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Johnny Depp hasn't retired from acting, despite the fact he's currently giving all his attention to directing right now ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Johnny tell TMZ ... the Oscar nominee isn't done with performing in front of the camera, but his current passion has been directing the biopic "Modi," as he's been very happy being back in the director's chair.

The forthcoming drama about the life of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani stars Riccardo Scamarcio, Sally Phillips and Al Pacino ... and the film has already gotten great buzz. It's his first time directing a feature film since 1997's "The Brave" ... which he also co-starred in with Marlon Brando.

Caitlin Clark has always been a baller, but even her own high school coach, Kristin Meyer, never saw this level of stardom coming, telling TMZ Sports, "I can't say that I honestly predicted this!"

Don't get it twisted, Meyer knew from the get-go Clark was special and would find success -- but No. 1 college women's basketball player ever simply didn't cross her mind when she had the point guard runnin' pick and rolls at Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, Iowa.

"This level of success, and especially this level of fame that she's achieved," Meyer said, "it's just something I don't think anyone could have predicted."

The week has only just started but, in case you're behind, here are some TMZ TV hot takes to catch up on.

First up, on "TMZ Live," Harvey and Charles discuss Courtney Love's biting criticism of Taylor Swift. She even came for Beyoncé, too!!!

American actor Dan Byrd was 18 years old when he played Carter -- the nerdy high schooler and aspiring actor who comes into his own -- in the 2004 high school movie "A Cinderella Story."

Dan joined several big Hollywood names on the big screen including Hilary Duff playing modern-day Cinderella, Sam, Chad Michael Murray as the high school jock turned prince charming, Austin, Jennifer Coolidge as the evil and sarcastic step-mother, Fiona and Regina King as Sam's saving confidant, Rhonda.

Dan was also in "Easy A" with Emma Stone as well as the 2006 remake of "The Hills Have Eyes".

Katie Couric says Bryant Gumbel gave her a hard time back in the day over maternity ... which Katie thinks spoke to something deeper, even if he was joking.

The famed newswoman stopped by Bill Maher's 'Club Random' podcast Sunday ... in which she detailed the "prickly" relationship she had with Bryant during their tenure on 'Today' together.

Katie hinted she and Bryant were never close, referring to her coworker as a guy's guy -- but still applauded his broadcasting skills.

11:53 AM PT -- Jenna Jameson just responded to the news, taking to her IG Story and writing, "I keep it classy."

Jenna Jameson is once again headed for divorce -- this time, it's her wife who wants to end their marriage ... and she's claiming the reason is because Jenna fell off the wagon.

Jessi Lawless just hopped on TikTok with a video that spells it all out -- she says she's filing for divorce ... and she says she's already filed the docs. In any case, JL says it's coming -- and she goes on to cite Jenna allegedly drinking again as the impetus.

She explains she's had Jenna on a tight leash ever since they got hitched when it comes to booze -- saying it was a hard-line issue for her from the get-go -- and claims Jenna recently got away from home and went to Chicago ... where Jessi says she learned JJ was drinking.

Riley Strain's mom claims her son complained about his drink not tasting right ahead of his disappearance and subsequent death ... and the implication is that he was roofied.

Michelle Whiteid and her family sat with NewsNation's Brian Entin for an interview that's airing in full later Tuesday -- and she says Riley was texting her the night of his disappearance, where she says he told her his rum and coke did "not taste good."

Michelle says Riley claimed the beverage tasted like barbecue ... reiterating it was not an enjoyable cocktail. Michelle says she told Riley he probably shouldn't be drinking it then.

TikTok star Kyle Marisa Roth -- famous for dishing on controversial Hollywood blind items and showbiz gossip -- has suddenly died ... something her family confirmed this week.

Kyle's sister Lindsay Roth broke the news Monday on her IG -- saying her sibling had died sometime last week ... adding a cause of death is not yet known, and that the family is still trying to process this loss.

Lindsay writes, "I know she touched so many people with her humor, intelligence, beauty, gossip activism, athleticism and more -- she had so many gifts."

Red Lobster is reportedly mulling over bankruptcy, and while this is far from the end for them as a business ... some online are certainly treating it that way, with jokes galore.

According to Bloomberg, the famous seafood restaurant chain is considering its options to restructure some of its debt and other expenses it has on its plate right now -- including leases they have under its name, not to mention rising labor costs.

Apparently, it's Chapter 11 bankruptcy that's on the table ... which, if they pursue that, would mean they could still run their operation while sorting out their debts with creditors, etc.

Residents of Butte, Montana were in for a surprise Tuesday ... when a circus elephant escaped from its home and began freely roaming in the streets, captured in wild video.

According to multiple reports, the elephant broke free from Jordan World Circus -- which made a stop in the city as part of its tour. While it's unclear how the elephant broke free from its enclosure ... it didn't hesitate to stretch its legs once it was out and about.

Check it out ... the massive elephant is seen trotting down the road in this insane clip, delaying traffic and causing heads to turn.

O.J. Simpson's estate is NOT flush with the kinda cash you'd expect -- nor is it enough to satisfy his debt to Ron Goldman's family ... at least that's what his executor is claiming.

We got Simpson's longtime attorney Malcolm LaVergne Tuesday on "TMZ Live," and he opened up about O.J.'s finances following his death last week. As Malcolm put it, O.J. died with less than 5-figures in one Nevada bank account, and overall ... had less than millions to his name.

In his final days, O.J. was receiving the maximum amount of social security, as well as pensions from his time as an NFL star and actor. Malcolm claims those payments totaled less than the $400K per year that's been reported.

Taylor Swift fans are nothing if not committed, and with her new album dropping Friday ... they're going all out to scoop up every little detail they can, including at pop-ups.

Swifties were out in full force Tuesday to catch a glimpse of a temporary art installation at the Grove in Los Angeles, which offered a promise to give some insight into her new album -- and as you might imagine, massive lines were literally snaking around the block.

Even though details were hazy about what exactly the pop-up entails, some fans reportedly started lining up as early as 5 AM -- all just to get a glimpse of this makeshift bookshelf thing that was standing in the middle of the shopping center ... which was all Taylor-themed.

A woman who accused Trevor Bauer of sexual assault has just been hit with a criminal charge ... after she allegedly defrauded the former Cy Young winner into paying her for an abortion he believes never happened.

The charge -- fraudulent schemes and artifices -- was formally filed against Darcy Esemonu in Arizona on Monday ... weeks after a Maricopa County grand jury indicted her on the felony count.

According to a video statement Bauer posted on his YouTube page Tuesday, it stems from allegations Esemonu made against the former Dodgers star in a 2023 lawsuit.

The woman alleged in her papers that Bauer raped her during a 2020 encounter and got her pregnant. In a countersuit, Bauer denied any wrongdoing ... but he did say he had consensual sex with her one time in Dec. 2020, when the condom he had been using broke.

He claimed in his countersuit that after their hookup, Esemonu told him she was pregnant and wanted more than $1 million to terminate it. Bauer claimed he would support her decision ... before he gave her $8,761 for the cost she eventually said it took to end the alleged pregnancy.

However, in his video statement Tuesday, Bauer said, "She never had an abortion, because she was never even pregnant." He added that that was all "corroborated by her own medical records."

Bauer said authorities were made aware of all of this after they initiated an investigation into her sexual assault allegations against him.

Court records show Esemonu was also charged with fraud due to her interactions with a man named Marco Bresciani. In addition, the records show she was charged with felony theft by extortion for wrongdoing against Bresciani as well.

"Her m.o. is clear," Bauer said of the newly filed charges. "Lie to men to get their money. Extort them if she must. When they refuse to pay, stop paying, or stop giving her what she wants, go to the police, accuse them of sexual assault, and file a civil suit against them to retaliate."

Bauer stated he's hopeful he can now get another crack at pitching in the MLB again soon.

Chrissy Teigen's standing up for Jeff Bezos' fiancée Lauren Sanchez -- this after a notorious restaurateur unleashed a barrage of venom toward ... for no real reason at all.

Balthazar owner Keith McNally randomly threw up a bunch of IG pics of Lauren Monday with JB at various high-profile events Monday -- adding a totally out-of-line caption that touched on her appearance ... and what he considers her aura too.

He says, "Does anybody else find Jeff Bezos' New wife [sic] – Lauren Sanchez – ABSOLUTELY REVOLTING? What an ugly and **king SMUG – LOOKING couple they make. Is this what having 1000 Billion dollars does to people?"

Christine Quinn claims her estranged husband never paid for hospital bills tied to their son's birth -- and now she's gunning for primary custody of the kid amid their ongoing divorce.

The "Selling Sunset" star just filed a response to Christian Dumontet's divorce petition from 2 weeks ago -- and she has some startling claims in her paperwork ... including the allegation that he never paid off a huge lingering medical tab from the birth of their son.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Christine claims these hospital bills ended up amounting to over $100,000 -- the total amount, she says, has yet to be determined -- and she alleges that Christian had assured her he would foot the bill and pay it off himself.

Dubai airport's looking more like a marina, after a year's worth of rain flooded the desert metropolis in just one day!

Check it out ... the tarmac at Dubai International -- the second busiest in the world -- was completely covered in water Tuesday, making it near impossible for even jumbo jets to maneuver. Hell, one plane had a freakin' wake behind it as it taxied on a runway.

The city was inundated with almost 5 inches of rain leaving the storm water almost as high as the tires on one nearby support vehicle.