TMZ.com Home

Ariana Grande and Ethan Slater's romance came as a surprise to the Broadway actor's now-estranged wife who feels he abandoned his family ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Lilly Jay -- who married Slater back in 2018 -- tell us she's devastated her family's been torn apart. She's also upset their young son, who was born in August 2022, won't have both his mom and dad around constantly, now that they've split.

Our sources say Lilly and Ethan aren't on good terms now that the Ariana relationship is full steam ahead.

We're also told, for her part, Lilly feels like he's completely turned his back on his family.

What's more, we're told Ariana actually used to hang out with both Ethan and Lilly while they were still a happily married couple, and she even liked his Instagram tribute to Lilly on Mother's Day this year. Remember, we're told Ariana and Ethan's romantic relationship started several months ago.

The whole thing has left Lilly feeling betrayed and heartbroken ... according to our sources.

Additional sources close to the situation tell us, "It's understandable that emotions are high and it's hard seeing your ex move on, especially in such a public way, and her friends are trying to protect her. But Ari and Ethan are just trying to lay low and be respectful of their exes as they pursue this new relationship."

TMZ broke the story ... Ariana and Ethan first met on the set of "Wicked" and their relationship grew from there. Sources close to them have maintained both Ariana and Ethan were split from their spouses -- Dalton Gomez and Lilly -- when they got together.

Sources tell us while they haven't yet filed divorce docs, there's definitely one on the horizon for Ariana and Dalton.

As for Lilly and Ethan ... it doesn't appear either has filed yet, but it sounds like things are beyond repair.

Ariana Madix fired some shots at Tom Sandoval during her dream come true appearance on "Love Island USA" ... in a game all about knowing your partner's true colors.

The "Vanderpump Rules" star made her villa debut Tuesday night, hosting the "Mr. and Mrs." game for this season's islanders -- telling contestants she "can't wait to see who's actually been taking the time to get to know one another."

A great setup for a jab at Tom -- then saying "Take it from me, it's important to know who you're dating or sharing a bed with." Ariana adds, "If they're not the one for you, trust me, it's better to find out sooner rather than later."

'VPR' fans remember "Love Island" was the topic of a pretty dramatic convo between Ariana and Tom just before their split. She was talking with him about spending quality time, and he responded, "I don't have time to watch 50 goddamn episodes of Love Island."

As we reported, Ariana was over the moon Tuesday, sharing a first look at her time gathering around the fire pit in Fiji ... and her recent appearance is on top of multiple brand deals, joining the cast of "Dancing with the Stars," and filming a new season of "VPR."

Kevin Spacey is cleared of sexual assault charges in his UK trial -- a London jury just found him not guilty.

The verdict was handed down in Southwark Crown Court Wednesday in London after 2 days of jury deliberation.

Spacey was originally facing 13 counts including sexual assault, indecent assault, and causing a person to engage in a sexual activity without consent. The 4 indecent assault charges were dropped, with the judge citing its removal as a "legal technicality." He was found not guilty of the remaining charges.

It's a huge victory for Spacey, who had been facing the possibility of life in prison if he'd been convicted.

As we reported, Spacey's been on trial in London for allegedly sexually assaulting 4 men from 2001 to 2013. The trial kicked off at the end of June, and he was spotted looking cheerful as he headed into court for the first day.

Prosecutors claimed Spacey performed oral sex on a man while he was asleep, was aggressively "touchy-feely" with one of his drivers, and even groped a man backstage -- something the alleged victim said was done "with such force it was painful."

A lot came out during the trial -- for starters, one of his alleged accusers compared him to his serial killer character in "Se7en" ... telling cops in a prerecorded interview the actor was "a bit like that. A bit creepy. Maybe not quite as bad."

Spacey took the stand last week, describing one of the accusers as funny and charming, describing himself as a "big flirt" and insisting what went down between them was gentle and consensual.

He admitted he really liked the man, but claimed he never knew he would "stab me in the back" 20 years later. Spacey said he thinks his 4 accusers were attacking him after regretting being intimate with him.

Elton John's name came up during the trial because one of the accusers claimed he was groped by Spacey while driving to the singer's annual White Tie and Tiara Ball in either 2004 or 2005.

The Rocket Man himself actually testified remotely during the trial, saying Spacey only attended 1 of his bashes in 2001, not 2004-05. Elton's husband, David Furnish, also said Elton's recollection of the timing was backed up by photos of the past events.

In closing arguments, Spacey's defense team told the jury, "It is not a crime to have sex, even if you’re famous" -- adding it's also not a crime to sleep with someone "of the opposite sex, because it’s 2023 and not 1823."

Timbaland's back in the studio -- with real humans, after entertaining the thought of AI -- with his longtime pals Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado!!!

The "Dream Team" trio was apparently up late in the studio on Tuesday night ... sharing several pics of themselves with huge grins, a good sign the tunes are turning out right.

Nelly dialed in remotely from FaceTime while Timbaland and Justin were together in-studio ... but the reunion was still full circle.

Back in 2006, Timbaland oversaw the production of both JT and Nelly's blockbuster albums ... "FutureSex/LoveSounds" and "Loose" ... with both projects selling millions of records, opening the door for more collabs as the artists owned the dance floors for years.

A scene straight out of a Hollywood thriller unfolded in NYC, as a crane not only caught fire, but collapsed and crashed into a neighboring building ... sending people below running for cover.

The crane was operating on a vacant building near Hudson Yards when it caught fire. Emergency crews responded almost immediately but were essentially helpless as it burned hundreds of feet in the air.

Eventually, the flames got to be too much, and the crane snapped ... striking a neighboring building and falling to the ground.

Lionel Messi Mania is in full effect down in South Florida -- the soccer superstar scored two more goals for his new Inter Miami team on Tuesday night ... and a ton of celebs were there to celebrate.

The former Barcelona star suited up for the MLS squad for the second time in less than a week ... and he dazzled once again.

Coming off a game in which he netted the match-winner ... Messi poured two more balls into the net in just 78 minutes -- lifting his team to a 4-0 win over Atlanta United.

As it was last Friday night in his debut, celebs flocked to DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale to get a glimpse of the soccer G.O.A.T.

DJ Khaled, P Diddy and Camila Cabello were all there ... and Inter Miami owner David Beckham and his wife Victoria Beckham rolled out the red carpet for them.

The A-listers sat in front-row seats ... and, at one point, DJ Khaled's son even got in on the action, helping escort Messi onto the field before play officially began.

Khaled was pumped over it all afterward ... thanking Beckham for the experience in an IG post.

Judge Greg Mathis got into it with some Los Angeles City employees ... but there are drastically different stories from each side as to just how intense things escalated.

Law enforcement sources tell us an employee from the L.A. Dept. of Water and Power made a report Tuesday accusing Mathis of threatening workers with a gun after a heated confrontation. According to the employee, Mathis got pissed after they asked him to move his vehicle -- words were exchanged -- and things escalated to the point of Mathis allegedly flashing and pointing his gun at the workers.

However, we spoke to Mathis, who has a much different story. Mathis tells us the employees were actually blocking his vehicle in, and he was unable to pull out of his driveway.

Mathis says one of the employees got smart with him when he stood in the street, saying if he didn't move, he'd get run over by their work truck. Mathis took that as a threat, and tells us he informed he had a weapon -- though he says he NEVER showed the gun, let alone pointed it at anyone.

Eventually, both sides cooled off ... and the LADWP employees continued on with their work further down the street.

Megan Fox is offering a helping hand to a friend in need -- this after the girl's father was diagnosed with cancer ... and it seems her good work is doing wonders for the cause.

The actress and model shared the link to a GoFundMe Monday, made for 64-year-old Michael Boyce by his daughter, Brittney -- who's Megan's nail tech.

M.F. says Michael was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and is asking her fans to help chip in towards his medical expenses ... and on the site, Brittney says her dad wasn't planning on retiring and had already missed a lot of work, and will likely be missing more.

Brittney says his new prescription isn't covered by insurance, and he already had to pay $1k out of pocket -- and that's not even a month's worth -- so she's hoping the money raised for her pops will help relieve the money pressures so he can focus on getting better.

Megan's reposting seems to have boosted Michael's donations quite a bit -- in just 3 days, the GoFundMe has climbed past $7,600 -- the goal's been raised to $60k.

While Megan's sharing certainly helped, she's been facing some backlash online ... with folks saying the "millionaire" is off base to ask others to pitch in when, in their minds, she could just cough up the loot herself.

It's no secret Drake loves his mom ... but he proved it in a huge way at his NYC concert Tuesday night, celebrating her in front of a sold-out crowd.

Drake escorted the family matriarch, Sandi Graham, onto the stage at Madison Square Garden and sat down on a leather couch alongside her.

He then cracked open a composition book and started rapping, "Look What You've Done," a 2011 tribute song he wrote for Sandi, his uncle and his grandmother.

As Sandi grooved to the lyrics, Drake slightly turned his head to her and sang, "You love me and I love you."

The two then embraced in a big hug before Drake ended by repeating the phrase, "Look what you've done," causing Sandi to get choked up with tears.

The audience also got emotional, shouting and wildly clapping.

If and when Bronny James needs advice on how to come back from a scary heart issue ... Ronny Turiaf, one of LeBron's old basketball pals, tells TMZ Sports he'll be there no questions asked for the teenager.

Turiaf, of course, famously underwent open heart surgery back in 2005 ... after docs found he had an enlarged aortic root. The procedure was terrifying -- it lasted hours ... and the former NBA player didn't know if he'd ever be able to hoop again even when he made it through it successfully.

But, he went on to recover fully ... playing 10 years in the NBA -- including one championship season with LBJ in Miami in 2011-12.

Now, Turiaf tells us he's more than willing to provide a helping hand for James' oldest son when it comes time for the USC star to try to get back on the hardwood following his heart scare on Monday.

"If Bronny ever wants to talk, I'm sure that I'll be more than happy to talk to him," Turiaf said on Tuesday, the 18th anniversary of his own heart procedure. "If at any given time he wants to talk, I'm always available."

TMZ broke the story ... Bronny was raced to a local hospital on Monday after he collapsed during a workout on SC's campus. Thankfully, he was able to be treated following the cardiac arrest ... and now, he's out of the ICU and recovering.

While it's unclear what ailment ultimately caused the issue for Bronny ... Turiaf was optimistic it'll all work out going forward.

Morgan Wallen's got a new favorite pair of boots ... at least, according to The Shoe Surgeon, who supplied the country star with some high priced you-know-what-kickers.

Dominic Chambrone, aka The Shoe Surgeon, tells TMZ ... Morgan debuted his custom Tecovas during his concert this past Saturday night at L.A.'s SoFi Stadium, and these babies are literally one of a kind.

We're told MW stopped by Dominic's studio a few months ago, and a design in his concept room really caught the singer's eye -- a pair of shoes inspired by professional BMX rider Nigel Sylvester's Air Jordan 1's.

The boots are hand-dyed python skin with yellow suede binding, and it's all hand scuffed to mimic Nigel's shoes. The finished products were hand-delivered to Morgan before Saturday's show, where he took 'em out for a spin onstage.

BTW, Dominic's cooked up customs for some other celebs recently ... like singer/rapper Peso Pluma and soccer star Kellyn Acosta.

Kimora Lee Simmons has unloaded her swanky Bev Hills pad ... and she's making a killing on the place.

Real estate sources tell TMZ ... the model sold the home for a whopping $16.5 million earlier this month, and the new owner has already put the place back on the market for a short/long-term lease option, asking for $100k a month.

We're told the new owner is planning to eventually move in full-time, and he'll completely renovate the property -- but if you've got a decent chunk of change to drop on rent (we're lookin' at you, Sanchezos), you can live like Kimora until that time comes.

As for Kimora, she scooped up the mansion in 2008 for $11M ... and the 9,405-square-foot home comes with 9 bedrooms, 10 bathrooms and a whole lotta sweet perks throughout.

The estate has massive columns in the entry to greet your guests, and further inside there's a library, butler's pantry, spa, gym and wine cellar.

Out back, of course, there's a custom pool ... and a drop-dead gorgeous garden that looks like it's straight outta "Bridgerton."

It even has a greenhouse-style lounge area for those who enjoy chillin' with their plants.

Before this cute kid cheesing for the camera in his Mickey Mouse shirt turned into an EGOT winner, he was just playing on his piano, performing in his church's choir and hangin' with his 3 younger siblings in Springfield, Ohio.

He started to bust out his singing chops under the guidance of Kanye West ... and in more recent years, you've probably heard some of his classic hits like "All Of Me." When he's not "craving" some quality time with his family, you can catch him eating his favorite, rotisserie chicken and steamed veggies.

Hulk Hogan has wedding bells in his future ... because he just got engaged to his girlfriend of over a year.

The pro wrestling icon tells TMZ Sports ... he and Sky Daily got engaged last week, with Hogan popping the question at a restaurant in Tampa, Florida.

Hogan tells us he was very nervous about proposing ... but Sky said, "Yes."

The WWE Hall of Famer says his fiancée has three children of her own, and he fell in love with all of them.

As we reported, Hogan and Sky, a yoga instructor, started dating early last year ... with Hulk moving on quickly after his divorce from his second wife, Jennifer McDaniel, was finalized.

We broke the story ... Hulk also had to buy Jennifer a new car as part of the divorce settlement.

Hogan and Jennifer were married for over 10 years, tying the knot in 2010 after he split from his first wife, Linda Hogan.

Now, Hulk's heading for his third marriage.

President Biden's White House Press Secretary explains Commander the recidivist dog biter this way ... hey, The White House is a super stressful place!

Press Sect'y. Karine Jean-Pierre fielded questions during Tuesday's briefing, and of course ... she was asked about Commander, Joe's German Shepherd -- who has been allowed to call 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. home, despite biting 7 people in a 4-month period.

That 4-month period ended in January, and when Jean-Pierre was asked if the dog has sunk its chompers into anyone else since then, she punted, referring the reporter to the Secret Service.

When asked if there were any plans on relocating the canine, Jean-Pierre didn't say. She did, however, promise there'd be more leashing/training.

A WH rep also said the Secret Service and executive residence staff would work to carve out designated areas and times for Commander to run around and play -- so, for now, it would appear there's no sign of him getting shipped off to Delaware, like Major.

As far as the Secret Service agents who were bitten ... the WH says their injuries were dealt with according to workplace injury protocols, and noted the Prez and First Lady appreciated the Secret Service's understanding through all of this.

LeBron James' son, Bronny, was rushed to a hospital after suffering cardiac arrest during a basketball workout, TMZ Sports has learned.

A James family spokesperson tells TMZ Sports ... "Yesterday while practicing Bronny James suffered a cardiac arrest. Medical staff was able to treat Bronny and take him to the hospital. He is now in stable condition and no longer in ICU. We ask for respect and privacy for the James family and we will update media when there is more information."

The spokesperson continues, "LeBron and Savannah wish to publicly send their deepest thanks and appreciation to the USC medical and athletic staff for their incredible work and dedication to the safety of their athletes."

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ Sports ... a 911 call was made at 9:26 AM Monday from USC's Galen Center -- the venue where the team plays and practices -- and the 18-year-old hooper, who was unconscious, was taken by ambulance to the hospital.

Our sources say it was a Code 3 -- meaning the ambulance had lights and sirens going -- which signifies the seriousness of the emergency.

Bronny is a rising talent in his sport -- he recently committed to the Trojans and is expected to end up in the NBA.

Bronny was a McDonald's All-American during his high school senior season ... and LeBron has expressed his desire to play alongside his son in the League.

Bronny also followed in his dad's footsteps and competed in the slam dunk competition at the high school showcase in March.

Bronny will have a close friend to lean on in this situation if he needs one ... as Shaquille O'Neal's son, Shareef O'Neal, dealt with a heart issue of his own back in 2018 when he was a teenage basketball star. You'll recall, Shareef required surgery to fix an abnormality in his ticker ... and while it's unclear if Bronny's medical emergency is even remotely similar -- the two are good pals and appear to be totally fine in confiding with one another.

In fact, they were recently spotted out together in Hollywood earlier this month trying to party with one another at Saweetie's birthday bash.

Bronny -- who was just recently seen looking fine at the ESPY Awards two weeks ago with his family -- was a 4-star recruit who averaged 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists at Sierra Canyon during his senior season.