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Jussie Smollett still insists he did not lie about the homophobic and racist attack, because IF he did he would be a total piece of s**t -- and he claims everyone knows he's not that.

The actor dug in his heels Wednesday morning on Sway's SiriusXM show, talking about why he feels he got screwed in court. As Jussie sees it, if you buy what the jury said -- that he flat out lied -- that would mean we all found out "someone is exactly the opposite of who they claim to be."

No argument there.

However, he went on to explain that committing such a nefarious lie would mean he'd exploited the pain and fears of both Black people and the LGBTQ community -- and Jussie says, "I'm not that motherf***er."

Of course, his stunning statement flies in the face of all the evidence presented in Cook County court before he was convicted and sentenced, back in March, to 150 days.

Speaking of which, Jussie also talked about his time behind bars ... explaining why he stopped eating the whole time he was in Cook County Jail.

He says fasting is something his family always does to gain clarity, and he was uncertain about how long he'd be in jail. Remember, despite the 150-day sentence, Jussie had immediately asked the judge to let him out on bail while he filed an appeal.

Jussie says, "I have never in my life, at least in my adult life, been as clear of mind as I was for those 6-and-a-half days."

What's unclear about Jussie's clarity is how long he would have continued fasting if the judge hadn't let him out, and also ... what exactly he gained clarity about during that time.

Rapper Lil Tjay is undergoing emergency surgery after being shot ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Tjay was shot just after midnight in Edgewater, NJ. We're told at the time of this post the rapper is in surgery. The extent of his wounds and his condition have not been revealed.

We're told there were 2 shooting sites -- one at a Chipotle Restaurant and another at a nearby Exxon Gas station.

The victim at the Chipotle restaurant was shot several times and the victim at the Exxon was shot once.

We do not know the identity of the second victim.

The suspect or suspects are still at large and police are on the hunt. So far, the motive is unknown.

The incident went down in the middle of the night Wednesday in Edgewater, New Jersey.

David Dobrik should have never been behind the controls of a massive excavator used in a social media stunt gone wrong, so says a YouTuber now suing the influencer, saying he suffered serious injuries as a result of David's actions.

In the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, former Vlog Squad member Jeff Wittek says he traveled to Utah Lake in Provo, Utah in the summer of 2020 with David and a group of friends to shoot video as part of Dobrik's "social media comeback."

Wittek says the plan for one video was to use an excavator, operated by Dobrik, and plant it in the water, to swing people around with a rope while riding various objects -- including wakeboards.

However, Wittek claims Dobrik then suggested people get swung around by the machine -- that he was operating -- by only holding the rope, and without objects.

Wittek says when it was his turn -- David started to swing him around too quickly -- the docs claim Dobrik noticed he was moving the excavator too fast, and slowed down abruptly, causing Wittek to slam into the side of the excavator ... and causing him serious injury.

While he doesn't list the specifics of his injuries in the lawsuit ... Wittek has previously discussed what happened that day -- saying he almost died -- breaking his foot, hip, tearing a ligament in his leg and shattering his skull in 9 places. He also says he almost lost his eye.

Wittek says as a result of the accident, he's suffered wage loss, loss of earning capacity and racked up hospital bills. He's suing for general negligence and intentional tort. He's suing for more than $10 million in damages.

Johnny Depp's resurgence in popularity apparently knows no bounds -- even the value of his movie props are skyrocketing in the wake of his trial victory -- including his famous scissor hands.

The actual insert hand Depp wore in the 1990 hit "Edward Scissorhands" just sold at auction for an incredible $81,250 -- almost twice the price auction experts projected the item would sell for.

It was in early May when Propstore -- an auction company famous for hawking millions of dollars worth of movie collectibles -- announced a sale that would begin June 21. Among the items were Depp's sharp digits.

At the time of the sale's announcement, when Johnny and Amber Heard were locked in trial, it was projected the 'Scissorhands' would sell for somewhere between $30k-$50k.

However, our auction sources say the interest in the trial, specifically Depp's victory, helped to drive the price up -- leading to Tuesday's live auction, where they ultimately went for $81,250!!!

It's not the only hot Depp item on the market. TMZ broke the story, Johnny's motorcycle from 'Cry Baby' is also set to hit the auction block soon ... starting bid for that one comes in at $250,000.

While the 'Scissorhands' are gone, Propstore still has its auction happening through the end of this week.

Pete Davidson is famous for a lot -- for appearing on 'SNL,' for dating Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande, among others ... and his BDE status is legendary, at least according to Ariana, so an otherwise innocuous wardrobe gaffe suddenly becomes a big deal!

Pete was in Cairns, Australia when he stepped out but forgot to zip up. He could be clowning, but more likely -- he just didn't realize his fly was open.

Pete gave the paps a peace sign as he posed for pics with fans outside his hotel.

Pete's in the land down under to shoot a flick, "Wizards!," with Orlando Bloom, Naomi Scott, Franz Rogowski and Sean Harris. The production company is Brad Pitt's -- Plan B.

In case you're wondering, the movie's about 2 potheads who run a beach bar and get into hot water after finding a pile of money that they should have left be.

The mom of a Connecticut boy accused of setting another boy on fire is going after the alleged victim's mom ... claiming she defamed her son and she wants the mom arrested.

Here's what is uncontested ... 6-year-old Dominick Krankall was burned badly while playing in his backyard in Bridgeport. Dominick's mom accused Laura Giacobbe's son of intentionally lighting the boy on fire.

Now, the new development ... a video that surfaced Friday shows 4 children, including Dominick, lighting fires and kicking a soccer ball engulfed in flames. The video, initially published by the NY Post, shows Dominick stepping on a plastic cup that was filled with gasoline and in flames.

Dominick suffered terrible burns to his face and legs.

So, Laura Giacobbe is furious, and told the Post she actually helped Dominick's mom by instructing her to get him in a bathtub immediately because his legs were on fire.

Giacobbe says Dominick's mom called police and accused her son of intentionally dousing Dominick with gas and throwing a flaming soccer ball at him.

Laura says there was absolutely no bullying and it was just a horrible accident. She's outraged at Dominick's mom and wants her to answer to the law. She also adds, his mom should have been supervising her son better in their own backyard.

Dominick's mom is sticking to her story, telling the Post Laura is a "liar." She says the video is edited and it took a month-and-a-half to come out.

Joe Exotic is back in the dating game, after just splitting with his prison fiancé ... we've learned he's rekindled things with a former boyfriend.

Joe and his ex-boyfriend, Seth, are back together after Joe's would-be-husband John Graham got sprung from prison and moved on ... this according to Joe's lawyer Autumn Blackledge.

Seth and Joe met over the Internet back in 2021, when Seth found out Dillon Passage and Joe were splitting. Later that year Joe held an online 'Bachelor King' competition, accepting applications to be Joe's new boyfriend, and Seth was the lucky winner.

They dated for a few months but grew apart and fell out of touch. Joe then met fellow inmate John Graham at the FMC in Fort Worth.

As we reported, Joe and John called it quits earlier this month ... ending their 'Twilight'-esque relationship. Autumn told us ... John quickly ended his relationship with Joe after he got released, and almost immediately Joe reconnected with Seth.

We're told Joe and Seth communicate through letters and talk on the phone daily. Joe says he got back together with Seth because he got his "head out of his own a**" and realized he really liked Seth.

Joe says, "Seth is an amazing human being, wants the best for me and we understand each other," ... adding he's taking this one slowly.

As for seeing each other face-to-face ... Seth has yet to get the approval from prison staff, but he plans to see him as soon as he gets the green light.

Actress Caylee Cowan, the girlfriend of Casey Affleck, had the scariest wake-up call of all time ... cops say she opened her eyes to find an intruder staring down at her.

LAPD sources tell TMZ ... Caylee was all alone early Tuesday morning in the bedroom of their L.A. home ... when she opened her eyes and saw a man in her bedroom. We're told the intruder broke in sometime around 3 AM.

Caylee let out a scream ... and that was enough to scare the guy right out of the house.

Caylee then called 911 and somehow had the presence of mind to give the dispatcher a description of the guy. Police then raced to the scene with sirens blaring ... and spotted him running down the street. He was arrested and taken to the station.

Apparently, before entering Caylee's room, he rifled through some of her stuff in another room. As a result, he was booked for burglary. It's possible the D.A.'s office could add charges when they get the case.

It's unclear how the guy got inside the house, but cops tell us there was no sign of forced entry.

We're told Casey was not home at the time and Caylee was unharmed. But it was one hell of a scare.

It's reminiscent of a terrifying incident involving Sandra Bullock back in 2014, when an intruder entered her Bel Air home and got to her bedroom door ... she ended up face-to-face with him and was able to lock the door before he entered.

Former pro boxer Julius Francis tells TMZ Sports he's down to fight Mike Tyson in a rematch -- 22 years after they first fought -- following the renewed fame he's received after his recent knockout video went viral.

We spoke with the 57-year-old -- who had the internet in a frenzy after he KO'ed a man while working a security guard shift in the UK earlier this month -- and he told us he's now willing to come out of retirement, if the opponent and the price are right.

"If there is a promoter that’s willing to promote a sanctioned fight," Julius said, "and, I never have liked talking about money, but [if] they could come up with a decent offer, then who knows?"

Francis told us he hears all the time that he should fight Jake or Logan Paul because of the potential huge payday ... but he doesn't view either of them in his category.

Instead, Francis shared there's only one person that could get him to lace up the gloves again ... and that's the man he lost to in a famous January 2000 bout -- Iron Mike.

"I’m going to put it out there," Francis said. "I’m going to say, 'Yes. Yes, we can have a rematch.' I don’t know if anybody will watch it, but I'm going to say, 'Yes.'"

Francis was unexpectedly thrust back into the spotlight while working a security gig outside of BOXPARK Wembley on June 12 ... when he knocked a man out with one punch after the guy had been agitating people nearby.

Julius said he felt "vindicated" by social media's response to his haymaker ... and that he was pleased to see people rally behind him, even going as far to say they appreciate what he did because the guy deserved it.

Francis expressed he has no regrets over the situation ... because he was simply defending himself against the guy.

Before this crustacean lover turned into a household name, she was just a little daredevil with pigtails, crabbing grabbing anything she could while growing up in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Making it in the entertainment industry is not an easy task, but that did not stop this cute kid from chopping her way through the movie industry ... She was just 14 years old when she made her film debut in "The Man In The Moon."

This blondie has won two Golden Globe awards, an Emmy award and an Academy Award.

"Whoever said orange is the new pink was seriously disturbed."

Anthony Anderson is backing Dave Chappelle's decision to turn down an honor from his high school alma mater, which was all set to name a building after him.

We got AA at LAX Tuesday, and he thinks Dave's spot on by turning thumbs down on plastering the building -- the Duke Ellington School of the Arts -- with his moniker. After some controversy, the school was ready to put Dave's name right in the front, but Monday night he opted for a different name ... the Theater for Artistic Freedom and Expression.

Anthony believes Dave's a pioneer in the world of free speech, especially for comedians. Anthony acknowledges ... everyone's got their own opinion and some disagree with what Dave says, and that's ok.

While addressing the crowd Monday, Dave referenced the backlash from students over his special 'The Closer' ... and said it really hurt him.

Bill Cosby was just found liable in a civil suit filed by Judy Huth against the disgraced comedian, who claimed he sexually assaulted her at the Playboy Mansion back in 1975.

The Santa Monica jury awarded Huth $500,000.

Huth was 16 years old when she and a 17-year-old friend met Cosby on a film set in a park. She claimed Cosby invited them to accompany him to the Playboy Mansion a few days later.

Huth testified Cosby was alone with her in a bedroom at the mansion, where he attempted to put his hand down her pants. She says she lied to Cosby about being on her period to get him to stop, but claimed Cosby exposed himself and forced her hand on his erect penis and used it to masturbate until climax.

Cosby did not attend the trial ... the jury was, however, shown Cosby's 2015 video deposition, during which he denied Huth's allegations and said he didn't even remember meeting. Huth's lawyer, however, showed the jury a photo of Cosby and Huth at the Playboy Mansion.

Cosby's defense team insisted the allegations were nothing more than Huth attempting to cash in.

As for why Huth waited until December 2014 to file the lawsuit, she claimed the alleged assault resulted in anxiety attacks and flashbacks, beginning in 2014 ... lasting through 2018 when Cosby was sent to prison after being convicted in a separate criminal sexual assault case involving Andrea Constand.

There's absolutely no question -- Travis Scott is getting on with his life -- selling out his Nike collab, hitting massive stages again ... and now whipping around in a $5.5 million ride.

We got photos of the rappers brand new Bugatti Veyron Chiron Super Sport Tuesday in Brentwood -- a vehicle with a starting price of around $3.5 million. We're told the one Travis received cost even more ... and considering there are only 30 made, calling it "rare" would be an understatement.

Travis also shared a photo from inside the whip while he sat in the driver's seat -- highlighting the blue interior.

Of course, Scott's still locked in litigation stemming from the 10 lives lost at Astroworld in November. While he's allowed to move on with his life, you gotta imagine the families behind the lawsuits will feel a certain kinda way about Travis' latest flashy purchase.

As we've told you ... Travis has maintained from the beginning he had no idea of how serious things were in the crowd while he performed and people were dying.

Black folks are pissed off and deeply traumatized by Nipsey Hussle's murder, with a new wave of emotions coming back up during his alleged murderer's trial ... so says Luenell.

The comedy vet chatted with Raquel Harper Tuesday on the 'It's Tricky' podcast. Luenell says she lives near the area where Nipsey was shot, and to drive by the spot almost daily feels like some sort of post-traumatic stress.

She also addressed Nip's alleged killer, Eric Holder, who is currently on trial, saying, "The Black community don't hate nobody as much as they hate Eric Holder's bitch ass."

She also says there are a lot of people praying, if convicted, Holder's placed in general population. Luenell doesn't spell it out, but her insinuation's clear ... inmates are ready to get revenge.

Holder's trial kicked off in L.A. last week, 3 years after Nipsey was killed, and we've already heard the grisly details from the day Holder allegedly pulled the trigger -- including his final words to Nipsey before the rapper died.

Luenell says she's at the point where she feels she needs to move away from Crenshaw, as the reminders throughout the neighborhood of what happened to Nip have become too much to handle.

She also sends her love to Lauren London, who has a son with Nipsey and was dating the rapper when he died. Luenell believes a part of Lauren died with Nipsey.

Priscilla Presley, the ex-wife of Elvis Presley, thinks Austin Butler did a stunning job playing the late performer ... and says the internet should pipe down on the scathing critiques.

We got Priscilla outside the Chinese Theater in Hollywood Tuesday -- she was amongst other members of the Presley family as they left their handprints in cement in front of the theater ahead of the new film's release.

She says AB is just fantastic in his depiction ... and thinks the people talkin' smack don't know Elvis the way she did. Priscilla says she felt just like she was watching her ex-husband up on the big screen ... even though Butler's gotten some harsh criticism online for the portrayal.

Users on TikTok tore the actor apart after the studios posted a scene, trying to get a viral challenge going --  but social media trolls said an impersonator from Vegas could've done a better job.

Wiz Khalifa's currently living large in a new spot not too far from his old one, which means he has an extra mansion on his hands ... but he's trying to change that.

We've just learned the Taylor Gang general is putting his former pad in Encino up for $4,495,000 -- which is $1 million more than he originally paid for the crib back in January 2019.

Seems like a steal of a deal for the next buyer ... the super-smart home features 6 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms, floor-to-ceiling glass doors and custom fireplaces. On the more exotic end of amenities, it's got a home movie theater, a waterfall, pool and a spa.

Alan Taylor of Compass and Brian Capossela with Cap Equity hold the listing.

Wiz is currently resting his head just a few miles up the street in a newly built $7.6 mansion.

The upgraded spot has a lot of the same features as his old place ... but he's added an extra guesthouse and a gym. We know how much Wiz loves his workouts.