You Might Want to Rethink

Liam Neeson's own words -- about looking for a "black bastard" to kill 40 years ago -- are derailing the NYC rollout of his new movie.

"Cold Pursuit" is premiering Tuesday night in NYC, but the studio's decided to cancel the red carpet event -- meaning Neeson won't have to face the media. That change was announced just hours before the premiere -- and a few hours after Neeson tried to soften the blow of his bombshell revelation.

He went on 'GMA,' attempting to further explain why he'd tried to avenge a friend's rape -- when he was in his 20s -- by seeking to assault random black men. Neeson didn't know the attacker's identity but only knew he was black.

Neeson first told the puzzling story to The Independent on Monday, and the backlash has been building ever since.

For instance, we spoke to Killer Mike outside SiriusXM's office in NYC and he said he's been dealing with people like Neeson all his life.

Mike ripped Neeson for his "incredibly racist, bigoted and wrong" comments, but added he's not worried about the actor because he doesn't have to work with him.

The Game went after Tomi Lahren in a big way, going after her for cracking jokes about 21 Savage's ICE arrest ... by going on a raunchy, profanity-laced rant.

The rapper directed a sexually explicit series of insults Tuesday at the conservative Fox News contributor, after Lahren mocked 21's arrest Sunday by tweeting a reference to his hit track, "Bank Account" ... "I got one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight ICE agents ready to deport ya."

Game's clearly not down with Tomi's attempt at humor, saying ... "21 Savage gettin detained by ICE is not funny nor anything for ya middle of the mall clip in wearin’ h** a** to be joking about."

The Game goes on to sling A LOT more mud ... and it's pretty nasty.

He closed out his rant by adding ... "Here's some advice: stay out the tanning salon, you're starting to look like a sick tangerine. #FreeDaReal #21 [Someone please recommend a good burn center for her] #ThanksInAdvance"

Game's not the first to fire back at Tomi -- Cardi B shot back, "Don't make me get my leash."

As you know, the 2 women already had beef.

Nicki Minaj also blasted Lahren, saying ... "Your obsession w/our culture is scary to say the least. I hate giving you the attention you so desperately crave. Laughing @ ppl getting deported as if your ancestors discovered America. Are you Native American? You fkn clown."

Black Eyed Peas rapper, Taboo, says Adam Levine & Co. aren't special because everyone who does the Super Bowl halftime show gets destroyed ... so there's no need to hang their heads.

We got Taboo at LAX Monday -- as he returned from ATL -- and he dropped some knowledge about playing at the big game. He calls it an unwinnable situation for ANY artist. Remember, BEP performed 8 years ago at Super Bowl XLV ... so, he speaks from experience.

Taboo says he and his bandmates got eviscerated for, what some critics called, an uninspired performance with a lot of shouting into mics and not enough dancing. TBH, it was a lot of the same criticisms Maroon 5 is now getting.

On top of their music getting picked apart ... Maroon 5, Travis Scott and Big Boi had all the added flak from Colin Kaepernick supporters -- not to mention the memes about Adam's tattoos and wardrobe.

So, where IS the love? Not at LAX! Watch the clip to the end to see some edgy travelers giving Taboo the business.

2/5 10:43 AM PT-- PETA held a protest outside CBS Tuesday morning in NYC, holding the network responsible for airing Big Boi's fur-lined Super Bowl performance.

Big Boi's Super Bowl halftime performance is drawing penalty flags -- not for the music (see Maroon 5) -- but for his fur coat, which PETA wants to take off his back and donate to the homeless.

We've learned PETA fired off a stern letter Monday to Big Boi, even addressing him by his real name -- Antwan -- like a disappointed parent. In the letter, the animal rights group tries to convince the Outkast rapper to retire all of his furs and switch to faux.

PETA says it knows exactly what to do with Big Boi's luxury fur -- which it believes to be fox -- offering to distribute it to homeless shelters in America or Syrian refugees.

Taking it a step further, PETA says it's sending him a "gorgeous" faux fur for him to flaunt.

PETA tells us a coat the size of Big Boi's costs an estimated 25 red foxes their lives, and points out the animals are electrocuted or have their necks broken ... purely for fashion.

We've reached out to Big to confirm his coat was genuine fur, but no word back. PETA says it hasn't gotten a response from him yet either.

CeeLo Green says he should have chosen his words A LOT more carefully when he threw major shade at NFL boycotters ... in defense of his friend Big Boi.

CeeLo was on "TMZ Live" Monday, explaining a since-deleted tweet he fired off after Big Boi and Travis Scott performed in the Super Bowl Halftime show. He'd said, "@BigBoi yo big we riding wit you fam DO THAT SHIT! F**k these so called protesters you just got 100m worth of press. I'll kill for you."

Despite those extremely harsh words, CeeLo told us he meant no harm and was more trying to support his friend, than take a shot at Colin Kaepernick's supporters.

As you know, Adam Levine and Maroon 5, along with their guest stars, took a lot of flak from people boycotting the NFL. CeeLo says he was watching the Halftime Show when his emotions got the best of him.

Still, he faced huge blowback from people who were offended at the "so called protesters" remark. There were other artists -- most notably Jay-Z and Rihanna -- who turned down the SB gig to stand with Kap.

Darius McCrary's real-life "Family Matters" are finally settled -- after a nearly 2-year long divorce battle he and his ex-wife have reached an agreement ... TMZ has learned.

Tammy Brawner, a former Harlem Globetrotter, and Darius filed final divorce docs Monday in L.A. -- and in their most contentious issue ... custody of 3-year-old Zoey ... Tammy's come out on top. According to docs, obtained by TMZ, she gets legal and physical custody of Zoey, and Darius will have weekly visits with her.

There are several strings attached for Darius. For starters, his first 20 visits with Zoey will be monitored. According to docs, he must also attend alcohol/drug abuse and batterers intervention classes over the next year -- and complete 6 parenting classes.

If he completes the classes, he can then have unmonitored visits. He'll still have to enroll in co-parenting classes. Both parents are banned from speaking in a "negative, disrespectful or derogatory manner" around their child.

Financially, Darius will pay Tammy $1,366 per month in child support ... but no spousal support.

The court seems to be taking Tammy's allegations about Darius' substance abuse very seriously. The agreement requires him to submit to 2 random drug tests over the next 60 days.

Neither parent can be under the influence of drugs or any other substances when they have Zoey.

Liam Neeson is copping to going on the hunt for revenge decades ago against some "black bastard" ... after a close friend was raped by a black man -- and says the experience taught him a valuable lesson.

The actor says he walked the streets for days with a cosh -- a baton-like weapon -- as he looked for an opportunity to kill a random black man. We're told the incident happened more than 40 years ago. Neeson opened up about it for the first time while talking to The Independent about his new movie, "Cold Pursuit."

He said a female friend had been raped, and although she didn't know her attacker's identity, she knew he was black. Check out the clip ... Liam says he walked outside bars hoping to be approached by a black man so he could "kill him" as revenge for his friend's rape.

Neeson makes it clear nothing ever happened, and says he learned from his "awful" and "horrible" behavior ... revenge isn't the answer.

21 Savage is a living, breathing example of that ol' saying, "fake it til you make it" ... at least according to ICE.

An ICE official told CNN on Sunday ... "His whole public persona is false. He actually came to the U.S. from the U.K. as a teen and overstayed his visa."

The arrest has totally shocked 21 Savage's fans ... who had NO CLUE about his British roots. We did some digging and to be fair, Sav has never claimed Atlanta as his birthplace. In multiple profiles on the rapper ... media outlets have referred to him as being "from" Atlanta or say he "grew up" there.

That said, it sure doesn't seem like he's ever gone out of his way to correct any reports of him being an ATL native. 21 definitely reps Atlanta in his rhymes ... and he's told tales about getting expelled from an Atlanta school for bringing a gun to class.

Still, he's never said he was "born" there.

As we reported ... Sav was arrested early Sunday in Atlanta by what ICE described as a targeted operation. ICE officials say 21 Savage is actually a U.K. national and has been illegally in the U.S. since 2006. They say he came here as a kid in 2005.

A woman told police Saturday Soulja Boy kidnapped her but his manager is calling BS ... TMZ has learned.

Sources familiar with the allegations tell TMZ, a woman named Kayla was at Soulja's home in Agoura Hills just outside of L.A. Friday night, but at around 2:30 AM Saturday they began arguing and she was told to leave.

We're told Kayla -- who was apparently dating Soulja -- got in her car, put it in reverse and backed down the driveway, where she clipped the curb. We're told Soujla's assistant was outside and witnessed it, and became "agitated" and the 2 started fighting.

Sources connected to Kayla claim Soulja came out and tried to break the fight up, but Kayla claims he punched and kicked her while she was on the ground, and then took her inside the garage and tied her to a chair with an extension cord.

The sources say Kayla was tied up for 6 hours.

We're told she was released, went home and contacted police Saturday morning. We're told she went to the hospital where she was treated for her injuries and was discharged late Saturday night. She claims she has 3 fractured ribs and a concussion.

Law enforcement acknowledges someone filed a kidnapping report Saturday morning and there is "an active investigation" but they would not divulge the name of the suspect or the alleged victim.

Soulja is on 5-years probation for a weapons conviction. He is not allowed to threaten anyone or possess any deadly weapon.

The NFL tried telling Barstool Sports to stay away, but the company's president insisted on attending Super Bowl LIII ... and just got his ass thrown out in handcuffs.

Dave Portnoy was hauled away by security Sunday during Maroon 5's halftime show as he watched from the stand -- and by hauled, we mean his entire body was literally lifted up and carried out by a swarm of guards. He was trying to go incognito with a stache and shades.

Dave was brought inside and appeared to be getting questioned by security personnel before armed police officers cuffed him and escorted him outside. It's unclear if he was ultimately arrested or not, but Dave and co. definitely knew they weren't allowed in.

If you'll recall ... Dave and fellow Barstool employee PFT Commenter got tossed from the Super Bowl Opening Day Event last week after officials discovered they were carrying fake press passes. Both men were issued criminal trespass warnings by police.

Bill Bellamy says Virginia Governor Ralph Northam has no choice but to resign after admitting he'd worn blackface in his youth ... 'cause he thinks people don't really change.

We got the longtime comedian Sunday at LAX and asked what he thought of Gov. Northam denying he was pictured in an old blackface photo that surfaced in his medical school's yearbook but copping to wearing blackface for a Michael Jackson costume/dance contest.

Northam told reporters Saturday that while he does not believe he was in either of the racist costumes that showed up on his own personal yearbook page, he did explain how he once put shoe polish on his face to dance like MJ. He also said he wasn't resigning.

Bill thinks the scandal's too big for the Gov not to step down, despite his best efforts to wiggle out of the predicament. According to BB ... you simply can't serve as a state's representative with that in your history ... no matter how far back it goes, period.

4:05 PM PT -- Lights have reportedly begun to come back on inside MDC, which got crowds still outside to cheer.

'Love & Hip Hop' star Yandy Smith-Harris was on the front lines of protests taking place in NYC over inhumane prison conditions -- and she got pepper sprayed in the process.

The reality TV star -- whose husband, Mendeecees Harris, is currently locked up in the New York prison system -- led a rally Sunday outside of Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center ... where inmates have reportedly been without electricity and heat for days now.

It's a remarkable scene. Yandy uses a speaker system to ask prisoners if they've been given blankets or if their toilets work yet, to which they respond no by banging on the windows. Later, you see Yandy and other protesters rush the building, demanding to see their loved ones ... only to be driven out by pepper spray from the guards inside.

Protests have been going on since at least Saturday, if not earlier, as families of prisoners have flooded the streets near MDC, demanding supplies be sent and that the power system quickly be restored. Prisoners have been using flashlights to signal for help at night.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons says a fire destroyed an electrical panel inside and prevented access to backup generators. It's unclear when power and heat is set to be back on.

The civil unrest did not go unnoticed on a city level. Mayor Bill de Blasio said Saturday that blankets and hand warmers were being sent to the prison, no matter what.

As to how bad conditions inside really are, law enforcement sources directly connected to MDC tell us inmates have been peeing in water bottles and using those for warmth. We're told prison officials have been hesitant to let prisoners out of their cells out of fear for potential riots.

Staind frontman Aaron Lewis had a rough Saturday night in front of a raucous crowd, which he didn't help when he threw Latin Americans under the bus ... and walked off stage.

Aaron was performing solo at the Pharr Events Center in Texas Saturday night, where eyewitnesses tell us he refused to play his final song on guitar because the audience wouldn't shut the hell up. It was an awkward scene ... like a parent chastising their kids.

You can hear people in the crowd start to get annoyed by their fellow concertgoers -- and perhaps Aaron himself -- and eventually someone asks him to sing something in Spanish ... which spurred an interesting response from Aaron.

He says, "I'm sorry, I don't know how to speak Spanish. I'm American." Some people in the crowd cheered, others seemed to show their disapproval.

Eventually, when the crowd wouldn't quiet down to Aaron's required level ... he left the stage, wishing everyone a good night. Safe to say, people were not happy about it.

Akon's got a hot take on African-American singers and rappers blowing off the Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show, and it sounds like he's NOT exactly down with the boycott in support of Colin Kaepernick.

We got the singer/producer as he touched down in ATL, days ahead of the big game, and asked what he made of A-list celebs snubbing the NFL to stand in solidarity with Kap. Some are even calling for Travis Scott, Big Boi and Maroon 5 to take a knee during their performance -- but don't count Akon among that group.

For him, it's about time and place and he believes the Super Bowl is just too big a stage to opt out of playing on it.

Bill Maher's at it again -- he made yet another joke on his show many people are calling racist ... but this time he said it right to a black congressman's face.

Bill was interviewing Rep. Will Hurd from Texas during the one-on-one segment of 'Real Time' Friday night when he challenged Hurd to explain why he's a member of the Republican Party ... especially since he came from the CIA.

Hurd replied, "I was in the CIA for almost a decade. I was the dude in the back alleys at 4 o’clock in the morning collecting intelligence on threats to the homeland," ... to which Maher commented, "That's where they'd collect them, huh?"

It got some laughs, but then Bill added ... "Wow, by the Popeyes chicken."

Neither the audience nor Hurd seemed to really react to the comment, but it's getting a lot of backlash online. Of course, this isn't a first for Maher -- in June 2017 he dropped the n-word on his show while making a joke ... and later apologized.

Rudy Gobert, wipe away the tears and "man up" ... 'cause there's no crying in basketball -- so says Shaquille O'Neal, who knows a thing or 15 about being an All-Star.

TMZ Sports saw Shaq at his Fun House Super Bowl bash in ATL -- and asked him about Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert crying in front of reporters while discussing NOT making the All-Star team ... a story the whole NBA world's talking about.

The Big Aristotle's advice ... Stop. Crying.

"Maybe he was sad he didn't make it, but it happens like that sometimes. I remember when I made it 15 years in a row and the last year I didn't make it. I guess I wasn't good enough. But, it's not something you cry about."

FYI ... Gobert's a beast -- especially on defense -- and definitely could've been an All-Star ... but he ain't, and showing emotion opened the door for rival players to attack.

(See Draymond Green -- who trolled RG on Twitter).

"We live in a tough sport. Guys like Draymond, he knows what he's doing. He's trying to get in [Gobert's] head. It's psychological. But there is no crying in basketball Rudy. Man up."

"Put some Icy Hot on your face, Rudy."