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Actor Kristian Nairn, who played Hodor on "Game of Thrones," thinks Dave Chappelle shouldn't make jokes at the expense of the LGBTQ community.

Nairn was on Robertson Boulevard in L.A. Friday when our photog asked about the heat Dave's taking over his latest Netflix special. He makes a case that he's not transphobic or homophobic, but not everyone in the LGBTQ community is buying it and some are calling for a boycott.

Kristian, who came out as gay back in 2014, suggests Dave should stay in his lane and not take shots at communities that don't affect him.

Chapelle couldn't care less about the cancel calls ... he made that clear earlier this week. And, he tripled down at the Hollywood Bowl Thursday night, and Stevie Wonder, Snoop, Lizzo, Jon Hamm and others took the stage and had his back.

Bill Maher ended his show Friday night with a message ... "I hope I scared the s*** out of you," and he delivered ... by laying out a believable scenario of how the 2024 Presidential election will go down.

Maher believes we are in the grips of what he calls a "slow-moving coup" at the hands of Donald Trump, and his evidence is really hard to rebut. As he says, Trump learned from 2020 that you can't overturn an election with the current players in place, so he's been spending most of his time trying to change all that.

The evidence is out there ... we've seen Trump trying to purge the GOP of RINOs and endorsing secretaries of state all over the country -- these are the folks who manage elections. Trump's also been active in trying to change state legislatures so his people are in place who can grab more power over election tabulations. And, of course, he'll be the beneficiary of the 2022 midterms, when Republicans are expected to regain control of the House.

As you know ... the House certifies the election and although Trump couldn't get the results overturned in 2020, the landscape will shift in such a way that it could happen the next time around.

And, here's the craziest part ... Maher says it doesn't matter who Trump is running against. Even if it looks like the Democrat won, the day after the election Trump will declare victory and the pieces will be in place to affirm it -- whether he really wins or loses.

And, wait till you hear him lay out what might happen on January 20, 2025. It's a set up for civil war.

Sam Asghari got his fiancee a living, breathing present with dual intentions ... to keep her happy, and to keep her safe.

Britney filmed Sam as he gifted her a Dobie pup Friday. He posted the video with the caption, "Surprised my fiancé with our newest member to the Family ❤️ Porsha."

As Brit trained her cellphone on man and dog, you hear him say ... "Her name is Porsha and she's meant to unconditionally love you and is going to be trained to protect you from any motherf***** that comes around you with bad intentions."

You'll recall, Brit's had canine issues recently ... she got into it with her housekeeper after the woman took Britney's other 2 dogs to the vet because she felt they were being neglected. The dogs ended up staying with the dog sitter for 2 weeks until they were returned.

It feels like things are lining up for a post-conservator life. As we reported, our sources say Britney and Sam are in the early stages of looking for a new house, though they won't pull the trigger until the conservatorship is terminated. That could happen as early as November 12, the date of the next court hearing.

There's been a very public back and forth between private investigators and cops investigating the Zodiac killer case over the testing of DNA found at the scene of a potential victim, but an email exchange obtained by TMZ appears to swing things in favor of the private investigators.

We've obtained emails from April, in which a member of The Case Breakers sent a message to The Riverside Police Department asking about hairs found clenched in the hand of victim Cheri Jo Bates. CB stated their investigators had identified a "viable suspect for a potential comparison."

From there, The Case Breakers tell us they were met with silence on the testing, and RPD refused to do a comparison between the DNA evidence found at the scene and the potential Zodiac Killer.

The email exchange seemingly goes against the RPD claim from earlier this week when they denied they'd ever received any sort of DNA testing or comparison request from CB.

What's more, in another email exchange obtained by TMZ between CB and RPD regarding the Bates case, RPD flat out said, "we can say without a doubt this case is not related to the Zodiac Killer case."

That statement is quite the opposite of what Riverside Police Chief Kinkead said back in 1969 when he said he felt the killer in the Bates case had many similarities to The Zodiac, including a military boot print at the scene of the crime.

As we reported, The Case Breakers announced Wednesday they had identified The Zodiac Killer as Gary Poste, a man who was living in Northern Cal and died in 2018.

Poste's family has not yet commented on the findings.

Chappelle may be catching heat for his latest Netflix special, but he couldn't give 2 f's, and Kim K's gonna host 'SNL' -- the question ... can she pull it off? So, we gotta ask ...

Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury won't be the only stars in the building on fight night Saturday ... TMZ Sports has learned a TON of celebs are hittin' Sin City to take in the boxing match too!!

Actors Vince Vaughn, Michael B. Jordan and Michael J. Fox will have ringside seats at T-Mobile Arena, we're told. NBA ballers Draymond Green and Damian Lillard are set to be in attendance as well.

Rapper Fat Joe, TV star Mario Lopez and chef Wolfgang Puck are expected to be there too, while boxers Shakur Stevenson and Terence Crawford are set to watch their peers duke it out as well.

We're told Raiders owner Mark Davis, rapper Nas and cycling legend Lance Armstrong also couldn't stay away from Vegas, and will be at the fight too.

Of course, all of the guys are expected to see quite the show ... 'cause Fury and Wilder have both been promising a great fight in their third matchup.

Remember, Wilder and Fury fought to a draw back in 2018 ... but Fury demolished the Bronze Bomber in their rematch in Feb. 2020.

Wilder has said he's much improved since that fight, though ... and predicted a knockout within 3 rounds on Saturday.

Fury, meanwhile, laughed off that prediction and promised to inflict pain on Wilder.

Kodak Black's doctors believe it would behoove the rapper to spend the final 30 days of his treatment at a facility outside of Florida ... so he's asking the court for permission to do so.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Kodak's physician and treatment specialist believe he would benefit from a program outside Florida. The location and details were not provided in the public documents for security reasons.

But, Kodak's team makes it clear ... his doctors think that for Kodak to have a better chance of success, he needs to be in a different environment for a period of time.

The request comes on the heels of some very alarming tweets from the rapper that quickly had fans worried about his mental health. He's since deleted all of his social media accounts but some tweets included, "Sitting In My Room Crying Feel Like Killing Myself."

He also wrote, "So Lonely Depressed Sad & F***** Up ... Nobody Love Me Nobody Cares ... I'm Everywhere @ Once ... Friends Playin In My Head ... Girls Playin Wit My Heart ... Wish I Can Go Back To The Start I'll Never Be Famous."

Kodak's legal team is now asking for the court's permission to join an out-of-state residential treatment facility for the last 30 days of his court-ordered residential program.

Kodak's attorney, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ ... they'd love to move Kodak to a different state if and when probation agrees. He wouldn't say which state they have in mind.

We asked Cohen about Kodak's failed drug test and about Kodak's concerning tweets but he declined to comment.

As we first reported ... Kodak violated the terms of his supervised release in his federal gun case by failing a drug test. He was ordered to get treatment. He's currently in treatment now ... but his doctors want him to spend the last 30 days at an out-of-state facility.

Don't let these two almost identical images of Kim Kardashian sketch you out! Step out on the town and see if you can skim through the concealed switches made to this sneaky snap!

The celebrity personality and fashion mogul was seen leaving her hotel in New York City this week as she prepares for her first hosting gig on "Saturday Night Live" ... and we have made a few changes to the original pic! See if you can keep up to find the differences between these two super similar snaps!

There isn’t a person in the world that hasn’t heard of the new Netflix show “Squid Game” ... and we have an inside look at how the Korean stars of the show spent their time behind the cameras while taking a break from all the intense gameplay.

Go on set of the new Netflix smash show and see how all of your favorite players like Seung Gi-hun (456), Cho Sang-woo (218) and Kang Sae-byeok (067) passed the time while shooting the greatest game of your life!

Princess Love's marriage to Ray J might be ending for real this time, but she doesn't seem to be fazed by it ... in fact, she says she's doing better than ever!!!

Princess Love was loading up to leave LAX with her kids Friday when she was asked how she's doing following Ray J filing for divorce this week. Sounds like she's barely thinking about it ... and is focused on herself and her kids.

As for her estranged hubby ... she provided a bit of an update on his health, we think, saying he's "alive and well."

That's good to hear, because as we reported ... Ray was hospitalized this week with pneumonia, but for 2 days doctors thought he may have been dealing with COVID-19 too ... and even held him in the COVID ward.

Last we knew he was still struggling to fight it off, but according to Princess Love ... he's doing okay.

Of course, it's hard to really know what's going on with PL and RJ. As you'll recall ... his filing for divorce was the third time it's gone down between the couple. She did it first in May 2020, then they reconciled, then he did it again in Sept. 2020, followed but another reconciliation ... which brings us to now.

Longtime MLB announcer Jim Kaat is in some scalding hot water ... after he shockingly made a slavery reference while calling the Astros vs. White Sox ALDS playoff game Friday.

Kaat's comment came in the 2nd inning of Game 2 as Chicago infielder Yoan Moncada stepped up to the plate ... when co-announcer Buck Showalter shared a story about the first time he saw the 26-year-old Cuban star in person.

The ex-Orioles manager said he remembered asking the Baltimore front office, "Can we have one of those" ... to which Kaat replied, "Get a 40-acre field full of 'em."

82-year-old Kaat apologized for the comment a few innings later ... saying, "Earlier in the game, when Yoan Moncada was at the plate, in an attempt to compliment the great player that he is, I used a poor choice of words that resulted in an insensitive and hurtful remark and I'm sorry for that."

Kaat is getting grilled for the cookie cutter apology ... with many calling him out for apparently reading the statement off a piece of paper.

The comment comes just months after Detroit Tigers announcer Jack Morris was suspended for using a mocking accent during a Shohei Ohtani at-bat.

Bill Cosby is way off with his R. Kelly theory about the singer getting a raw deal in his federal sex crimes case ... according to one of Kelly's victims.

Faith Rodgers, who previously testified she's a victim of Kelly's sexual misconduct, spoke out Friday for the first time since the singer was convicted on all 9 federal counts ... and she says Kelly tried to threaten her into silence.

With attorney Gloria Allred by her side, Faith ripped Cosby's spokesman, Andrew Wyatt, for telling TMZ ... his client's reaction to Kelly's conviction was, "The guy was railroaded."

Faith says that line of thinking, and terminology, is "beyond insulting" to all of Kelly's victims.

What's more, she claims Kelly threatened her multiple times after she decided to come forward as a victim. She says the alleged threats included publishing nude pictures and videos of her.

As we reported ... Kelly was found guilty last month on 9 federal counts, including sex crimes, human trafficking, kidnapping, racketeering and obstruction of justice and human trafficking. He's looking at 10 years to life when he gets sentenced next year.

Jon Gruden says he's sorry for sending an email back in 2011 that contained racist language ... saying the comment he wrote was "horrible."

The email, according to the Wall Street Journal, was sent to Washington Football Team exec Bruce Allen ... and it contained a nasty remark about NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith.

"Dumboriss Smith has lips the size of michellin tires," Gruden wrote, according to the report.

The email was sent at a time when the NFLPA and the NFL owners were feuding over the league's collective bargaining agreement.

Gruden, who at the time was a broadcaster for ESPN, told the WSJ he didn't "specifically recall writing the email" -- but he added he was still "really sorry" for it.

"I was upset," 58-year-old Gruden said. "I used a horrible way of explaining it."

"I don't think he's dumb. I don't think he's a liar,” Gruden added. "I don't have a racial bone in my body, and I've proven that for 58 years."

Gruden went on to say he had, in the past, called liars "rubber lips" and went "too far" in his message about Smith to Allen.

What's interesting, NFL sources tell TMZ Sports the email was found by league investigators while they were conducting a probe into allegations of workplace misconduct in the Washington Football Team organization.

They added the league is currently investigating the matter.

Smith, meanwhile, told the WSJ he was disappointed to learn of the comments Gruden wrote behind his back ... explaining, "Racism like this comes from the fact that I'm at the same table as they are and they don't think someone who looks like me belongs."

"I'm sorry my family has to see something like this but I would rather they know. I will not let it define me."

The Raiders -- who hired Gruden away from ESPN to be their head coach in 2018 -- have yet to comment.

The Kenosha PD officer who shot Jacob Blake in the back seven times -- and who's avoided state prosecution -- will also not face federal charges.

The U.S. Justice Department said Friday it will not pursue federal criminal charges against Rusten Sheskey. The feds say "the evidence obtained is insufficient to prove that the KPD officer willfully used excessive force."

Remember, Blake was unarmed, back in August 2020, when Sheskey opened fire at point-blank range. Video of the shooting sparked racial justice protests across the country, and led to the Kyle Rittenhouse shooting.

According to the feds ... a team of experienced federal prosecutors from the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office reviewed the evidence to determine whether the police officer violated any federal laws.

The feds added that "a detailed and lengthy analysis of numerous materials, including police reports, law enforcement accounts, witness statements, affidavits of witnesses, dispatch logs, physical evidence reports, photographs and videos of some portions of the incident."

In essence ... prosecutors say they couldn't establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer "willfully" deprived Jacob of his constitutional rights. The feds say "neither accident, mistake, fear, negligence, nor bad judgment is sufficient to establish a willful federal criminal civil rights violation."

As we reported ... Kenosha County District Attorney Michael D. Graveley also announced back in January that Sheskey would not be charged for the shooting. Graveley said Sheskey acted in self-defense, and it was necessary for the officer to use lethal force to stop Jacob from potentially harming him or others.

The shooting left Jacob paralyzed. The Justice Dept. says it's already informed his family about the decision not to charge Sheskey.

The Waffle House employee holding a baby while she worked didn't just take heat online, but an online scammer also made up a backstory about the incident for financial gain ... TMZ has learned.

As you may know ... a TikTok of the Waffle House worker went viral last weekend, because she was holding a baby while it appeared she was helping the cooks prepare meals.

In researching the incident, a person contacted us claiming to be the employee and gave us a tragic backstory explaining why she was holding the child in the video -- claiming the baby was the child of her dead brother.

This person posing as the employee also told us she was suspended for a week by Waffle House ... all of which we now know is NOT TRUE.

Waffle House's VP of Public Relations, Njeri Boss, tells TMZ ... they investigated the TikTok video and "have determined that the media portrayals and social media posts are not accurate."

Boss adds ... "While an employee of ours was recorded holding a baby at work, she is not related to that baby in any manner, never identified herself as the person in the TikTok video, never provided a CashApp account to receive any donations, never gave an interview to any media outlet, and never was suspended from her job."

Fortunately, TMZ did not include any of the scammer's CashApp info in our story, but some people out there did ... and likely donated to a phony cause.

Waffle House further explains that the employee in the TikTok vid held a baby belonging to her co-worker in an attempt to quickly settle the crying child ... and she's been coached and re-trained on proper safety guidelines going forward.

The restaurant chain adds ... "We caution against further dissemination of that false story and the damages that might result, not to mention the help that might give to support an apparent fraud on the public."

Kim Kardashian is getting some good advice from some of the funniest people on Earth as she gets ready to host "Saturday Night Live."

Production sources tell TMZ … Dave Chappelle, Michelle Wolf, Ellen DeGeneres, Amy Schumer and James Corden have all been helping Kim with her preparation.

We're told the comedy legends have been giving Kim tips on what to include in her monologue, how to perform certain skits and nail comedic delivery.

As we reported, Saturday will mark the first time a Kardashian hosts 'SNL' ... and she's already landed some promo jokes.

Our sources say Kim has been having a blast getting ready for 'SNL' ... and some of the material will be self-deprecating. We're also told she's been very open to all ideas Lorne Michaels and the 'SNL' team have thrown her way. BTW ... good move on her part.

We're told producers and cast in rehearsals say Kim's actually been exceeding the expectations they had for someone without any experience in the comedy world.