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Ariana Grande is dating a guy who plays SpongeBob SquarePants -- but it ain't the main one you're thinking of ... which is why the wife of the real SB is chirping up.

Fellow voice actor Jill Talley -- who's married to the man who's been voicing SpongeBob on TV for years now -- posted a clarification in response to an IG post from The Cut ... which ran with a confusing headline about AG's new boo, Ethan Slater.

It reads, "Is Ariana Grande Dating Spongebob Now?" and it also features a shot of Ariana and Ethan -- this of course after we broke the news that the 'Wicked' costars are together.

Naturally, The Cut's implication here is technically accurate ... but not totally clear in and of itself. Yes, Slater portrays a live-action version of SpongeBob on Broadway -- a role for which he's earned Tony noms. But he's NOT the voice actor who's been playing him forever now.

That's something JT wanted to set the record straight on, commenting on The Cut's post ... "Hi everyone, I’m married to Tom Kenny (who voices SpongeBob on the TV show). He is not dating Ariana Grande. I don’t know if Ethan Slater (who played SpongeBob in the musical) is or isn’t dating Ariana Grande. However, they’re both adorable and I totally ship it."

She added this on her own relationship ... "Just wanted to set the record straight. P.S. as for me and Tom Kenny -- we are celebrating our 27th wedding anniversary today."

In other words ... one dude shouldn't be mistaken for the other -- and for a minute, it sounds like they were. Good to know the OG SpongeBoy is faithful through and through.

Like we first told you ... Ethan and Ariana have been dating each other for a few months now -- making the timeline of things a little murky. We know she and Dalton Gomez had ended their relationship in January, but that they also gave it one last go in May during their 2-year anniversary. On the face of it, it seems like there might've been some overlap.

Rami Malek has proven to be a scene-stealer in "Oppenheimer" -- something his biggest fans are ecstatic about ... especially considering his mixed-bag journey in Hollywood.

The Oscar-winning actor is one of several stars with a smaller role in Nolan's latest feature -- which is getting rave reviews. Ditto for a lot of the supporting performances, including RM ... who shows up for an impactful monologue at a critical moment in the movie.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!! ... Rami's big scene comes toward the end, when Robert Downey Jr. is revealed to be the bad guy -- who's trying to smear Cillian Murphy/Oppenheimer. Rami sits in as a witness in front of Congress, and he backs Oppenheimer in emphatic terms.

Essentially, his character -- who only had a couple of lines up until this point -- turns out to be a major game-changer in the trajectory of the film ... and it happens at the drop of a dime.

While brief, his work is getting hailed as a standout in a flick packed with talent -- especially on Twitter, where folks are (jokingly) saying they were right to hold onto their Rami Malek stock ... 'cause he's great. His resume of late hasn't always reflected that, unfortunately.

Fact is ... Rami's ascension in showbiz has, at times, felt stunted -- even after he won Best Actor for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody" ... which was controversial. Some felt he didn't deserve the win that year ... of course, others disagreed.

Point is -- since then, he hasn't really blown up the way people thought he would, or should ... instead getting sprinkled into movies here and there, somewhat unremarkably.

However, now ... a lot of his supporters feel vindicated by what he did in 'Oppenheimer,' and are hoping he'll be put back on the leading man trajectory that they feel he deserves.

Victoria Beckham is once again singing Spice Girls tunes, but on a tiny stage compared to what she once rocked with her bandmates ... and the timing of this is interesting.

The now-former Posh Spice posted a video Sunday, where she's belting out 'Say You'll Be There' during a night out with her hubby, David Beckham. Of course, this is in a karaoke setting ... so it's not really a polished performance by any means. It is public though.

Check it out ... you see Victoria handling microphone duties at some venue in the Magic City, where the Beckhams live. She writes, "Warming up the vocals in Miami! More to come."

She doesn't elaborate, but it's telling that she seems to be teasing something here. Of course, Spice Girls fans might be losing their minds right now ... assuming this has anything to do with the possibility of her touring again, which she's strongly resisted up to this point.

The other weird thing about this is that one year ago, to the day, Victoria was also singing Spice Girl in yet another karaoke sesh -- so ya gotta figure there's more to this here.

Like we said ... Victoria/Posh has been the lone holdout among the Spice Girls amid their recent reunion gigs. In 2019, she was the only one who didn't hit the stage during their UK tour ... and in recent months, there's been even more talk of them hitting the road again.

Still, despite their best efforts to recruit her ... Victoria has, time and again, said she's too busy with other ventures and simply can't commit to getting onstage again with the other Spice Girls. It's a shame really -- because diehard fans have wanted to see them all officially reunite for years ... and the group's just not the same without all 5 members together.

The last time the Spice Girls performed as a full unit was in 2012 during the London Olympics. Since then, VB has gone on to other things ... including her fashion line.

Martin Brundle often gets treated like dirt by celebs at F1 races -- but on Sunday ... the shoe seemed to be on the other foot during his interview with one Terry Crews.

The racer-turned-broadcaster was doing his thing during the Hungarian Grand Prix, where Terry was on the grid ... chillin' with the Red Bull crew and taking in the sights. Like he usually does, Martin sorta bum-rushed him and started peppering him with questions.

Good sports that he is ... Terry played along, and gave great, thoughtful responses. Terry talked about the technology of the cars and said he was learning a lot about the sport.

Now, for the most part, TC is getting tons of praise for how he handled himself here. Considering how others in the recent past have dealt with Martin -- namely, kinda giving him the cold shoulder, which often goes viral -- Terry's engagement is getting a big thumbs up.

But watch how Martin ends this impromptu chat ... he quickly cuts it short, without even thanking him for his time or anything. He beelines it to another interview subject and leaves Terry awkwardly hanging. Even during the convo, you can tell MB is barely listening.

Welp, folks at home certainly took notice ... and some are labeling Martin rude in how treated Terry -- which, again, is ironic seeing how he's normally the one being snubbed.

In any case, Terry handled it with grace -- even after Martin bolted away mid-thought ... he still flashed a big smile and the peace sign. Good dude, it didn't really phase him.

Doja Cat appears to be opening up a can of tough love on her staunchest fans -- rebuking a pet name they've given themselves ... and telling them to grow the hell up.

The rapper/singer has been getting some side-eye from her loyal supporters over the past few days -- and it all appears to have come to a head this weekend when she shot down a term a lot of them use ... which is kind of in the vein of Nicki Minaj stans.

Of course, we're referring to the Barbz -- something Nicki seems to have embraced with open arms ... but the same can't be said for Doja and her "Kittenz." It's a phrase some of her fans have affectionately used to brand themselves as followers of hers, but DC's telling them to drop it ... and more importantly, to get a life!

In a since-deleted tweet, Doja wrote ... "my fans don’t name themselves s***. if you call yourself a 'kitten' or f***ing 'kittenz' that means you need to get off your phone and get a job and help your parents with the house."

There are other since-deleted tweets where she's telling fans of hers to delete their account if they're even referencing her in their profile pic or username ... and yeah, it's a bit combative.

On the one hand -- Doja crapping on the fandom is a refreshing assessment/slam of "stan" culture -- which has run rampant among some of the biggest artists out there (Swifties, Barbz, Harries, Beyhive etc.) But it's also jarringly honest ... so much so, in fact, Doja appears to be rubbing her "kittenz" the wrong way -- to the point they're kinda turning on her now.

You can hop into the Doja Cat trend for yourself to see how people are responding ... but it would seem they're not feeling Doja's hot-and-cold approach to being an A-list celeb. Sometimes she's very warm/welcoming, other times -- she's off-putting and cold. Her timeline and Twitter replies certainly suggest as much, anyway.

Here's hoping Doja can make nice with her potential ticket-buyers soon ... 'cause she's got a tour coming up in the Fall, and she's been promoting it like crazy.

Both films opened Friday across the US and abroad, generating massive ticket sales and revenue with a whopping $511 million in total estimated proceeds, which rarely ever happens in the movie biz.

Hollywood's bouncing back with a vengeance, leaving the pandemic in the rearview! Movie theatres across North America witnessed their largest crowds since "Avengers: Endgame" hit the screens back in April 2019.

As for which flick took first prize ... "Barbie", starring Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie, snagged the top spot, raking in over $155 million in U.S. box office receipts  -- making "Barbie" the biggest opening of the year taking the top spot away from "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" at $146 million.

On the other hand, Director Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" landed in second place, taking in over $80 million domestically and $174 million globally, making it the third-strongest opening this year.

But that's not all – when all the numbers are tallied, it's expected that this weekend will go down as the fourth biggest box office weekend in history, with a staggering industrywide total of over $300 million. The impact of this weekend's box office success is undoubtedly going to be talked about for a long time to come.

If they continue along this track, the sky's the limit for Barbie and Oppenheimer.

There's no slowing Jason Aldean's controversial song "Try That In A Small Town" ... it's getting tons of play, especially at his own bar.

TMZ obtained this video from Jason Aldean's Kitchen + Rooftop Bar in Nashville, where the band played the song a few times in front of a packed house.

Jason wasn't there himself Wednesday night during the song's live performances ... instead, the singer was Jamie Baxter.

As you know, the song's become a lightning rod ... and a hit.

On the one hand, lots of folks say the song and its music video are deeply offensive and racist ... but there are lots of folks defending the track too, including Jeanine Pirro.

For his part, Jason says the song is not racist and not pro-lynching.

Over at Jason's bar, we're told the band performed the track twice within 45 minutes ... so it's obviously going over well on his home turf.

If you think Taylor Swift and Kanye West kissed and made up after the VMA Awards debacle 14 years ago, then you're dead wrong ... and there's now video to prove it.

As part of her sold-out Eras Tour, Taylor was performing on stage at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington Saturday night and cranking out "This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things."

The tune was inspired by the phone recording incident back in 2016, when Kanye said he gave Taylor a heads up before releasing his song, "Famous," which included the lyric, "I made that bitch famous."  Taylor begged to differ.

Check out the clip of Taylor addressing the issue all these years later ... the pop star begins to laugh uproariously after singing the lyrics, "Cause forgiveness is the nice thing to do."

Taylor finds the whole notion so funny she can barely compose herself, admitting, "I can barely say it with a straight face." She then continues playing as the crowd goes wild.

Thomar Lattrel Simmons was interviewed Saturday by the New York Post and made his desperate plea on behalf of Russell.

Simmons said, "The only thing I can say is, I want everyone to stop bullying her. I know what it seems like what she did. Just stop bullying on social media."

He continued, "Think about her mental health. She doesn’t deserve that. She doesn’t. Nobody deserves to be cyberbullied."

As we reported, Russell has come under intense scrutiny after she claimed she was abducted on the side of a highway while trying to help a child.

She called 911 on June 13 and told the dispatcher she saw the toddler wandering along the interstate as she was driving home from work.

Russell promised to wait with the child until the police arrived, but, when the cops got there, Carlee was nowhere to be found and neither was the kid.

Two days later, Russell returned home without so much as a scratch. Since then, police have investigated the incident and publicly stated they have not been able to verify Carlee's suspicious account.

Jason Aldean isn't backing down from the storm of criticism he received over his song, "Try That in a Small Town," which many on the left believe is downright racist.

The country star addressed a packed crowd at his Friday concert in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The footage begins with Aldean pacing back and forth on stage, while saying,  “It’s been a long week, and I’ve seen a lot of stuff suggesting I’m this, suggesting I’m that.”

He then said everyone is entitled to their own thoughts and opinions, but that doesn't mean what they say is true.

Aldean went on to explain he's proud to be an American who loves his country and hopes to restore it “to what it once was before all this bulls—t started happening to us."

He ended his 2-minute speech by addressing cancel culture and how it can "try to ruin your life."

By contrast, liberals were totally beside themselves over Aldean's music video for "Try That in a Small Town," which was featured on the Country Music Television (CMT) network. It showed images of violent Black Lives Matter protests in cities across the country to protest the murder of George Floyd at the hands of the police.

Aldean's fans seemed to dig what he said. They all hooted, hollered and chanted "USA."

During the video, Aldean was seen performing outside Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee, which was the site of the 1946 Columbia Race Riot. The uprising led to the near lynching of the first Black Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.

Last week, activist groups called for boycotts of the network, prompting CMT to yank the video from its airwaves. ABC aired his performance of the song last week during their broadcast from the "CMA Fest" concert in Nashville.

The Twitter CEO posted a message to his social media platform early Sunday morning, announcing the huge makeover that will certainly bring the company into a new phase with an all-new look.

Musk wrote, "And soon we shall bid adieu to the twitter brand and, gradually, all the birds."

In a second post, Musk added that the "X" logo could soon be unveiled if he finds an emblem suited to his tastes.

Musk followed up by offering an image of a glimmering "X," but he wouldn't say if that one qualified as the fresh face of Twitter.

Bam Margera's turning up the heat in his beef with the 'Jackass' crew, taking shots at Johnny Knoxville, Wee Man, Steve-O and director Jeff Tremaine.

Bam's got a feature on a new single called "Feel Like Bam" by rappers Cult Shotta and Tanboymiguel ... and he uses his verse to rap about how bad his old 'Jackass' buddies are at skateboarding, while challenging Knoxville to a fight and blaming him for ruining his skateboarding career.

We are told Bam met the rappers at a studio in Los Angeles where he was working on music and asked to jump on one of their tracks.

TMZ has the first look at the music video ... and when Bam's not rapping or taking cheap shots, he's making out with his new girlfriend.

Bam is also sending a message to Tremaine, calling out the director for what he sees as unfair movie contracts for the stars ... throwing in some explicit insults for good measure.

Barbie's looks over the years are even more glamorous outside the box!

Here is Jewel Girl Barbie -- known for her athletic physique and natural looking makeup -- back in 2000 (left). With the ability to realistically bend and twist at the waist, this was a first for Barbie since she first hit the shelves back in the late 1950s.

And as time has gone by for the blue-eyed babe, Becky's Barbie has still got that twinkle in her eye -- and is showcasing her timeless beauty decades later -- seen posing here in the Star Studio (right).

Barbie has evolved since she broke the mold, but her elegance has always remained intact!

The question is ...

The lightweight title isn't on the line in the UFC 291 main event, but the "iconic" BMF belt is ... and Justin Gaethje wants it!

TMZ Sports spoke to the 34-year-old UFC star ahead of his scrap with Dustin Poirier on July 29 ... and the Baddest Mother F****r belt is on the line. We asked Gaethje if he cared about the strap.

"I think [the belt is] really iconic," Justin said.

"There's only been two guys in the world that have ever fought for it. We'll be the two out of four guys now. And I think it's, it does great things for the legacy, that's ultimately what we're here to build is a legacy. Make money. That's there. And, you know, it catapults us right into the championship talk. So it's perfect."

FYI, only Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal have fought for the belt ... which was created for them. Gamebred won that November 2019 fight by TKO ... and that's the last time the belt was on the line.

It'll be a rematch for Dustin and Justin ... the guys fought in a Fight Night card in April 2018. DP beat JG by 4th round TKO. It was just Gaethje's third UFC fight.

"It's part of my journey. It's something that I'll cherish forever, but you know, I don't think it's a huge factor," Gaethje said of the first fight's impact on UFC 291, adding ... "It's five years ago."

"We both grown so much and we've both been in some huge fights since that day. So yeah, I think it's again something that I'll always cherish, but it's not something that I'm using to game plan for this fight."

We also Justin where he believes a win would leave him in his quest for the 155-pound title.

"I'm not too worried about that right now. [Dustin's] the number two-ranked guy in the world. I'm the number three-ranked guy in the world. I think no matter what it's a given that the winner of this fight, we either fight the winner of the [Islam Makhachev-Charles Oliveira]. And if one of us is able to go in there and get a quick knockout and take no damage, then there's a slight possibility that maybe we'll be ready for October."

Makhachev and Oliveira are fighting at UFC 294 on October 21 in Abu Dhabi.

Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling aren't the only "Starbies" feeling the glamour in pink ... Join in on the fun, friends and fashion and see all the celebs who've fully immersed themselves in The Barbie World!

Big shot Hollywood music producer Mark Ronson -- who produced tunes for the featured film -- and YouTuber Toddy Smith have really embraced "life in plastic," jumping right into the human-sized Barbie box!

Khloe Kardashian, True Thompson and Stormi Webster joined actress America Ferrera -- who plays Gloria in the movie -- and put the pink pedal to the metal and took a spin in the Barbie mobile!

Even Ken's real-life wife, Eva Mendes, has shown up to the Barbie party! Check out our gallery of Stars In The Barbie World!

Adam22 says the porn star who banged his wife in camera is on time-out after giving an interview on the sex tape ... telling us a potential threesome is now off-limits.

We got the popular podcaster in Los Angeles and asked about his souring relationship with Jason Luv, and where it all started going downhill.

Adam22 says he's super pissed over Jason's sex tape interview, where he bragged about being better in bed and more well-endowed than Lena The Plug's husband.

The way Adam22 sees things ... Jason broke a code among porn stars by comparing penis sizes and opening up about other bedroom details ... telling us Lena's seen the interview in question and is upset with Jason as well.

Adam22 says he'd been talking with Lena about filming a threesome with Jason ... but he tells us that's all out the window now.

And, get this ... Adam22 feels Jason is showing insecurities now that the sex tape is shining a spotlight on all three of them. In fact, he tells us he's even considered a celeb boxing match with Jason to settle their differences ... but says the money he'd make from the event just wouldn't even be worth his time.