- Burritos, tacos and fajitas

Bold ... for sure.

Charles Manson is now a model prisoner ... because wreaking havoc behind bars is apparently a young man's game.

Sources with the California Department of Corrections tell TMZ ... The soon-to-be 83-year-old murderer hasn't violated prison rules since February 29, 2016 when guards found him in possession of a cell phone. A big no-no.

Prison officials believe Manson's on a 20-month goody two-shoes streak simply because of old age and health complications.

But Manson has not always been a model prisoner ... far from it. TMZ's obtained Manson's rap sheet in prison ... and he's tested patience for decades. There are over 100 infractions that go back to 1972, including ...

October 1972 -- Refused to shave

July 1973 -- Assault on staff

January 1975 -- Spitting and threatening staff

June 1977 -- Striking an officer

July 1978 -- Assault on correctional officer

April 1983 -- Possession of marijuana

July 1985 -- Possession of a hacksaw blade

February 1993 -- Assault and battery on non-prisoner

July 1993 -- Possession of a stabbing instrument

April 1995 -- Trafficking narcotics

Sept. 1995 -- Threatening to kill a police officer

March 1999 -- Battery on an inmate with weapon

December 2003 -- Possession of a deadly weapon

June 2009 -- Possession of a wrist watch

June 2015 -- Refusal to provide urine sample

A 36-foot-tall effigy of Harvey Weinstein will go up in smoke, flames ... and then down in ashes as part of a British tradition.

The Edenbridge Bonfire Society unveiled the giant figure Wednesday in preparation for Saturday's annual Bonfire Night celebration in London. It's an yearly tradition for Brits in memory of Guy Fawkes' 1605 failed plot to blow up the Parliament.

So, why fry Harvey? The simple answer is the Society always chooses a well-known figure in pop culture who they believe deserves a good torching. Weinstein's facing a mountain of sexual assault allegations in Britain alone, sooo ...

A Sephora cosmetics store in Hollywood cared more about peddling lipstick than the oral health of customers, and now a woman is stuck with a lifelong disease ... according to a new suit.

A California woman claims she visited the store in October 2015 and sampled a lipstick from one of the "common use" tubes on display ... and ended up with herpes on her lip. She says the infection was diagnosed by medical pros and she claims she never had herpes or cold sores before this Sephora visit.

According to the docs ... Sephora failed to clearly warn the woman and other customers of the risk of getting herpes or other diseases from trying on the lipstick samples. She says if she would have known ... she would've avoided them like the plague.

The woman claims other lipstick companies have proven methods of avoiding herpes exposure -- like individual samples or assistance from trained professionals -- but Sephora cared too much about making a quick buck to bother.

She's suing the cosmetics chain for the emotional distress over an "incurable lifelong affliction" she says she now has to deal with as a result of using its lipstick samples.

Here's something a little strange -- Charlie Heaton got kicked out of the U.S. because he was allegedly caught with cocaine at the airport ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the "Stranger Things" star flew into LAX last Saturday from London, but was denied entry because a random baggage check uncovered trace amounts of cocaine in his bag.

We're told since Heaton didn't have a previous record, he was allowed to withdraw his application to enter the country and get on a plane back to London instead of being arrested.

Our sources say he will be allowed to enter the U.S. again ... but not until he reapplies for admission.

This airport incident is why Heaton was noticeably missing from the Netflix Season 2 premiere party for "Stranger Things" Thursday night in L.A.

Spencer Pratt is hurting after suffering a huge loss -- a tiny bird he believes succumbed to the unseasonable heat.

The reality TV star woke up to the horror in his L.A. home Tuesday -- after sleeping in a little late. One of his backyard hummingbirds -- which he'd befriended -- was unresponsive.

Spencer was emotional, but gathered himself to go buy supplies for a proper burial for his beloved "hummer angel." Check out the ceremony. Just beautiful.

He has a message for his fellow hummingbird lovers too -- don't use red dye nectar!!! He thinks it kills them.

Cameron Diaz owes a big fat debt of gratitude to a very persistent homeless woman who tried to return her wallet but got blown off by a fancy restaurant ... but stayed close by 'til cops arrived.

The actress went to dinner Thursday night in Bev Hills at the super exclusive and insanely expensive Matsuhisa. On her way out, Diaz unwittingly dropped her wallet on the street ... cash, credit cards, I.D., the works.

Enter the homeless lady, who saw the wallet on the ground and made the connection that its owner must have dined at Matsuhisa. So, she walked inside -- wallet in hand -- in search of Cameron.

Law enforcement sources tell us someone who works at the restaurant told the homeless lady Cameron had already left ... and that was that.

The homeless woman left the restaurant, but instead of pocketing the loot and running ... she stuck around.

We're told someone called police and told them some homeless woman had Cameron Diaz's wallet. Cops arrived in short order, found the woman, and she was more than happy to turn the wallet over totally intact.