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Rings, Hobbits, wizards, elves and even that creepy Gollum dude ... all things 'Lord of the Rings" are hitting the open market, but you're probably gonna have to outbid Jeff Bezos to get it.

Here's the deal ... The Saul Zaentz Company currently owns rights to the universe and characters created by J.R.R. Tolkien -- or almost all of 'em, anyway -- and has since 1976, but it's now reportedly ready to sell for at least $2 BILLION!!!

This might sound a little confusing, because as you know Warner Bros. (through ownership of New Line Cinema) made Peter Jackson's enormously profitable 'Rings' trilogy from the early 2000s, and 3 'Hobbit' films in the 2010s.

More currently ... Amazon is getting ready to roll out its "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" series on Prime.

So, here's how that all shakes out -- SZC has been battling WB over its share of profits from the 6 films, and reportedly believes it's reclaimed the movie rights because WB hasn't developed any new projects since 2014's 'Battle of the Five Armies.' So, lawyers will have to settle that part of the deal.

Amazon bought its rights back in 2017 due to a loophole in SZC's ownership that allows for the sale of TV rights, as long as the series is longer than 8 episodes.

That means Amazon will be highly motivated to purchase everything else in the 'Rings' franchise to capitalize on what it hopes is a new blockbuster series on its streaming service.

Let's face it ... $2 billion is a drop in the bucket for the world's 2nd richest man.

A Frontier flight headed to Orlando had to make an emergency landing, after things got absolutely crazy in the air.

The flight had taken off Wednesday night from NYC ... at some point, a male passenger started flipping out. An eyewitness tells TMZ ... the man accused the lady behind him of sticking him with a needle and trying to steal his DNA. He then threatened to smack everybody on the plane ... as he kept spinning conspiracy theories.

As the man yelled threats, some of the other passengers jumped him and tried restraining him. That was clearly enough for the pilot, who headed for the nearest runway, landing at the airport in Raleigh, North Carolina.

John Mayer's live show came to a screeching halt Wednesday night after he noticed a fan went unconscious.

The singer was performing at the SiriusXM and Pandora "Small Stage Series" at the Hollywood Palladium ... Heidi Klum and actress Vanessa Hudgens were both front and center and the show was rolling along just great ... that is, until Mayer noticed a fan in the crowd was in clear distress. John abruptly stopped the show.

"Give me a thumbs up if they're alert," he asked the crowd. It was interesting ... the crowd cheered John for showing concern.

The house lights went on and Mayer told the crowd he was stepping off stage as a female was taken out in a wheelchair.

When he walked back on stage, he told the audience: "Anyone in the crowd who was worried, I'm told she waved goodbye, so she's OK. The system works. Thank you very much."

John is the latest performer to stop the show when an audience member had a medical emergency ... a sharp contrast to the Astroworld Festival, where the show when on for 40 minutes after people were dying in the crowd. Billie Eilish stopped her show briefly a few days back when a fan had trouble breathing, and then threw shade on Travis Scott.

LisaRaye McCoy has some stories to tell -- including why she's been to jail multiple times -- and she's not the least bit ashamed, because she says they paved the way to her success.

The actress got beyond real on the new podcast, "It's Tricky with Raquel Harper" ... acknowledging fans love her because she's so down to Earth, but she says there's a good reason for that.

LisaRaye told Raq she's been to jail for "a whole bunch of s**t," and she wasn't kidding. Watch the clip, 'cause she comes clean about pistol-whippings, getting into fights and even shooting people.

Now, LR's podcast sitdown wasn't all gangsta -- they also dug into the Rihanna x Ari Fletcher drama, Nicole Murphy, and her sister, Da Brat's, new baby.

Of course, LisaRaye had her Hollywood breakout role as Diamond in 1998's cult classic, "The Players Club." Lately, she's a host on the Fox Soul show, "Cocktails With Queens" ... and she stars in "A House Divided" on the ALLBLK streaming platform.

David Spade just got a lot richer -- not that he needs the loot -- because he flipped his longtime Beverly Hills mansion and cashed in at $19.5 mil ... TMZ has learned.

For context ... David plunked down $4 million for the 4 bedroom, 7 bathroom home back in 2001, and you know what's happened to the housing market since then. True, he made a bunch of renovations, but still ...

The house is located in the super-exclusive Trousdale Estates in Bev Hills. A ton of stars make Trousdale their home, including Elton John, Ringo Starr and Charlie Puth. Among those who once lived there but are no longer living ...  Elvis Presley, Ray Charles and President Nixon.

The house is 6,426-sq ft ...  with sweeping, jetliner views from downtown L.A. to the blue Pacific

There are a bunch of bells and whistles, including a tennis court and an entertainment lounge.

Outside of its impressive looks, the mansion has a cool pedigree ... Prince, Eddie Murphy and Warren Beatty all lived there ... no, not all at once.

D.S. listed the house last month with Stuart Vetterick of Hilton & Hyland for $20 million, so it sold for just a skosh under asking.

Matt James now owes a golf photographer far more than just a bunch of roses ... 'cause the former 'Bachelor' star nailed the dude with an errant tee shot at a Pro-Am event in Arizona on Wednesday, nearly hitting the guy in his family jewels!!!

The hilarious (and terrifying!) scene all went down at the Waste Management Phoenix Open Pro-Am ... when James stepped to the tee box barefoot at the world-famous 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale to try to win some money for charity.

Matt was gunning to be the closest to the pin on the par-3 ... but you can see in the video, he had trouble even getting the ball off the ground.

His first hack was terrible -- he got nothing but grass and dirt -- and then he shanked his second swing so badly, it went 15 yards to the right and drilled a camera guy right in the thigh.

James was super sorry for the miss ... he ran over immediately and gave the guy a hug and offered him the golf ball as an apology souvenir.

The man, meanwhile, said, thankfully, he was OK.

"We came within centimeters of causing some real damage," James said of the shot. "I'm going to try to find him. I'm going to sign this ball for him. And I'm going to take him out to dinner."

Added the photog, "He felt bad. I felt it ... Next year, I'm wearing a cup."

Might be necessary, 'cause James said he intends to come back in 2023 for redemption.

Kevin O’Leary is off the hook in a fraud lawsuit -- and his lawyers are saying he should never have been sued in the first place.

A judge just granted O'Leary's motion to toss the suit filed against him last year ... alleging he helped promote a massive scam that duped a bunch of people trying to start businesses.

20 entrepreneurs sued Kevin and others for allegedly encouraging them to use crowdfunding companies to kickstart their business ideas. The problem is they claim it was a total bunk, and they all ended up losing money.

Here’s the thing though ... Kev’s attorneys, Paul Sorrell and Andrew Brettler, tell us the reason the judge agreed to dismiss O'Leary from the case is because -- put simply -- the court didn't buy that O’Leary's general statements about crowdfunding were enough to hold him accountable when people pursued those paths.

In other words -- just because the crowdfunding plan didn't pan out, it's not Kevin's fault

In any case, all’s well that ends well for Mr. Wonderful ... who previously told us the suit was bogus, and that he’d defend himself in court.

Iowa born athlete Kurt Warner was thrust into the spotlight his very first year as a starting quarterback for the St. Louis Rams as he led the offense on what was called "The Greatest Show On Turf" ... which culminated in their win over the Tennessee Titans (23-16) at Super Bowl XXXIV and even scored Warner the honor of being named Super Bowl MVP.

The Lombardi Trophy-winning offense was packed with high-profile platers including running Hall Of Famer Marshall Faulk and the clutch catching wide receivers Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt.

Warner's success was so inspiring his story was made into a film in 2021 called 'American Underdog.'

A woman claims Snoop Dogg forced oral sex on her back in 2013, but a source representing the rapper says the woman filed suit on the heels of the Super Bowl -- where Snoop is performing in the halftime show -- hoping she'd get a payday.

The woman, who is only identified as Jane Doe, claims on May 29, 2013, she attended one of Snoop's shows in Anaheim, California. After the show, the woman says Bishop Don Juan -- a longtime associate of Snoop's -- offered her a ride home. She says she fell asleep in the car, and when she awoke they had arrived not at her home, but at Bishop's.

The lawsuit says, "Plaintiff was exhausted and fell asleep at [Bishop's] home." She says she awoke at 4 AM the next morning and Bishop "removed his penis from his pants and forced his penis in Plaintiff's face," and "repeatedly shoved his penis into Plaintiff's mouth."

She says in the suit, Bishop "discriminated against and harassed Plaintiff because of Plaintiff's sex and gender."

She then says Bishop gave her a dress and told her to put it on so they could go to Snoop's studio, saying "I want to see if he will make you the weather girl" -- for some TV show. The woman says in the suit she's a model and dancer.

She then claims she went to Snoop's but had a stomachache so she went to the bathroom, and while she was on the toilet, Snoop walked in, "standing with his crotch in Plaintiff's face, while Plaintiff was defecating on the toilet." She says he then forced oral sex on her.

She claims shortly thereafter, Bishop said to her, "Come here! Take a picture with Snoop!" She says she was scared and took the photo.

And then she says Snoop wouldn't hire her because she "refused to willingly and enthusiastically give oral sex."

Snoop denies the entire story, saying it's a pack of lies. He posted an image on his Instagram, calling her a "Gold digger."

A source tells TMZ ... the woman demanded just shy of $10 million ... that demand was rejected.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's angry rant at Nancy Pelosi and our government turned unintentionally hilarious when she confused Nazi Germany's secret police with a bowl of soup!!!

The LOL moment went down Wednesday when MTG was doing a TV hit with One America News and going off on the Speaker of the House. Yes, par for the course ... but then she accused Pelosi of using her "gazpacho police" to spy on members of Congress and American citizens.

Forget, for a moment, the lack of evidence supporting her allegation -- and instead, focus on how delicious it is! 😋

For those not in the know ... gazpacho is a cold Spanish soup made from a wide variety of vegetables. We're guessing the word Rep. Greene was actually reaching for was "Gestapo" ... a secret police force the Nazis unleashed on German citizens.

The clip is going viral and folks are having a bunch of laughs at MTG's expense on social.

Rep. Greene must have caught wind of her screwup, because she's also making fun of herself with a "Seinfeld" reference and an intentional -- we think -- mix-up of "gulag" and "goulash."

Ex-MLB player Jeremy Giambi -- who played in the MLB from 1998 to 2003 -- has passed away, TMZ Sports has learned. He was 47 years old.

Giambi played for the Royals, Athletics, Phillies, and Red Sox over the course of his career ... earning a .263 batting average and hitting 52 home runs and 209 runs batted in.

His best season came in 2002, when he played in 124 games and hit 20 homers.

The A's issued a statement on Jeremy's death, saying ... "We are heartbroken to learn of the passing of a member of our Green and Gold family, Jeremy Giambi. We offer our condolences to Jeanne, Jason, and his family and friends."

Jeremy is the brother of Jason -- the American League MVP in 2000, who played for the Athletics, Yankees, Rockies and Indians.

Giambi was portrayed in the 2011 Brad Pitt flick "Moneyball" ... and was played by actor Nick Porrazzo. His character was depicted as a partier and disruption during his time with the A's ... and a scene shows him eventually being traded to the Phillies.

Giambi was part of the most memorable baseball moments of the past few decades ... when Derek Jeter made a spectacular play to throw him out at home plate in the 2001 American League Divisional Series.

RIP.

An Indiana police officer is being accused of police brutality after a very physical arrest of a Black man named Adonis Tuggle ... and much of the arrest was recorded by his girlfriend.

The video was posted by someone named Bri Latto. Unclear if she’s the person shooting it or not, but the footage shows the officer in a scuffle -- pinning Adonis on the snow-covered ground while he screams out in pain.

It appears the cop is holding Tuggle down by pushing his elbow into his neck and/or face. The woman recording is yelling at the officer to stop, and complains the cop is hurting her BF.

She actually taps the officer at one point, and he tells her he’ll Taser her if she does it again.

As for what led up to the incident ... Purdue University police chief John Cox tell us the call came in last Friday from a third party saying it appeared a woman was being held against her will. He says there were no physical injuries suffered during the arrest.

Adonis Tuggle posted on social media, saying he's demanding justice. He claims Purdue PD is refusing to turn over body camera footage of the incident. Cops tell us he was arrested for resisting law enforcement -- a misdemeanor.

Snoop Dogg just became the top dog at Death Row Records ... 'cause he now owns the record label that launched his career nearly 30 years ago.

The Doggfather scooped up Death Row from Blackstone investment firm and MNRK Music Group. No word on how much he paid for the legendary label, but it's been passed around a bit since going into bankruptcy in 2006.

Remember, label co-founder Suge Knight is serving 28 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter.

Anyhow, Snoop's homecoming purchase is a great way for him to celebrate the release of his latest album, B.O.D.R., on Friday. Not to mention ... he's got the Super Bowl Halftime show coming up with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar.

Snoop says, "I am thrilled and appreciative of the opportunity to acquire the iconic and culturally significant Death Row Records brand, which has immense untapped future value. It feels good to have ownership of the label I was part of at the beginning of my career and as one of the founding members," Snoop said.

Death Row released Dr. Dre's "The Chronic" in 1992 -- which heavily featured Snoop -- and then in 1993 it released his debut solo record, "Doggystyle."

NFL star Jonathan Allen -- one of the best defenders in the league -- apologized Wednesday afternoon for saying he wanted to have dinner with Hitler ... calling the comment "dumb."

The Washington Commanders' defensive lineman tweeted early Wednesday morning that if he could choose any three people to dine with -- dead or alive -- one of them would be Hitler.

In now-deleted tweets, Allen explained he'd pick Hitler as a guest because the football player said the German dictator was "a military genius."

"I love military tactics," said Allen, who added that his other two guests would be his grandfather and Michael Jackson, "but honestly I would want to pick his brain as to why he did what he did."

Allen was immediately hit with criticism following the comments ... and it didn't take long for the 27-year-old to issue a mea culpa.

"Early I tweeted something that probably hurt people and I apologize about what I said," Allen said on Twitter. "I didn't express properly what I was trying to say and I realize it was dumb!"

Allen also responded to a fan who said his comments were hurtful ... writing in a tweet to the person, "I'm sorry I offended you that definitely was not my attention, I was just answering a question."

Julia Haart -- the star of Netflix's "My Unorthodox Life" -- just filed for divorce from her husband of 3 years.

According to court documents, obtained by TMZ, Haart filed the paperwork in Manhattan on Wednesday to divorce her husband Silvio Scaglia. The two tied the knot in June 2019.

Rumors that the couple was separating began to circulate last December ... today's filing brings truth to it.

It’s interesting … the two have recently looked happy on social media. Julia posted 6 days ago about filming season 2 of the Netflix show ... both with smiles on their faces.

Julia and her family became world-famous by being featured in the Netflix docu-series which had just been picked up for a season 2.

Julia and Silvio share no children together but both do have children from previous marriages. Julia's 4 children -- Batsheva, Miriam, Shlomo, and Aron -- are all featured on the show.

Roger Goodell says the NFL will re-evaluate its hiring process rules in the wake of the Brian Flores lawsuit ... telling media members Wednesday, "We want to see Black head coaches in the NFL."

Goodell addressed the media in person for the first time since Flores alleged teams have been racist when it comes to hiring coaches -- and the commissioner made it clear the league is taking the claims seriously.

Goodell, who spoke at length with reporters in front of SoFi Stadium ahead of Super Bowl LVI, said they're going to look at everything from top to bottom to make sure the NFL has an equal hiring process.

"We want to see Black head coaches in the NFL," Goodell said. "And coaches of people of color, and eventually gender. That we think is all important."

Goodell said the league will look at the Rooney Rule -- which requires teams to interview minority candidates for vacant head coaching roles -- and will consider abolishing it if he thinks it'll help lead to more diverse hirings.

Goodell also said they'll look into adding and removing policies in an attempt to ensure teams are being all-inclusive in their searches for coaches.

"We're going to talk to other people -- have independent people come in and look and help us evaluate it -- because it's sometimes hard to evaluate your own policies and procedures," Goodell said. "And make sure that we're doing everything that we possibly can to create that opportunity for everybody to make sure that we are an inclusive league and make sure we get the outcomes that we want."

The NFL currently has just two Black head coaches -- Houston's Lovie Smith and Pittsburgh's Mike Tomlin. Former 49ers coordinator Mike McDaniel -- who is bi-racial -- was also hired by the Dolphins last week.