TMZ.com Home

Nick Lachey got violent toward a photographer during his night out ... reaching in her car and trying to rip the phone out of her hands.

Nick and his wife, Vanessa, went out to eat at Mastro's in Beverly Hills Sunday night ... after seeing a photog taking pics of him from her car, he made his way across the street, allegedly punching her window and calling her a "p**** mother f*****." Vanessa was yelling for her to open her car door.

After he walked away, the photographer puts her window down and asks him what's his problem, making him dart back to the car. After noticing her filming him, he quickly reaches into the car and tries to pry the phone from her hands.

Later in the night, Nick was with Vanessa and another woman, walking back to a hotel ... Nick was yelling and sticking his middle finger up to photogs as they walked by.

The photographer claimed she could smell alcohol on his breath ... a possible factor in his erratic behavior.

Sunday night showed a similar situation with celebrity violence ... as you recall, Will Smith walked on stage at the Oscars, slapping Chris Rock across the face after a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith set him off.

We reached out to Nick's rep ... so far, no word back.

Big Willie Style was in full effect after Will Smith won an Oscar and slapped Chris Rock on live TV ... Will was dancing to his famous hit and holding his award at an after-party.

Ya gotta see this video of Will on Oscar Sunday ... no, not the one where he slaps Chris for joking about Jada Pinkett Smith ... this one, where he's dancing to his song, "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It," at the Vanity Fair Oscars after-party in Hollywood.

There's a huge circle around Will, and a ton of cameras in his face ... and it certainly doesn't look like he's bothered by what went down on stage with Chris ... cutting loose on the dance floor, singing his own lyrics and showing off his Oscar for his work in "King Richard."

Former NBA star Charlie Villanueva, who's famously battled Alopecia, ripped Chris Rock for his Oscars barb about the autoimmune disease ... adding that he's "proud" of Will Smith for defending Jada Pinkett Smith.

Villanueva took to Instagram to express his thoughts on the Smith-Rock altercation at Sunday night's Academy Awards ... saying as someone who's had to deal with Alopecia, he knows what Jada is going through.

And, he said he can understand why Smith reacted the way he did following Rock's "balding" G.I. Jane quip.

"She voiced that she struggled with [Alopecia], and Chris Rock thought it was cool to crack a joke," Villanueva said. "We are not with Jada everyday to know the level of the struggle, but Will does."

"As I don’t condone violence, Im proud that Will Smith stood up for his wife."

Villanueva added, "As a fellow Alopecians, I stand with Will and Jada."

Villanueva -- an ambassador for National Alopecia Areata Foundation -- also took to Twitter to send a personal message to those battling Alopecia as well as to Jada ... writing in a tweet, "Remember, you have Alopecia, Alopecia doesn't have you. Don't give up on yourself. Life is just as beautiful as you."

According to The National Library of Medicine, Alopecia affects 1 in every 500-to-1,000 people in the United States ... and can affect men and women equally of any ethnic background.

Villanueva wasn't the only sports figure to praise Will for his reaction Sunday ... former UFC star Tyron Woodley also said on social media that he supported Smith's slap -- saying, "i fight over women, especially the women in my family, Sisters, & Daughter."

Kim Kardashian says her recent comments about work ethic and finding success weren't meant to be a dig at women ... they were just the reality of working hard to achieve your goals when everyone else doubts you.

Kim came under fire earlier this month when she told Variety her advice for women in business, "Get your f***ing ass up and work. It seems like no one wants to work these days."

However, Kim says the whole thing was taken out of context, telling Robin Roberts on 'GMA' Monday, "My message was to anyone who wants to be successful in building a business or brand having come from that very specific space — reality show or social media fame — is to work hard. It’s not easy. You don’t just post something on social media and overnight you become a success."

A source who was there for the interview, tells us Kim made it clear, her comment was not directed AT women, it was a part of her own personal experience, saying, "After 20 years at this I am still put in the box of “famous for being famous. I heard someone say that to me when we did that interview and that’s when my demeanor and tone shifted."

Finally, she states, "My statement was never intended to be a general blanket statement or to even allude to the idea that women don’t already work hard — and I’m sorry that it was received in that way."

Chris Rock is NOT going to file a police report -- at least for now -- against Will Smith after the latter smacked him squarely across the face ... but the window is still open.

LAPD brass said Sunday night that they were aware of an incident during the 94th Academy Awards between two individuals ... in which one person slapped the other. Obviously, they're referring to Will and Chris -- but they also note ... CR declined to press charges.

They add ... if Chris wants to file an investigative report at a later date, he can do that -- and they'll be all ears.

Now, as for how exactly the cops got involved in this has been a bit of a mystery until now -- namely, nobody really knew if they were called or if they actually spoke to Chris directly. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... there were LAPD officers on site during the actual incident, whom we're told witnessed the hit -- and then approached Chris' team thereafter.

Essentially, they watched what they believed to be a crime ... otherwise, they wouldn't have approached him. Since Chris said he wasn't interested in pursuing it, it's routine in a case like this for cops to stand down.

Presumably ... Will could be dinged on assault and battery, but at the moment -- it doesn't seem he's going to face any repercussions for what he did. It's also unclear if the Academy will hold him accountable.

As you know by now, Will struck Chris on stage during the live broadcast following a joke the comedian cracked about Jada Pinkett -- which was about her shaved head ... a direct result of the alopecia she suffers from.

Jay-Z's after-party for the Oscars was definitely one to remember ... 'cause some of Hollywood's biggest names had to make their way through angry protesters to get inside.

The mogul threw his Gold Party at the famed Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood, where folks like Rihanna, Saweetie, Kim Kardashian and Diddy were greeted by frustrated former employees of the hotel ... who claim they were mistreated by management.

Other guests included Winnie Harlow, Jon Hamm, Khloe Kardashian, French Montana, Zoe Kravitz and Troy Kotsur -- the first deaf man to win an acting Oscar.

Check out the video ... angry protesters raised their voices and signs, claiming they worked in a toxic work environment with racial discrimination and the owner, André Balazs, abandoned more than 200 fired employees during the coronavirus pandemic.

Will Smith certainly hijacked the Oscars by smacking Chris Rock in the face, but the question ... was he justified??? You be the judge.

Jake Paul wants in on the Will Smith vs. Chris Rock feud -- the YouTuber-turned-fighter is offering both actors $15 MILLION to take their beef to the boxing ring!!

Shortly after the slap heard around the world went down at the Oscars, "Impractical Jokers" star Sal Vulcano joked about how much the Most Valuable Promotions founder would cough up to get both legends in the ring for an epic event for the ages.

The 25-year-old fighter -- who previously offered Pete Davidson and Kanye West $30 milli each to face off in the ring -- delivered on his new proposition late Sunday night ... claiming he already has $30 million set aside for a Smith vs. Rock bout.

"I got $15m for Will Smith and $15m for Chris Rock ready to go," Paul tweeted ... adding he already has a date in mind.

"Let’s do it in August on my undercard."

FYI -- The biggest Pay-per-view ever is 4.6 million buys for Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao in 2015.

A Will vs. Chris fight would undoubtedly be successful, but don't hold your breath on it ever happening -- after all, both guys have all the money in the world and it would be quite the height/weight disadvantage for Rock ... but Jake's got the financial backing to make it happen.

Will Smith's got people in his corner following his on-camera altercation with Chris Rock ... getting a big hug from Trevor Noah at the Vanity Fair after-party, having a long, and private, conversation.

Will was still emotional when he got to the party Sunday night in Bev Hills, taking pictures with tears in his eyes ... which is when Trevor came up to the Best Actor winner.

They embraced for quite a while -- more than 1 minute -- clearly trying to have a conversation over the loud music blaring in the room. When it was all said and done, they smiled at each other and posed for some photos.

There's no doubt what they were discussing for so long ... Will slapped Chris Rock after his "G.I. Jane 2" jab at Jada Pinkett Smith.

The crowd, and even Chris, was stunned ... things got more real after Will continued to shout "Keep my wife's name out your f****** mouth" from his seat.

Trevor tweeted after the slap heard, and seen, 'round the world ... saying, "Wtaf????? That wasn’t scripted?????"

Safe to say he had some questions, and maybe got them answered when he and Will hugged.

Will went to the after-party with the whole family surrounding him -- Jada, daughter Willow, and sons Trey and Jaden.

Will Smith's slap heard-round-the-world seems to have Hollywood kinda split on whether it was right or wrong -- but there's one person who's firmly in the guy's corner ... his son.

The entire world seems to have reacted to Will's violent behavior, and celebrities are no exception -- with several high-profile stars weighing in online ... and some even defending WS and Jada Pinkett by extension, including Nicki Minaj.

The rapper had a lot of thoughts on the matter, writing ... "You just got to witness in real time what happens in a man’s soul when he looks over to the woman he loves & sees her holding back tears from a “little joke” at her expense. This is what any & every real man feels in that instant. while y’all seeing the joke he’s seeing her pain."

She adds, "Imagine what it must feel like to be losing your hair to the point where you have to shave it bald. You think that’s easy to deal with for anyone?"

So, clearly ... Nicki is team Will/Jada. But, there are far more who condemned the assault -- including Judd Apatow, who was emphatic. Judd wrote, "He could have killed him. That's pure out of control rage and violence. They've heard a million jokes about them in the last three decades. They are not freshmen in the world of Hollywood and comedy. He lost his mind."

Others seemed to be either baffled or amused by what had occurred ... Billy Eichner, Jodie and Conan O'Brien fall into that category. But, the most telling response came from Will and Jada's own flesh and blood.

Jaden Smith sounded off in the aftermath, writing ... "And That's How We Do It," apparently co-signing what his old man had just done.

It would also seem that Jada herself appreciated Will getting up there -- because as soon as the broadcast went to break ... a photo shows Chris Rock leaning down from the stage trying to talk to both of them, with none other than Denzel Washington standing in between them.

In the pic, you can see Will and Jada holding hands ... appearing to put on a united front.

There's also a lot of chatter today about "toxic masculinity" and whether Will is a personification of that. Many feel he is, but there seems to be an opposing group who say he was simply doing what a good partner/man should do to defend his woman.

You can't write this s*** ... Will Smith just won the award for best actor -- tears streaming down his face as he stood to address the crowd -- and sharing a message of love just moments after smacking Chris Rock.

Smith opened by saying Serena and Venus' father, Richard Williams -- who he played in "King Richard" -- was a fierce defender of his family.

Of course, he was alluding to the smack ... but continued, "I'm being called on in my life to love people and to protect people, and to be a river to my people. I know to do what we do, you gotta be able to take abuse, have people talk crazy about you."

He then talked about having to face disrespect, even while people "talk crazy about you."

During the commercial break, just after the smack, Will was pulled aside by Denzel Washington and Tyler Perry. Will says Denzel told him, "That was your highest moment, be careful, that's when the devil comes for you."

Interestingly enough, Will said he wants to be a vessel for love -- even though he smacked Chris.

Will never apologized to Rock, saying, "I want to apologize to The Academy and my fellow nominees. This is a beautiful moment and I'm not crying for winning an award, it's not about winning an award for me. It's about being able to shine a light on all of the people."

As we reported, Will got up on stage and smacked Chris after the comedian cracked a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith's short hair. She's been open about her hair loss struggles in the past.

Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott were quick to decide baby Wolf's name wasn't right for their newborn son ... but to legally change a name ain't as easy as you'd think.

As we reported, Kylie announced earlier this week she and Travis were changing Wolf's name because, "We just really didn't feel like it was him." However, the process to actually get it done can take weeks, if not months from start to finish.

Here's the process ...

- First, Kylie and Travis will need to file a petition for a name change, and something like this is routinely approved by a judge -- in this case, an L.A. County Superior Court judge. The only real basis to deny a name change is if the new name was designed to be used to defraud or deceive, and that's clearly not the case here.

- Once the judge puts his/her John Hancock on the petition, it's sent up to Sacramento and processed by the state. It usually takes 6-8 weeks. Looks like lots of people are unhappy with their name.

- The state will then amend the birth certificate to reflect the new name.

Of course, there was recently another significant name change in the family -- when (former) baby Wolf's uncle Kanye West changed his name to Ye. That process took almost 2 months to complete ... so with patience comes great change.

Kodak Black is headed overseas to make bank, but in asking permission to do so ... he told the judge he plans to donate a big chunk of his earnings to charity.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Kodak says he needs to travel to Dubai to perform a concert next month and make some paid appearances as well.

In the docs, which the court approved, Kodak says he'd be in Dubai from March 28 to April 3 ... adding he'd be traveling with his security team and music producer.

In his motion to travel for work purposes, Kodak points out he's been allowed to travel domestically for work and claims he's been keeping his nose clean lately.

Kodak stated if he were given permission, he plans to donate 10% of his earnings in Dubai to charity.

The rapper's attorney, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ ... a prominent businessman invited Kodak to Dubai for paid appearances at jewelers, nightclubs and exotic car dealerships, plus a concert.

Kodak's attorney says his client already picked out where he wants to donate at least some of his Dubai earnings ... the college funds of the children of 2 Pennsylvania State Troopers who were recently killed by a suspected drunk driver. Cohen says he's reached out to the PA State Police Association to try and set up a donation.

Ozzie Guillen absolutely loathes the idea of an automated strike zone in the MLB ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks robot umps are "the worst thing I've ever heard in my life."

The former Chicago White Sox manager went in on the idea when we asked him this week about the potential rule change -- saying he has no clue how it'd make the game better.

"I hope [the rule change] happens after I die," Guillen said, "because I'll be very, very vocal about it."

The MLB is considering the move down the road -- after it implemented automated strike zones for the 2022 Triple-A season.

The idea is that if it goes well in the minor leagues, it could eventually end up replacing humans behind the plate one day in The Show -- and make a more uniform ball-and-strike zone there.

Guillen, though, said it's a slap in the face to the current umps ... and he also doesn't understand how a computer could do a better job than a human who's standing just inches away from the pitches.

"Whoever came up with this idea never played the game," Guillen said. "Never played Little League baseball games."

Guillen is in favor of adding one rule back to the game ... telling us he'd like to see more roughness come back. He explained he's hoping the league will allow hard slides into second base and into home plate again eventually.

As for if Guillen will ever manage again -- he said he's hopeful after getting an interview with the San Diego Padres last year that a team will give him another shot.

Lil Xan seems to be doing a whole lot better ... cause TMZ has learned he is out of a psych ward and working on his mental health at a rehab center.

Sources close to Xan tell TMZ, he initially checked himself into a hospital and was 51/50'd after experiencing a mixture of exhaustion, dehydration and depression from things he was seeing online ... all of which, he says, began to take a toll on him and his mental health and well-being.

We're told, overall, he felt like he needed a break, and he wanted to go somewhere to help with his mental health and help him disconnect from social media.

He even let folks know about his frustration Wednesday, when he posted a photo from what appears to be a hospital bed. He wrote, "please stop speaking about me if you don't know me, I'm a human being just like you."

Were told, he spent 3 days in the psych ward, before he was moved to a part of the facility focused on mental health. He was given the green light to leave the psych ward after being deemed harmless to himself or others.

As you may know, the rapper's been struggling with drug addiction for quite some time. We spoke to him at the start of the pandemic ... when he started on his journey to sobriety. He told us, quarantine really helped him turn things around for the better.

Ohio born comedian and actress Molly Shannon was 34 years old when she took on the role of Mary Katherine Gallagher -- an awkward catholic high school girl hoping to achieve her dreams of dating the school's popular boy and winning the school talent show -- in the 1999 'SNL' spin-off film "Superstar."

Shannon shared the big screen with quite an impressive cast including Elaine Hendrix as the popular cheerleader, Evian, Glynis Johns as Mary's loving devout, Grandma, Harland Williams as Mary's BF, Slater ... and of course Will Ferrell as the popular boy and dreamy Jesus, Sky Corrigan.