TMZ.com

Sarma Melngailis, known as the "Bad Vegan" from the popular Netflix docuseries, is open to starting a new restaurant after she was convicted of stealing millions from her last one ... and her ex thinks she should go for it!

Chef Matthew Kenney wasn't just dating Sarma back in the early 2000s, they went into biz together, opening Pure Food and Wine. As "Bad Vegan" viewers know ... their relationship went south, and Matthew got bumped out of their restaurant venture.

Despite that, a rep for Matthew tells TMZ … he believes in second chances and wishes Sarma the best. If opening another restaurant is what she wants, he thinks she should pursue it.

Matthew hasn't seen the new series yet, despite being featured on it -- but it doesn't appear there's any bad blood between Sarma and her ex.

We're told Matthew spoke to her a few years ago, and actually wrote a letter in support of her.

ICYMI ... Sarma and Matthew opened Pure Food and Wine in 2004, but when they split up the next year, they asked investor Jeffrey Chodorow to choose which one to stay on board, and Sarma was picked.

SPOILER ALERT ... 'cause this is where "Bad Vegan" takes a real bizarre turn!!!

Sarma met Anthony Strangis through mutual friend Alec Baldwin in 2011, then tied the knot a year later. Anthony allegedly promised Sarma immortality for herself and her dog, but required large sums of money from her to prove she was worthy.

In the end, both were convicted for stealing nearly $2 million from the restaurant.

Restaurant employees protested outside the joint over unpaid wages, and the couple went on the run.

Gotta love how they got caught, though -- police got tipped off after Sarma and Anthony ordered chicken wings and pizza from Domino's in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

Sarma served 4 months at Rikers Island, and was released in October 2017 with an additional 5 years of probation. In 2018, she filed for divorce from Anthony shortly after her release.

Whoever's disguised as the Hydra on "The Masked Singer" voiced some concern after the costume caused a near-disastrous rehearsal that forced the crew to work extra hard to keep them safe!

We're told the team scrambled to add much-needed precautions to the massive ensemble, including handles that give them something to hold on to while inside.

The massive getup includes 3 towering heads ... each able to blow smoke. FYI, a costume like this probably isn't helmed by just one celeb -- we're thinking the 3 heads might be a clue.

The outfit is so over-the-top, it requires 5 times the number of staffers it normally takes to help the mystery singer(s) ready for show time.

While contestants usually put on their costumes in dressing rooms -- allowing them to keep their identity a mystery -- the Hydra has to do things differently.

We're told the costume's so big, the performers have to walk to the stage exposed, and get dressed there. That's means the crew has to lock down the set and build a barrier to wall off the stage, keeping everything hush hush.

Peyton List and Jacob Bertrand are officially a couple -- TMZ got visual and verbal confirmation -- and neither's worried about the potential consequences of dating a coworker.

We got the "Cobra Kai" stars traveling together Tuesday at LAX, finally confirming their long-rumored relationship ... with Jacob joking we caught them red-handed.

Jacob tells our photog they've actually been seeing each other quietly for some time ... and they don't sound the least bit worried about their romance interfering with the show.

As Jacob put it, this is trial by fire ... but since he's been on the Netflix show longer than his girlfriend, he's not worried about being the one written off the show if things ever go south with Peyton.

He was pretty clearly joking.

And, get this ... Jacob tells us he and Peyton actually go way back. Watch the clip, he gives us the origin story of how they met way back in their teens.

Amanda Bynes is a hot commodity on the interview circuit ... CBS' Gayle King and all the major players are reaching out ... but she's just not ready to answer questions.

Amanda was freed from her 9-year conservatorship Tuesday, and everyone is dying to book her first interview since the judge's ruling ... we're told her team heard from Logan Paul's team and a bunch of news outlets from all over the globe.

The former child star's attorney, David A. Esquibias, tells TMZ ... while Amanda's being flooded with offers, most of which came pouring in over the last 5 days, she's not ready to talk and is laying low for a while.

Amanda's interview suitors are a who's who of media. There's big interview names like Gayle and Logan, newspapers like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal, magazines like Vanity Fair and Elle, not to mention every entertainment and morning show.

We're told producers from every above outlet are begging to sit down with Amanda in the wake of her conservatorship ending ... heck, even a big Australian news program, The Project, wants a piece of her.

And it's not just on-camera interviews, cover stories and features ... Amanda's attorney says several production companies reached out to her team about filming documentaries or a potential reality show on her life moving forward.

Amanda's not welcoming the media circus just yet ... but we're told she's not completely ruling out any of these opportunities in the future. For now, we're told she's super excited about buying furniture for her new place in L.A., where she will live with her fiancé.

Interviews aren't the only thing Amanda is shying away from ... we're told there are no major celebrations taking place following the end of her conservatorship, and she's just spending time with her man, Paul.

Wendy Williams is back in South Florida, hopping on a commercial flight in the NYC area hours after insisting she'll be ready to do her show again ... once she deals with some "private things."

We got these pics of the beloved talk show host in Newark Airport, where she was catching a flight to Miami. Witnesses tell us Wendy was traveling with her son, Kevin Hunter Jr.

As you know, Wendy's been battling multiple health issues for several months. We're told she was holding Kevin Jr.'s arm at times last Thursday night, and it appeared he was guiding her as they made their way to their flight.

One good sign, though ... Wendy wasn't using a wheelchair, which is major progress over the last few times she'd been out in public. She had been at a wellness center in Miami last year, so it's possible that's where she was heading.

Once arriving in Miami around 12:30 AM, Wendy was overheard talking to a fan who'd asked about her making a return to TV ... and she said she's in the process of getting her show back, and working things out with her money.

That jibes with what she'd said last week on 'GMA' -- that she'll be ready, willing and able to do her show again once she takes care of some personal matters.

As for the money, Wendy claimed Wells Fargo denied her access to her accounts and filed documents saying she has "several million dollars" that have been frozen due to alleged financial exploitation.

As we've reported, "The Wendy Williams Show" found a permanent replacement in actress and comedian Sherri Shepherd at the beginning of February.

The investigation into the shooting death of 'Walking Dead' actor Moses J. Moseley could not resolve whether the fatal shot was intentional or accidental.

According to Moses' death certificate, obtained by TMZ, the cause of death could not be determined.

TMZ broke the story ... Moses' body was found in his car back in January, and cops in Georgia started investigating his death as a possible suicide. His family believed there was something fishy about his demise, theorizing he may have been kidnapped and murdered.

The death certificate states Moses shot himself, but the doc also says the intent behind the fatal gunshot is unknown.

Moses' sister, Teerea Kimbro, tells TMZ ... the family received a letter this week from President Joe Biden, who offered his condolences.

Teerea tells us she's not sure how POTUS heard about Moses' death, but she thinks her late brother may have visited The White House before.

The 'Love Is Blind 2' couples who got married in the season finale didn't just get together for the TV cameras ... they actually did it all legal and stuff.

Jarrette Jones and Iyanna McNeely, and Nick Thompson and Danielle Ruhl, all said "I do" on the show. But, the reality of reality TV is some things are just for show, though that's not quite the case in this instance. We checked with the Cook County Court in Illinois, and a rep tells us they have legit marriage records for BOTH couples.

Jarrette and Iyanna tied the knot on June 7, 2021 in Homewood, IL ... and the very next day they were followed by Nick and Danielle. Those couplings were, physically at least, shots in the dark, because they hadn't seen each other ... so, we know what you're thinking.

We also checked for divorce docs, and came up with zip.

As rabid "Love is Blind" fans surely know by now ... Jarrette, Iyanna, Nick and Danielle were the only couples who agreed to marriage when the show's second season wrapped up.

There's also been a reunion show, which made it look like both couples were still going strong in their relationships, and now we've got the receipts.

Bill Maher bent minds Friday night ... with the premise companies and organizations have hidden behind old images of who they once were ... changing everything but their name.

The "Real Time" host ticked off some pretty undeniable examples ... TLC used to be about learning ... now, "My Teen Is Pregnant and So Am I." Yet it's still called TLC.

A&E used to be about arts -- now, "Psychic Kids."

The History Channel offers nothing historic anymore, and MTV has nothing to do with music.

As Bill says, "You can have a petting zoo and turn it into a bondage dungeon, but you gotta change the sign!"

And, then there's Playboy, and Bill harkens back to the 'ol days when it was a "whack-off mag" for straight guys. Now, the woman are gone and the mags gone in every which direction.

And, then there's the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue ... and here he drops a line you'll just have to listen to yourselves.

Two more. Weight Watchers, which he says used to be a club for people to lose weight. Now, he says, despite the fact obesity is linked to a slew of serious diseases, it's recast as body positivity. The company's now ashamed of its name, he says, so it's now just WW and people who talk about weight loss are slammed.

'Real Housewives of Atlanta' star Kandi Burruss has no problem walking away from the series, if rumors about a Phaedra Parks comeback turn out to be true ... because some things ya just can't fix.

Kandi's the latest guest on the "It's Tricky with Raquel Harper" podcast ... and in this clip you can tell she's totally content, having just wrapped season 14 of the show, her 13th. She says it just works for her, because it allows her time for lots of other projects.

But, she also made it clear that could all change quickly. When Raq asked if 'RHOA' is big enough for her and Phaedra, she answered with zero hesitation ... "No."

As you'll recall, their friendship was broken during season 8, after Phaedra accused Kandi of not supporting her through her split with Apollo Nida.

Their feud exploded, ending Phaedra's time on the show the following season. She was fired after admitting she told Porsha Williams about Kandi and her husband Todd Tucker‘s alleged plan to drug Porsha and have sex with her ... something Kandi denied.

Five years later, Kandi says their rift is irreparable and you could feel the bad blood flowing as she said, "I don't think she and I need to interact."

Gabriel Iglesias is helping to make the life of one fan who recently suffered a serious injury much easier ... by reaching into his wallet to help buy a much needed device.

Nick Weaver tells TMZ ... he recently reached out to the comedian on social media, sharing his story, and asking to help contribute to a GoFundMe with an $8,000 goal to buy a prosthetic leg.

On Thursday, much to Nick's surprise, a $5,000 donation come in from Gabriel ... hitting the fundraiser's target.

After donating, Gabriel reposted the link online, joking, "Just paid off his leg. Make sure he doesn’t miss my show." A few months ago, celebrity jeweler Ben Baller also donated $2K to Nick's cause, saying "thank you for being part of the BTB army!"

Nick says back in August 2021, he got into a dispute with his brother over some money owed ... and his brother allegedly ran him over with a car. He lost his leg as a result of the incident after surgeries were unsuccessful in saving it.

"Selling Sunset" honcho Jason Oppenheim is shaken up following an armed robbery in his office's parking lot, but he's taking steps to keep himself and his coworkers safe ... including arming himself.

We got Jason outside his West Hollywood office on Thursday, about an hour after the robbery -- he says the suspect pulled a gun on a man, demanding his luxury watch. Jason says they just missed the incident, walking around the corner as the thief fled by car.

He says he'd already been considering getting a firearm to protect his office and even went to a shooting range for practice. Now, after the armed robbery, he says he's absolutely getting a gun ... and even knows which one.

For now, Jason says he's told his staff to stop wearing watches and jewelry to prevent similar situations. They're also talking with their landlord about getting a security guard for their office.

As we reported, Jason's co-star Christine Quinn's home fell victim to an attempted robbery a few weeks ago. Two armed people tried breaking into her home while her family was asleep, but couldn't get through the triple-paned glass.

She says the window they tried to break was 4 feet away from her bedroom, but luckily no one was injured.

"The Challenge" star Johnny Bananas is overseas helping as many Ukrainian refugees as he can, and says the heartbreaking effort is shining a light on just how good we have it here in the U.S. of A.

Right now, Johnny's splitting his time between Poland and Ukraine -- he's joined a humanitarian convoy with the Humanosh Foundation, and earlier this week helped deliver 3 ambulances and 3 vans loaded with food, military gear and medical equipment.

He says the mission's made him realize American issues pale in comparison to what Ukrainians are facing.

With people in the U.S. currently upset about soaring gas prices and inflation at the supermarket -- Johnny thinks we should imagine a world where there is no gas to be found!

Johnny says Americans have gotten "too comfortable," and coming to a war-torn country like Ukraine really put things into perspective for him.

BTW ... the Humanosh Foundation is a nonprofit that provides shelter and aid to refugees and soldiers.

Last week Johnny's friend called asking if anyone he knew with a big platform would be willing to help show the world the good the nonprofit is trying to accomplish.

Folks on the set of 'NCIS' are getting sick ... and sources say the mystery illness has more than a dozen people who work on the show puking.

The long-running CBS program is currently filming in Valencia, CA just outside of L.A. ... and one source tells us at least 18 people on set fell ill Thursday morning.

One show exec told us they have been having Zoom meetings to figure out how to message what happened to everyone involved.

A CBS source tells TMZ it appears to be something like food poisoning, which the source describes as a minor illness with "mild symptoms."

So far, we're told the source of the illness is not known.

We're told they are still in production.

Sharon Osbourne is ready to talk again in front of cameras -- she's joining a new network in England where she'll be able to share her opinion, and her new TV home has a familiar ring.

Sharon was just announced as an on-screen talent for the soon-to-launch UK network, TalkTV ... which is the same network that will air a new Piers Morgan hosted show during primetime.

Sharon and Piers appeared in a quick promo for the upcoming show ... easy to tell they get along without issue.

The network says Sharon will be a panelist on a show about current events, and it's called "The Talk," coincidentally enough.

Of course, Sharon got booted from "The Talk" on CBS after defending Piers following his controversial attack on Meghan Markle ... and she recently told us she would never go back to CBS, even if they unloaded a Brinks truck in front of her house.

Karen Fukuhara, famous for her starring role in Amazon Prime Video's "The Boys," says she was the victim of an anti-Asian hate crime.

Karen says the alleged assault went down Wednesday and came out of nowhere. She says she was walking down a street to pick up some coffee at a café when a random passerby struck her in the back of the head as they walked by each other ... she did not name the location of the alleged attack.

The actress says she hadn't even made eye contact with her alleged attacker and she "wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary." Karen says she's physically fine after the alleged attack, but says the force of the blow to the back of her head knocked her hat off.

Karen says she spun around and her alleged attacker was already walking away. She says she didn't confront him out of fear and says he started yelling at her.

KF says it's the first time she's been the victim of what she's calling a "hate crime" and she says she feels lucky the alleged attacker wasn't armed.

The alleged attack has Karen contemplating a self-defense class ... and she says she wants to bring awareness to the rise in attacks on women, Asians and the elderly.

NeNe Leakes once called Kandi Burruss the racial "c" slur ... so claims Kandi, who says she doesn't understand where the animosity comes from, but she has a hunch.

The former 'RHOA' star -- who now has her own new show, "Kandi & the Gang," on Bravo -- dished some tea to Raquel Harper on the 'It's Tricky' podcast, insisting her old castmate hurled the term at the peak of their feud.

Unclear when this happened, or what exactly triggered it ... but according to Kandi, NeNe said it.

Their beef has long been documented on reality TV ... but when Raq tries to drill down and get to the heart of the matter to understand where all this bad blood comes from, it leaves more questions than answers.

Kandi herself doesn't seem to know why NeNe's had it out for her, but she does have a theory -- it has to do with their respective success on the network, or a lack thereof (for NeNe, anyway).

As for the whole "c" slur thing ... Kandi thinks it's laughable -- and we'll let her explain why.