Celebrity Feuds

The greatest rivalry in competitive eating could soon be reignited -- Joey Chestnut just revealed it's possible he lines up against Takeru Kobayashi in an eating contest again ... saying, "there's a chance" an epic showdown happens as soon as next year!!

Of course, Jaws and Kobi haven't faced off in more than a decade ... thanks to a nasty breakup between Takeru and Major League Eating that kept the two from competing against each other.

As it turns out, Joey says his own exclusive contracts with MLE and Nathan's hot dogs will be up at the end of the year ... paving the way for a matchup for the ages.

"The end of this year is going to be a weird year for me because my contract with Major League Eating and Nathan's is going to be over," Joey told Big Cat and PFT Commenter on Barstool Sports' "Pardon My Take."

"So, it'll be my first year in a long, long time that I can actually eat against Kobayashi," he added. "So, me and him could find a way to compete because he'll never compete with Major League Eating again because they have just a childish contract dispute ... but there's a chance that I might be able to eat against him."

Chestnut beat Kobayashi three times in the 4th of July matchup ... but the Japanese superstar is responsible for bringing the entire sport to the mainstream after winning the hot dog contest six times in a row.

Chestnut -- who just secured his 15th Mustard Belt this past Independence Day -- admits he has no idea how much money a contest against Kobayashi could rake in, but says he's down to let his nemesis name his price -- as long as it's even.

Mickey Rourke stands in strong defense of his pal Johnny Depp after his legal war ... saying he's been in the same position as him, and he thinks Amber Heard is nothing but a gold digger.

Mickey joined Piers Morgan for an interview on Britain's Talk TV Tuesday, admitting he knows what it feels like to go through what Johnny did, claiming he's also been blamed for something he didn't do.

He says he went through a costly battle, giving him a bad reputation, and it wasn't until he'd lost tons of work that the "truth came out" ... allowing him to land roles once again.

Unclear exactly what Mickey feels he was blamed for -- he didn't get specific -- but it is true he seemed to be blacklisted in Hollywood in the '90s.

As for Amber Heard, MR says he sees right through her -- he refers to her as "some gold digger" ... Piers asks if he truly believes that, to which he responds, "Abso- f***ing-lutely."

As we reported, Amber filed legal docs last week claiming one of the jurors in the defamation trial was fraudulently empaneled -- saying a man was summoned to be a juror for the trial, but his son appeared instead. She believes that's grounds to throw out the verdict and have a new trial.

Rick Ross and Birdman have a scarred history … and the Cash Money Records bossman clearly has NO issue with picking at that scab very publicly.

Baby was on DJ Akademik’s “Off The Record” podcast discussing his top CM artists like Drake, Nicki Minaj + Lil Wayne and the Hot Boys (although his mind went blank when thinking about something nice to say about Turk 👀) -- but he also listed off several other eventual superstars he had under his wing.

He proudly named Yo Gotti, Future and DJ Khaled as other protégés … but puckered up like a Lemonhead at the mere mention of Rick Ross’ name.

Birdman claims Ross sat in the shadows studying, and stealing moves that would lead to his own MMG imprint gaining traction several years later.

The 2 ‘bawses’ actually recorded an album together back in 2008 … only for it to be released with extra tardy sauce in 2013, but without any friendship to generate buzz for the record.

In 2017, Rozay went at Birdman's throat on the song “Idols Become Rivals” … ironically over his own claims Lil Wayne and DJ Khaled were in terrible label situations.

Derek Jeter can pinpoint the exact day that his relationship with Alex Rodriguez melted down ... saying it all happened in 2001, when he realized the MLB superstar was "not a true friend."

The New York Yankees legend opened up about it all in ESPN's new "The Captain" documentary -- which is set to run in its entirety in seven parts beginning later this month -- revealing he grew apart from Rodriguez after the former shortstop had made some remarks about him in an '01 interview with Esquire.

Rodriguez, who was very close with Jeter and had just signed a massive contract to play for the Texas Rangers, told a reporter for the outlet that Derek was "blessed" to play for an absolutely stacked NY team.

"He's never had to lead," Rodriguez said. "He doesn’t have to, he can just go and play and have fun, and hit second."

He continued, "I mean, you know, hitting second is totally different than hitting third or fourth in a lineup because you go into New York trying to stop Bernie [Williams] and [Paul] O’Neill and everybody. You never say, ‘Don’t let Derek beat you.’ That’s never your concern.”

Jeter, who at the time was considered the Yankees' best player, took offense to the comments -- saying in the documentary that they "bothered me."

"I’m very, very loyal," Jeter said. "As a friend, I’m loyal. I just looked at it as, ‘I wouldn’t have done it.'"

Rodriguez said in the documentary he apologized, and Jeter said he was down to accept it -- but #2 revealed A-Rod then went on to say "there’s not one thing he does better than me" in another interview, which Jeter made clear officially fractured their bond.

"He’s not a true friend, is how I felt," Jeter said. "Because I wouldn’t do it to a friend."

The two -- who were so close as youngsters in the MLB that they actually had sleepovers at each other's homes -- eventually became teammates with the Yankees in 2004, but famously had an up-and-down, icy time together.

Johnny Depp is scoffing at Amber Heard's move to set aside his jury verdict on grounds it was excessive ... firing back that the $10 million judgment reflects the loss he actually suffered after she defamed him.

Johnny's lawyers say there's clear evidence that after Amber's Op-Ed appeared in the Washington Post back in 2018, he had no work ... he didn't appear in a single studio production until October, 2020. That alone, the lawyers say, supports the $10M verdict.

In fact, Depp's legal docs refer to one of Johnny's reps negotiating a deal for the 6th installment of "Pirates of the Caribbean" for $22.5 million. Just prior to the Op-Ed being published, the producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, was all in, saying he really wanted Johnny.

As you know, after the Op-Ed, Johnny was persona non grata on the production.

The lawyers say Johnny proved with experts during the trial his actual loss came to far more than $10M ... it was more than $40 million.

Short story ... Johnny's lawyers say Amber is grasping at straws.

Amber Heard's lawyers have just filed new documents, further detailing their claim that one of the jurors deceived the court by pretending to be the person who was actually summoned.

The new docs claim a jury summons went to a Virginia home where 2 people with the same name reside. The document says the person summoned is 77 years old, but the person who actually showed up for jury service is 52.

Now the docs say both people share the same last name. It would seem they must also share the first name as well, because it would be a big red flag to the court if the first names were different. The document does not address the first name.

In any event, Amber's lawyers say this was a fraud on the court because the 52-year-old never should have served on the jury, but apparently wanted to do so.

As you know, that juror, as well as the others, all sided with Johnny Depp on his defamation claim ... in Virginia, a unanimous verdict is required.

Amber Heard's getting a small shot at redemption -- not in court, but in a wrestling ring where, you guessed it ... Mini Johnny Depp squares off against Mini Amber!!!

Yeah, they might be testing the limits of the world's fascination with the bitter exes, but Wednesday night the good folks at Micromania M****t Wrestling put on their version of the defamation trial at the Whisky A Go-Go ... complete with a Mini Camille Vasquez in Johnny's corner.

Ya can't knock the theater of it all -- Amber entered the ring to the Buckcherry hit, "Crazy Bitch," and Johnny swashbuckled in to the "Pirates of the Caribbean" theme.

As for the ring action ... well, you really just gotta see it, but here's a short summary: Both minis get in their shots, with Amber delivering the most humiliating blow. As the ring announcer so eloquently put it, "She wiped s**t on his face! What the f**k?!?"

Poetry.

Anyway, just like in the Fairfax courthouse, Johnny came out on top ... delivering a Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka finishing move, and then pinning Mini Amber. Mini Camille even got in a parting shot.

California Governor Gavin Newsom just took out an ad in Florida for what seems to be nothing more than a troll effort ... poking fun at Gov. DeSantis, and conservatives at large.

Newsom's campaign ad is 30 seconds, and the word is -- he bought airtime on Fox News in Florida markets for this cheeky spot, set to run through the holiday weekend. It's pretty funny, 'cause GN's embracing rhetoric the right often use, including "taking your freedom."

Check it out ... the Gov. is addressing Floridians directly, telling them that their freedom and rights are under attack in their state -- via book banning, voting restrictions, limiting speech in classrooms, as well as criminalizing women and doctors (a la the new abortion ruling).

He goes on to say that he urges everyone living in the Sunshine State to "join the fight" ... by coming over to California, where he says the idea of freedom is still very much alive.

The whole thing is super ironic and full of satire -- and Newsom's getting a lot of praise online for going out of his way to stick it to DeSantis (seen as an up-and-coming star in the GOP) and right-wingers generally. Others, however, are raising an eyebrow over this.

Some have noted this stunt -- which has no bearing on his re-election chances in November, since no one in Florida can vote here anyway -- was expensive ... and probably unnecessary.

So, why do it??? Well, as political pundits have articulated ... Newsom seems to be ambitious beyond just California politics, and may be trying to lay the groundwork as a go-to Dem voice on the national stage in the not-too-distant future. He also probably sees DeSantis as a good foil ... because he too is seen as a GOP leader going forward, post-Trump.

So, this is ironic ... Amber Heard lost Johnny Depp's defamation case in no small part because she lied about donating half her divorce settlement to the ACLU ... and now a judge has awarded the ACLU $38,000 ... and guess who has to pay -- NOT AMBER.

Here's the deal ... Johnny's legal team subpoenaed documents from the ACLU to prove Amber never anted up the cash. According to the ACLU, they had to produce 1900 documents and that took a lot of time. The org asked the judge to order Johnny to pay $86,000 for the time and expenses associated with the document production.

Johnny's lawyers called BS, saying the tab was "exorbitant and unreasonable."  The judge sided with Johnny and cut the bill pretty much in half ... so now Johnny has to pay $38,000.

As you know, Johnny won the case against Amber, so you might think she'd have to pay the costs that were incurred to reach a verdict ... a verdict squarely against her insofar as Johnny's defamation case is concerned. But, that's not the law, so Johnny has to pay.

Thing is ... it sounds like Johnny isn't going to take it to the mat and make Amber pay the $8.35M net judgment. So, even though he won, he's left holding the bag with the ACLU.

Rumors have spread on social media that Austin Butler and Ezra Miller got into a physical altercation overseas ... but TMZ has learned that's nowhere near the truth.

Sources close to Austin tell TMZ the incident never happened, and Austin never even stepped foot in a pub during his time in Japan as the initial claims suggested.

Not to mention, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department tells TMZ they have no record of the incident.

Austin has been in Tokyo recently to promote his new "Elvis" movie as part of his press tour.

The rumor stated Ezra has been "terrorizing Tokyo" ... walking up to Austin in a bar and yelling at him, causing Austin to punch the 'Flash' star.

Ex-NFL star Martellus Bennett just unloaded on Jimmy Garoppolo ... saying his former QB in New England is a "bitch" -- and Julian Edelman seems to be cosigning the jab.

Martellus made the remarks when he joined his former Patriots teammates, Devin and Jason McCourty, on their "Double Coverage" podcast ... claiming no NFL team can win with Jimmy G at the helm because he believes the signal-caller is soft.

Bennett went on to explain he developed that opinion following the way Garoppolo filled in for Tom Brady during the GOAT's four-game suspension back in the 2016 season.

You'll recall, Garoppolo helped the Pats win the first two games of the season ... but he injured his non-throwing shoulder in Week 2, and sat out the ensuing two games due to the ailment -- something Bennett clearly thinks was a no-no.

"We lost two games," Bennett said. "One of them is because Jimmy Garappolo was being a bitch. He quit before us on the last -- decided not to play right before the game."

"So, we went out there, Jacoby [Brissett] came out and played with a f***ked-up thumb, [and] played his heart out. But, Jimmy was just being a bitch about it all."

Bennett added, "And he's still being -- like, that's why, you can't win with a bitch for a quarterback."

Julian Edelman, who played alongside Bennett on the Pats, was asked about Martellus' feelings toward Jimmy on a recent episode of the "I Am Athlete" podcast ... and the 3x Super Bowl champ said he felt similarly to Bennett.

"A lot of guys got mad about it," Edelman said. "I'm not going to lie, I got mad about it. I sacrifice my body all day long. I was taking shots for this, numbing up that."

"Ribs, broken ribs, shoulders. You know, Grade 3, hanging on by limbs, just to play," Edelman said. "And, you know, I can understand why Marty thinks like that."

Tyreek Hill says multiple fans threatened to take his life following comments he made about Patrick Mahomes earlier this month ... explaining the threats were made on "every social media account I own."

The new Miami Dolphins wideout -- who was traded from the Chiefs this offseason -- initially made the remarks about his old QB on the debut of his "It Needed To Be Said" podcast two weeks ago.

When discussing Mahomes vs. Tua Tagovailoa, Hill said the 'Fins QB was more accurate. He added that he believed he wasn't necessarily used right in the Chiefs' system, and said Mahomes' job was now going to be much more difficult without him around.

In his second episode of his "It Needed To Be Said" pod ... Hill said the responses he got from fans to those statements were scary.

"Every social media account I own, I got death threats on," the 28-year-old said. "Which is ridiculous."

Hill explained he believed some of his comments were taken out of context -- adding, "They really didn't see what I said. A lot of people are just acting off emotion."

Mahomes himself said he was "surprised" by the comments ... but Hill made it clear in Tuesday's pod that he still has love for his ex-teammate, and was just trying to express his belief in his new one.

Kevin Durant's fed up with Charles Barkley's criticism ... calling the NBA legend "a hatin' old head" after Chuck questioned KD's legacy, comments the NBA superstar believed were "nasty."

The latest iteration of their beef started when KD and the Brooklyn Nets were swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs back in April.

Chuck ripped Durant for failing to lead the Nets to playoff success ... and said despite KD winning 2 NBA titles with Steph Curry and the Warriors, he questioned whether KD was truly a champ because he wasn't the leader in Golden State (according to Barkley).

"If you ain't driving the bus, don't walk around talking about you a champion," Charles said.

To add more fuel to the fire, the Celtics -- the same team that swept the Nets -- lost to the Golden State Warriors ... Durant's former squad.

Of course, Barkley took more shots at KD 'cause of that, saying on ESPN ... "Before KD gets that great respect from all the old heads, he's going to have to win a championship as the guy, as the bus driver."

"Listen, he joined that team that had already won a championship so no disrespect, that's just a fact."

Durant responded on Monday via Twitter ... "All this s*** is nasty."

"Another terrible analogy from a hatin' old head that can't accept that we making more bread than them. It's just timing Chucky, don't hate the playa."

Roy Jones Jr. is clapping back at Wladimir Klitschko -- after the former 2x heavyweight champ from Ukraine questioned RJJ's "moral compass" for his close relationship with Russia -- with the Hall of Fame boxer saying he doesn't want to see anyone hurt ... Russian or Ukrainian.

And, Jones Jr. makes it clear ... if Wladimir continues to badmouth him, they can get in a ring and figure out their differences.

"I have people on both sides of the fence. I don't wanna see nobody die. Nobody fight like that because people die of war. I don't wanna see nobody on either side die. I have loved ones on both sides of the fence. You understand me? I got kids on this side, people on that side. I love both sides. I don't want to see nobody die," Roy said.

Of course, the issue couldn't be closer to Wladimir ... whose been on the ground in Ukraine throughout the entire Russian invasion, witnessing almost endless death and destruction.

In fact, Wladimir's brother Vitali Klitschko is the mayor of Kyiv ... the capital (and most populous city) of Ukraine.

During W. Klitschko's Hall of Fame induction last weekend, the now immortalized pugilist had some very strong words for Roy ... who was also inducted the same weekend.

"There's one person for whom I have a real question. One person broke Ukrainian law by going to the occupied peninsula of Crimea through Russian territory," Klitschko said.

"So, Roy, whose side are you on? On the side of the aggressor, or on the side of the defender of his right to live? I respect you as a fighter but I really question your moral compass."

FYI, a few years back, Roy became a citizen of Russia (he remains a U.S. citizen, too).

But, Roy says the last thing he wants to see is people die in a war.

"If it was up to me, we wouldn't even have a war. You understand where I'm coming from? So don't try to put me off in there like I'm some guy, 'Oh, he's happy this.' "I don't know enough about it to be happy about it. How could I tell you, I don't know that Russia wrong. I don't know that Ukraine wrong. I don't know who the hell might be right or wrong. And I don't care 'cause that's not my field."

Jones Jr. continued ... "If I was a president, senator or politician, then I'd be ready to argue with him, but I'm not. So, the only thing I can argue with him about is if he thinks he can whoop me, then we can have that argument."

Whether or not Jones Jr.'s response is enough to appease Wladimir is unclear. And, if it's not, Roy seems ready to take things to the ring.

Klay Thompson took time out of celebrating his NBA championship victory to call out a Memphis Grizzlies player who gloated about a win over the Warriors earlier this year ... blastin' the dude as a "frickin' bum" and a "frickin' clown."

The target of Thompson's animosity was Jaren Jackson Jr., who tweeted a dig at the Warriors following a 123-95 win back in March.

"Strength in numbers," Jackson Jr. said, clearly mocking the Warriors' famous rallying cry after the victory.

Thompson revealed on Thursday night after beating the Celtics in Game 6 of the NBA Finals that the tweet REALLY pissed him off ... and he was super happy to be able to rub it in Jackson's face after lifting the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

"There was this one player on the Grizzlies who tweeted 'Strength in numbers' after they beat us in the regular season," the Warriors star said to reporters, "and it pissed me off so much."

"I can't wait to retweet that thing. Frickin' bum. I had to watch that, and I'm just like, 'This frickin' clown.'"

Thompson continued, "Sorry, that memory just popped up. Gonna mock us? Like, you ain't ever been there before, bruh. We've been there, we know what it takes. So, to be here again, hold that."

The 32-year-old has yet to officially press the RT on Jackson Jr.'s tweet ... but we're sure it's coming.

Rob Kardashian just struck out in his bid to end another legal war with his ex, Blac Chyna ... and now it looks like her revenge porn case is going to trial.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, a judge just denied Rob's attempt to enforce a settlement he says he struck with Blac Chyna that would have made the case go away before trial.

TMZ broke the story ... Rob filed legal docs earlier this month claiming he struck a deal with Blac Chyna to drop her revenge porn lawsuit and claimed she was trying to back out on the alleged deal.

Rob said Chyna had agreed to drop the suit if Rob helped get her dropped from a separate lawsuit ... with Rob saying he agreed to hold up his end of the alleged bargain, and she should be held to her end.

RK asked the judge to enforce the alleged deal with Chyna ... but the judge just said no.

As a result, it looks like Rob and Chyna are heading for another legal showdown as the case was set to go to trial this month.

Remember ... the Kardashians soundly defeated Blac Chyna in their recent legal battle over the former couple's canceled reality show.

Now, the stage is set for a second fight.