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Nick Reiner had an eventful day in court ... he's now being repped by a public defender and his outgoing defense attorney made it clear he thinks Nick is NOT guilty of murdering his parents ... but the way Alan Jackson made his statement has our antennas up.

We got into every angle of Nick's appearance in a Downtown Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday on "TMZ Live" ... the change of lawyer, an interesting statement from the D.A., a possible defense strategy, and we even had a reporter inside the courthouse who told us how Nick was acting.

The big thing here is Jackson is out, and a public defender is in ... but Jackson left some breadcrumbs that seem to indicate Nick's got a strategy ready and a new defense team may be coming in to take over.

Justin Baldoni claimed Blake Lively was setting him up "for a trap" during the filming of sex scenes in their film "It Ends With Us" ... according to private messages unveiled in new court documents.

The papers, obtained by TMZ, contain a correspondence Baldoni allegedly sent to his former agent Danny Greenberg, venting about working with Lively.

In the message, Baldoni complained he just had a "really really bad week," writing, "She had the audacity to email me directly and invite me to a meeting at her house alone if I chose."

Baldoni went on to allege Lively refused to use a body double for sex scenes, writing, "Sony and [producer Todd Black] have to jump in to make sure that happens because that's just setting me up for a trap."

"M3GAN" needs a good lawyer ... not to defend her murderous rampage, but to defend her creators from allegedly ripping off another movie.

Universal Pictures, Blumhouse Pictures, James Wan and screenwriter Akela Cooper have been sued by a man named Carl Watts -- a former airline pilot and amateur filmmaker -- who claims their movie bears numerous similarities to his movie "Paranormal Adoption," released in 2012.

According to Watts, both films feature a girl orphaned at a young age who develops a strong attachment to a doll that grows violent toward other people in the girl's life when they try to get in between the doll and the girl.

Watts also points to the sequel potential of both films -- leaving the possibility of more rampage open at the end of each film -- as another defining characteristic.

Diddy's got a big payday problem, as in some of his employees are angry they're not getting paid while he's locked up in federal prison ... but his rep insists he has it under control.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Diddy's fortune is being handled by business management firm Tri Star Sports & Entertainment while he's in the clink, and we're told they're keeping a tight leash on his money -- too tight for some people on the payroll.

For instance, we're told some attorneys handling Diddy’s mountain of civil lawsuits have gone unpaid, and other staffers have been stiffed as well, and, as a result, at least one of them has quit.

Donnie McClurkin, a Grammy Award-winning gospel singer and pastor, has been sued by a man accusing him of sexually abusing him over a period of several years ... according to a report from NBC News.

Giuseppe Corletto has alleged he first met McClurkin when he joined the pastor's Perfecting Faith Church in Long Island, New York, during his early 20s. Corletto said McClurkin served as a mentor figure while he struggled with his sexuality as a young man.

Corletto claimed he eventually started working as McClurkin's personal assistant and said the singer began groping him during what were described as "pray the gay away" spiritual sessions.

1/6/26 8:45 AM PT -- The TRO was denied by the court clerk because it's not an emergency order ... the judge will rule January 23 on the issue at the hearing.

Brittany Furlan has persisted with claims she used to be in a relationship with "Falling in Reverse" frontman Ronnie Radke, but he says she got catfished ... now he's filing a temporary restraining order against her, TMZ has learned.

Documents obtained by TMZ show Ronnie filed the TRO Monday in LA Superior Court, citing Brittany harassed him by contacting him multiple times on social media.

Ronnie alleges when he ignored her messages, Brittany drove to his house and sat out front. Then, he alleges she followed him to a doctor's appointment and waited outside, just staring at him.

As a result, Ronnie is asking the court to order Brittany to stay at least 100 yards away from him.

Ten people have been found guilty of cyberbullying France's first lady, Brigitte Macron, by spreading false claims about her gender.

A Paris court found the wife of French President Emmanuel Macron had been subjected to "particularly degrading" comments by the defendants, some of whom reportedly suggested Brigitte was transgender and a pedophile, reports the Associated Press.

The defendants were accused of sharing online comments to falsely claim Brigitte was born as a male. They also reportedly compared the 24-year age gap between Brigitte and Emmanuel to pedophilia.

Several defendants claimed their comments were intended to be humorous during their two-day trial, which took place last October.

One half of the Island Boys didn't ring in the New Year on a high note ... 'cause TMZ has learned Franky Venegas was arrested again in Florida for alleged drug-related offenses and is currently behind bars.

Law enforcement tells us Franky was booked into the Collier County Jail in Naples Wednesday night on one count of drug paraphernalia, posing for a fresh mug shot ... face tattoos and all.

We're told Franky has no bond, as he's being held on a 24-hour hold because he's already out on bond from a February arrest for delivering/possessing/selling a firearm with an altered serial number.

We broke the story ... Franky was arrested in February on drug and firearm charges. The drug count was dropped, but the firearm charge stuck, and that's the case he's currently out on bond for.

Ian Ziering is facing an ugly reminder of a New Year's Eve incident from two years ago ... he's being sued for assault and battery stemming from a 2023 brawl on a Hollywood street with motorcyclists.

Jacob Hernandez, who says he was one of the bikers involved in the physical altercation, is dragging the "Beverly Hills, 90210" alum for intentional infliction of emotional distress, malicious prosecution, negligence and negligent infliction of emotional distress ... this according to a civil complaint filed in Los Angeles Monday and obtained by TMZ.

In the filing, Hernandez laid out his POV of what went down ... saying he and his pals were driving on their mini-motorbikes between cars on Hollywood Blvd. on December 31, 2023. At one point, he says, they waited for a safe time to change lanes and stopped in front of a Mercedes-Benz, which Ziering was driving. Hernandez claims that's when Ziering stepped out of his car and "with full force shoved" him ... which Hernandez claims caused physical injuries to him and his vehicle.

Hernandez reiterates traffic was stopped at the time and insists he was "not impeding the flow of traffic in any way" when Ziering allegedly became aggressive toward him. He also claims he did not hit the Mercedes. TMZ published video days after the altercation which does appear to show Ziering shoving the man.

Tyler Perry's alleged text messages with his sexual battery accuser Mario Rodriguez seem to show the other man asking Perry for money prior to filing a lawsuit against him.

We've obtained alleged text messages between Rodriguez and Perry ... with several sent on August 31 of this year.

Check out the messages which were allegedly sent by Rodriguez ... beginning with him writing he hasn't been feeling well recently and blaming it on his teeth.

Former A&E personality Tony McCollister -- who was arrested on child and animal abuse charges -- has been court-ordered to stay away from the two dogs he allegedly abused in Ohio ... and, specifically, not to have sex with the animals.

As we reported ... McCollister's canines were taken into custody by the Warren County Sheriff's Office -- and are now being well cared for following the December 23 arrest of the former star of A&E's "Neighbors with Benefits," Sheriff Barry Riley told TMZ.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the judge ordered McCollister to keep at least 500 feet away from not just his pets, but all animals ... and all minor children as well.  The judge notes that McCollister must refrain from "forcing sexual relations" upon his minor children and dogs.

"Southern Hospitality" star Grace Lilly was arrested Monday ... after cops pulled her over and say they found a bottle of "happy pills" in her purse late Sunday night.

According to a police report, obtained by TMZ, Grace was driving through Charleston, South Carolina, in her Mercedes C-Class sedan with a man in her car. Officers say they initiated a traffic stop when Grace failed to use her turn signal to change lanes.

Cops say there was already a warrant out for her arrest in the system, so officers ordered her to step out of the vehicle and they detained her in handcuffs.

While detained, Grace allegedly asked if she could bring her purse with her to the detention center ... and cops say they found a container of pills inside the bag labeled "Happy Pills."

A man who once starred on a reality show about swingers has been arrested in Ohio and charged with 2 sex charges -- one involving an animal.

Tony McCollister, who starred on A&E's short-lived "Neighbors with Benefits" reality series about swingers, was cuffed in Warren County Tuesday on charges of pandering obscenity involving a minor and sexual conduct with an animal. His bail was set at $250,000 when he was arraigned in court this week, which he satisfied.

He is next due in court on Dec. 30, per WLWT5, who was first to report the news.

Todd Nepola's no longer interested in suing Bravo and NBC for defamation ... dismissing his lawsuit earlier this week.

The "Real Housewives of Miami" star filed a short document with the court voluntarily dismissing his action against the major corporations ... dismissing the lawsuit with prejudice, so he can't bring it again.

The document does not provide a reason for the dismissal.

2:45 PM EST -- Tea Tyme -- who is accused of killing a man while live-streaming while driving her vehicle in November -- is allowed to walk free ahead of her trial, an Illinois county court determined at a hearing Friday. She was arrested for the incident on Tuesday ... and although she will no longer be held in a cell, there are conditions to her release.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ ... she will have a curfew and will be barred from driving and using social media outside her home.

A preliminary hearing for the trial will take place on June 27.

Prosecutors don't want Tea Tyme -- the TikToker accused of killing a pedestrian while live-streaming back in November -- to be allowed back on the streets prior to her trial ... arguing she poses a threat to public safety.

The Lake County State's Attorney submitted the document to the court Friday ... laying out the allegations against Tea Tyme -- real name Tynesha McCarty-Wroten.

According to prosecutors ... Tea Tyme was live-streaming to 14 people when she ran a red light and struck 59-year-old Darren Lucas.

There's even more Epstein documents coming -- more than a million in fact ... that's according to a post Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Justice.

The DOJ reports the FBI and Attorney for the Southern District of New York have given them the new trove of documents to "review for release."

They wrote, "We have lawyers working around the clock to review and make the legally required redactions to protect victims, and we will release the documents as soon as possible. Due to the mass volume of material, this process may take a few more weeks. The Department will continue to fully comply with federal law and President Trump’s direction to release the files."

This new stockpile of files could contain names and images of celebrities never-before linked to Jeffrey Epstein.