Controversial S#!T

50 Cent and Starz are putting "Power Book II: Ghost" in its final resting place after its fourth season ... apparently news to the cast of the hit series ... as they seem to have found out the same time as the rest of the fans.

Michael Rainey Jr., who stars as Tariq in the series, piled on to one of the staff writer's criticisms that the network had been faking the funk on progressing the show; pretending to hear their pitches when they knew the writing was on the wall.

The posts on social didn't blow off all his steam and Mike later hopped on IG Live to assure fans that he and his trusty costar Gianni Paolo will ride along once again in future projects they're both penning together.

Fans were livid with confusion but it's a good chance a recent interview with Starz CEO Jeff Hirsch will answer everyone's questions.

According to Hirsch, production costs for series typically go up come Seasons 3 and 4 -- plus, they have to deal with actor salary raises ... and it would appear that might not have been in the budget long-term for this show.

The network also ordered up a pair of 'Power' prequel spinoffs this week, making "Power: II" even more expendable.

6:35 PM PT -- A rep for A+E tells TMZ ... "We look forward to the unsealing of our papers as well, as they tell a very different story."

Wendy Williams' guardian sued unsuccessfully to block the release of the new documentary following her struggles ... and now the lawsuit's unsealed -- and it gives an inside look at Williams' day-to-day.

Here's the deal ... the former talk show host's temporary guardian Sabrina Morrissey sued back in February to stop the “Where is Wendy Williams?" doc from coming out -- an attempt that ultimately failed, as we now know.

Those legal docs were originally sealed ... but now, they are available for anyone to peruse -- and they provide a look into both Morrissey's argument and her description of Williams' recent condition.

In the paperwork, obtained by TMZ, Morrissey argued Williams was incapable of handling her own business affairs when she signed the documentary contract. Same goes for her executive producer role -- Morrissey says Williams wasn't able to handle such a job effectively ... including not being able to properly shape how she was portrayed.

SM said WW's ability to care for herself has deteriorated since beginning the guardianship too ... and she says now Wendy needs constant daily supervision to "ensure her safety, well-being, and comfort, and to preserve her dignity."

Morrissey claimed she was originally told the doc would present Williams' comeback story, ultimately showing Wendy in a positive light -- and Morrissey said she was under the impression she would get to see the finished product before it was released.

Sabrina added she was totally blindsided when the trailer came out ... because she said she never saw a final cut of the doc.

Of course ... days before the doc came out, Wendy's team revealed she was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and aphasia last year, and she entered a treatment center to deal with her health issues as well.

The creative team behind the documentary said they never would've made it had they known about the diagnosis ... though it seems hard to believe they had no indication of her health struggles given the kind of care Morrissey detailed in her suit.

Bottom line ... the story behind "Where is Wendy Williams?" just got a whole lot murkier.

El abusador de Drake Bell -Brian Peck- tuvo un ejército de apoyo de parte de las celebridades durante su sentencia de 2004, y tenemos un montón de cartas que todos escribieron, incluyendo las de James Marsden, Taran Killam y Alan Thicke, quien habló elogiosamente sobre el tipo.

TMZ ha obtenido un total de 41 cartas escritas al juez en el caso penal de Peck, y mientras había decenas de tipos de Hollywood prestando sus voces en apoyo del pederasta condenado -todos defendiendo su carácter y pidiendo clemencia- estos tres son los nombres más grandes.

La carta de Marsden es la más larga, y detalla su extensa historia personal y amistad con Peck, diciendo que lo conocía desde hace 14 años (ten en cuenta que escribió esto en 2004, por lo que aparentemente se remontan a mucho tiempo atrás) y en general respondiendo por su carácter.

Escribe: "Me llamo James Marsden, y estoy muy orgulloso de decir que soy amigo íntimo de Brian Peck desde hace unos 14 años. Soy originario de Oklahoma y conocí a Brian a través de un amigo actor. Brian creyó en mi talento como actor y alentó mi decisión de mudarme a Los Ángeles y perseguir este sueño que tenía".

Marsden continúa diciendo que él y Brian se mantuvieron cerca los últimos años, diciendo que Brian fue un mentor y lo entrenó -todo de forma gratuita- y que formaron un vínculo muy estrecho, con Brian sirviendo como un modelo a seguir y la inculcación de rasgos de carácter íntegro.

Marsden dice que "no podía respirar" cuando los cargos cayeron. Él dice que vivió en su casa durante meses y compartieron habitaciones de hotel, y dice que nunca se sintió incómodo o comprometido estando cerca.

Y termina escribiendo: "Brian es una buena persona con un miedo y un respeto muy sanos por la ley, y les aseguro que lo que Brian ha pasado en el último año es el sufrimiento de cien hombres. No quiero victimizar a Brian, ni él lo desearía nunca, pero sí me siento obligado a arrojar luz sobre el hecho de que él ha aprendido la lección".

Taran -que trabajó en "The Amanda Show" y que también conocía muy bien a Brian- fue igualmente elogioso en su propia carta de apoyo al juez que preside el caso, llamándolo su "compañero de trabajo y amigo" y diciendo que no es alguien que deba estar en la cárcel.

Escribe: "Cuando me enteré de la detención de Brian me sorprendí mucho. Brian es la última persona que esperaría que fuera acusada de actividades delictivas. Lo primero que pensé fue 'esto es un error'. Sé que muchos de nuestros amigos comunes tuvieron pensamientos similares. Está demasiado fuera de lugar".

Por último, está el difunto Thicke, cuya carta era mucho más corta, y apoya a Brian comentando sus días juntos en "Growing Pains", un período en el que Alan dice que Brian era un "mentor altamente profesional y nutritivo de los jóvenes en nuestro set de televisión". Thicke dice que Brian nunca fue inapropiado.

Hay docenas de otras cartas de personas que fueron a batear a favor de Brian, incluyendo a las estrellas de "Boy Meets World" -Will Friedle y Rider Strong-, la estrella de "Growing Pains" -Joanna Kerns-, y los directores de "Suite Life" -Rich y Beth Correll-, show en el que Brian trabajó brevemente después de la condena.

Usted puede ver sus cartas aquí en su totalidad también ... pero hay aún más, presentada por actores como Ron Meléndez, James Marshall, Kimmy Robertson y otros actores del mundo del espectáculo.

Como hemos informado, Drake se establece para detallar exactamente lo que dice Brian le hizo antes de que él tuviera su propio show en Nickelodeon en el nuevo documental "Quiet on Set". "Quiet on Set" se estrena durante 2 noches en ID, a partir de las 9 PM el 17 y 18 de marzo.

Drake Bell's abuser, Brian Peck, had an army of A-list support behind him during his 2004 sentencing -- and we got a hold of the letters they all wrote, including ones from James Marsden, Taran Killam and Alan Thicke ... who spoke glowingly about the guy.

TMZ has obtained a total of 41 letters written to the judge in Peck's criminal case, and while there were scores of Hollywood types lending their voices in support of the convicted child molester -- all defending his character and asking for leniency -- these 3 are the biggest names.

Marsden's letter is the longest, and he details his extensive personal history and friendship with Peck, saying he'd known him for 14 years (mind you, he wrote this in '04, so they go way back apparently) and generally vouching for his character.

JM writes, "My name is James Marsden and i am very proud to say that i've been a close friend of Brian Peck's for about 14 years now. I am from Oklahoma originally and i met Brian through an actor friend ... Brian believed in my talent as an actor and encouraged my decision to move to Los Angeles and pursue this dream i had."

Marsden goes on to say he and Brian remained close over the years, saying BP mentored and coached him -- all free of charge -- and that they formed a very close bond, with Brian serving as a role model and instilling upstanding character traits.

Marsden says based on what he knows about Brian, he "couldn't breathe" when the charges came down. He says he had lived at his house for months and had shared hotel rooms with Brian -- and he says he never felt uncomfortable or compromised being around him.

He finishes by writing, "Brian is a good person with a very healthy fear and respect for the law and, i assure you, what Brian has been through in the last year is the suffering of a hundred men. I don't want to victimize Brian, nor would he ever wish that, but i do feel compelled to shed light on the fact that (he) has learned his lesson."

Taran -- who worked on the "The Amanda Show" and who also knew Brian very well -- was equally praising in his own letter of support to the judge presiding over the case, calling him his "co-worker, my friend" and saying he's not someone who belongs in jail.

TK writes, "When I found out about Brian being arrested I was shocked. Brian is the last person I would expect to be charged of criminal activities. My first thought was 'this is a mistake.' I know many of our mutual friends had similar thoughts. It is too out of character."

Finally, there's the late Thicke ... whose letter was much shorter but just as supportive of Brian, commenting on their days together on 'Growing Pains,' a period in which Alan says Brian was a "highly professional and nurturing mentor of the young people on our television set." Thicke says BP was never inappropriate.

There are dozens of other letters by people who went to bat for Brian -- including "Boy Meets World" stars Will Friedle and Rider Strong, "Growing Pains" star Joanna Kerns and 'Suite Life' directors Rich and Beth Correll ... whose show Brian worked on briefly, post-conviction.

You can see their letters here in full too ... but there are even more, filed by actors like Ron Melendez, James Marshall, Kimmy Robertson and other showbiz players.

As we reported ... Drake is set to detail exactly what he says Brian did to him before he got his own show on Nickelodeon on the new documentary 'Quiet on Set.' "Quiet on Set' premieres across 2 nights on ID, starting at 9 PM on March 17 and 18.

La saga de Kate Middleton continúa. Debido a que el Palacio de Kensington decidió mantener su foto editada en Instagram, la plataforma le está advirtiendo a la gente que se trata de una imagen fraudulenta.

Instagram le da dado una cachetada oficial a su foto del Día de la Madre, la que se supo que estaba súper editada, con una bandera que le permite a los usuarios saber explícitamente que la imagen no es auténtica y que deberían tener cuidado con ella.

Su post de Instagram ahora dice: "Foto/video alterado. La misma foto alterada fue revisada por verificadores de hechos independientes en otro post".

Una descripción adicional de la alerta dice que el verificador de hechos encontró que la foto había sido editada de una manera que podría inducir a la gente a error, pero no porque se mostrara fuera de contexto. En otras palabras, ¡esto se cocinó en un laboratorio!

El verificador de hechos en que se basa IG (Meta) para sacar estas conclusiones es una empresa llamada EFE Verifica, una organización española que se especializa en este tipo de cosas.

Por cierto, Instagram no es la única empresa que se está distanciando de la foto de Kate. La agencia de noticias francesa AFP (un actor muy respetado) salió públicamente a decir esta semana que no consideran que el Palacio de Kensington sea una fuente confiable.

El director global de AFP dijo que iban a examinar seriamente cualquier cosa que les envíe Kensington en el futuro y también enviaron un aviso a sus equipos a nivel mundial.

Es un gran golpe a la reputación del Palacio de Kensington, sin duda, y el hecho de que aún tengan esta imagen manipulada es sorprendente, especialmente con todas las reacciones, teorías conspirativas y especulaciones sobre el paradero y estado de Kate.

El Palacio aún no ha respondido a las preguntas sobre esto, a pesar de que todo el mundo se les ha acercado para que hagan más comentarios. Pero por supuesto, este enfoque de meter la cabeza en la arena parece estar encabezado por el propio príncipe William, quien sigue con sus deberes reales como si nada hubiese pasado.

De hecho, Bill estuvo junto a Youth Zone el jueves, una organización que ayuda a los niños más desfavorecidos, con los que fue visto haciendo galletas. También aludió a Kate diciendo que su esposa era la "artística" de la familia en alusión a las decoraciones.

William ha estado haciendo un montón de cosas toda la semana, y aún no ha abordado lo que pasa con Kate. Francamente, no está claro si alguien le ha preguntado.

Si su actitud es una indicación de algo, parece que el equipo del Palacio de Kensington está siguiendo su ejemplo, pero Kate-Gate no va a desaparecer.

Aaron Rodgers is attempting to clear up his position on Sandy Hook, a day after a scathing report claimed the superstar QB denied the horrific shooting ever happened, saying that's simply not true, calling it "an absolute tragedy."

"As I’m on the record saying in the past, what happened in Sandy Hook was an absolute tragedy. I am not and have never been of the opinion that the events did not take place," 40-year-old Rodgers tweeted from Costa Rica.

"Again, I hope that we learn from this and other tragedies to identify the signs that will allow us to prevent unnecessary loss of life. My thoughts and prayers continue to remain with the families affected along with the entire Sandy Hook community."

The statement comes after CNN published a report on Wednesday citing two people who claimed AR was adamant the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, CT was fake, attributing the following quote to the 4x NFL MVP.

"All those children never existed. They were all actors.”

Rodgers tweet seems to directly contradict the CNN story ... but not all of it. The network also reported Aaron believes, or at least did in 2013, that the shooting was an "inside job" perpetrated by the United States government.

The Jets signal-callers message does not address whether he ever claimed the shooting was an inside job.

The Kate Middleton saga continues -- in light of Kensington Palace choosing to keep their fake photo of her up on Instagram ... the platform is now warning people, this is fraudulent.

IG has officially slapped the Mother's Day picture seen 'round-the-world -- which has since been revealed to be heavily edited -- with a flag that explicitly lets people know the picture ain't authentic ... and that users would be wise to be cautious with it.

The disclaimer on her post now reads, "Altered photo/video. The same altered photo was reviewed by independent fact-checkers in another post."

A further description of their decision to label her picture with this explains that the fact-checker found the photo had been edited in a way that could mislead people, but not because it was shown out of context. Translation ... this thing was cooked up in the lab!

The third-party fact-checker that IG (Meta) is relying on for this conclusion is a company called EFE Verifica -- which is a Spanish org that specializes in this sorta thing.

BTW, Instagram is not the only company that's distancing itself from Kate's pic -- French news agency AFP (a well-respected player) came out publicly this week to say that they do not consider Kensington Palace a trusted source.

AFP's global news director said they were going to heavily vet anything that Kensington sends their way going forward ... and a notice has been sent to their teams globally.

It's a big hit to the reputation of Kensington Palace, no doubt -- and the fact that they still have this doctored image up is astounding ... especially with all the backlash, conspiracy theories and speculation that has followed on Kate's whereabouts and condition.

Of course, this head-in-the-sand approach -- remember, the Palace has yet to address more questions about this, despite everyone having reached out for further comment -- seems to be spearheaded by Prince William himself, who's continuing on like nothing's happened.

In fact, Bill was on hand Thursday for more Royal duties with the OnSide Youth Zone -- who help disadvantaged kids -- and here, he was seen making cookies with youngsters ... and he actually alluded to Kate, saying his wife was the "arty" one as he botched icing decorations.

He's been doing a bunch of work-related stuff all week, and has yet to address head-on what's up with Kate ... frankly, it's unclear if anyone's even asked him.

If his attitude here -- namely, to ignore and power on -- is any indication ... it seems the rest of the Kensington Palace team is following his lead, but Kate-Gate ain't going away.

Michael Jackson's biopic is already causing controversy ... with the film's creators promising the uncensored truth and the "Leaving Neverland" director calling BS.

Here's the deal ... the new MJ film's reportedly been touted in multiple press releases as an honest portrayal of Michael Jackson's life with a focus on both his talent and his very human struggles.

Variety checked in with producer Graham King and screenwriter John Logan, who do put the abuse allegations into the film -- after all, Michael went through a very public criminal trial over them, so it would be hard not to -- but ultimately portray him through a lens of innocence since he wasn't convicted back then.

In a separate statement, Graham King said he didn't sanitize Michael's life one bit ... instead working hard to present an unbiased picture of the King of Pop.

Well, "Leaving Neverland" director Dan Reed's not buying that ... telling the outlet he's read a copy of the "Michael" screenplay -- and it's basically an ode to MJ.

Remember ... "Leaving Neverland" featured allegations of child sex abuse against Jackson by Wade Robson and James Safechuck -- their court case against Jackson's estate is still awaiting trial.

Reed says the movie goes out of its way to show Michael interacting with kids in a positive way ... and he even goes as far as to say it seems like Michael's former attorney John Branca -- an executive producer on the film -- sat the creative team down and straight up told them what to write.

We've shown you quite a few behind-the-scenes looks at the movie being made over the months -- catching Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Nia Long and more stars all dressed up and ready for the camera to roll.

While Drake Bell was living through a nightmare at Nickelodeon -- another fellow child star from a competing network says the Mouse House protected him during his own run.

Hutch Dano -- an actor who appeared in "The Suite Life on Deck" and "Zeke and Luther" in his youth -- sat down for an interview with TMZ Verified this week ... and he told us he never experienced any abuse while working for Disney, unlike Drake at Nick.

Dano says his heart goes out to the victims of abuse -- including Drake -- but he himself was never one of them ... something he says he'd absolutely admit if there was any truth to it.

HD described what his experience was like on set as a kid -- telling us he only worked with some of the best professionals in the biz on every project, adding he felt Disney did a good job keeping its actors safe. It's not a dig ... Dano's just recounting his own experience.

HD says he considers himself lucky -- as others in his position were obviously subjugated to terrible things ... and big picture, he says he's happy this issue is being brought to the light.

As we reported Drake is set to recount what happened between him and his one-time dialogue coach Brian Peck ... who was convicted of molesting Drake in the early 2000s. The full interview sharing Drake's story will air in full later this weekend ... and it's apparently brutal.

As you may know, Peck pled no contest to performing a lewd act with a 14 or 15-year-old and to oral copulation with a 16-year-old back in 2004 -- and Drake reveals the guy even had a lot of stars step up to bat for him and his character, both in person and in letters.

El video de Boeing que muestra exactamente quién trabajó en la puerta del 737 Max 9 que voló de un vuelo de Alaska Airlines ha sido borrado, y la NTSB cree que la compañía está tratando de ocultar la información.

La presidenta de la Junta Nacional de Seguridad del Transporte -Jennifer Homendy- le escribió una carta el miércoles al Comité de Comercio del Senado, diciendo que todavía no saben qué empleados de Boeing participaron en la reparación de la puerta. Habían solicitado la lista de nombres cuando el informe preliminar sobre la investigación reveló que la puerta no tenía pernos durante el susto en pleno vuelo el 5 de enero.

Homendy acusó a Boeing de obstruir su investigación, diciéndole a los senadores Maria Cantwell y Ted Cruz, "Todavía no tenemos ni idea de quién hizo el trabajo para abrir, reinstalar y cerrar el tapón de la puerta en el avión del accidente", y añadió: "Boeing nos ha informado de que son incapaces de encontrar los registros que documentan este trabajo".

Durante su testimonio ante el SCC a principios de este mes, Homendy aclaró que Boeing solo proporcionó una lista de empleados que informan al gerente de la tripulación de la puerta, pero no exactamente quién había trabajado en el tapón de la puerta en cuestión.

En su carta, Homendy dice que luego se puso en contacto con el CEO de Boeing -Dave Calhoun- para obtener los nombres, pero él le informó que no podía proporcionar esa información, sosteniendo que Boeing no tenía registros de los trabajos realizados.

Homendy dice que la ausencia de esos nombres ha dado lugar a un bloqueo frustrante en la investigación de la NTSB, y aclara que no están buscando los nombres por razones punitivas, y salvaguardará las identidades de los empleados involucrados.

El avión Boeing tuvo que realizar un aterrizaje de emergencia en Portland después de que una de las ventanas de la cabina reventara, provocando una escena terrorífica en la que las pertenencias de los asustados pasajeros fueron succionadas.

El consejero delegado de Alaska Airlines, Ben Minicucci, anunció entonces que la compañía dejaría en tierra temporalmente su flota de 65 aviones Boeing 737-9 para someterlos a una inspección y mantenimiento exhaustivos como medida de precaución. A finales de mes, recibieron el visto bueno para reanudar los vuelos.

Sin embargo, el ex gerente de calidad de Boeing -John Barnett- estuvo en "TMZ Live" para dejar claro que no estaba de acuerdo con esa decisión, porque afirmó que Boeing estaba ignorando temas de seguridad importantes.

Barnett incluso llevó su lucha contra Boeing un paso más allá mediante la presentación de una demanda, alegando represalias por sus esfuerzos de denuncia. Se sentó para una declaración en el elenco de la semana pasada, y al día siguiente fue encontrado muerto, presuntamente por suicidio.

Boeing's video footage showing exactly who worked on the 737 Max 9 door that flew off an Alaska Airlines flight has been erased, and the NTSB believes the company's trying to hide the information.

National Transportation Safety Board chairman, Jennifer Homendy, wrote a letter Wednesday to the Senate Commerce Committee ... saying they're still in the dark about which Boeing employees were involved in the door's repair. They had requested the list of names when the preliminary report into the investigation revealed the door had no bolts during the mid-flight scare on January 5.

Homendy accused Boeing of obstructing their investigation ... telling Senators Maria Cantwell and Ted Cruz, "We still have no clue who did the work to open, reinstall, and close the door plug on the accident aircraft." She added, "Boeing has informed us that they are unable to find the records documenting this work."

During her testimony before the SCC earlier this month, Homendy clarified Boeing only provided a list of employees who report to the door crew manager, but not exactly who had worked on the door plug in question.

In her letter, Homendy says she then reached out to Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun to obtain the names, but he informed her he couldn't provide that info, maintaining Boeing had no records of the work being done.

Homendy says the absence of those names has resulted in a frustrating roadblock in the NTSB's investigation -- and she clarifies they're not seeking the names for punitive reasons, and will safeguard the identities of the employees involved.

You'll remember ... the Boeing aircraft had to make an emergency landing in Portland after one of the cabin windows blew out, causing a terrifying scene with belongings of frightened passengers being sucked out.

Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci announced at the time the company would be grounding its fleet of 65 Boeing 737-9 aircraft temporarily for a thorough inspection and maintenance as a precautionary measure. By the end of the month, they got the all-clear to resume flights.

However, former Boeing quality manager John Barnett came on "TMZ Live" to make it clear he disagreed with that decision ... because he claimed Boeing was ignoring significant safety concerns.

Barnett had even taken his fight against Boeing a step further by filing a lawsuit, alleging retaliation for his whistleblowing efforts. He sat for a deposition in the cast last week, and the very next day he was found dead ... allegedly by suicide.

Don Lemon ha cancelado su acuerdo con X antes de que se emitiera el primer episodio, y culpa a su entrevista con Elon Musk, en la que aparentemente tocó un punto delicado.

El ex presentador de CNN anunció el miércoles en redes sociales el fin de su acuerdo exclusivo con la plataforma de Elon Musk, tanto a través de una declaración escrita como en un breve video que irónicamente publicó en X.

Don explica que se sentó con Elon el viernes para entrevistarlo en el primer episodio de "The Don Lemon Show", diciendo que quería tener a Musk como su primer invitado, porque Elon se considera un gran defensor de la libertad de expresión.

Don dijo que la entrevista no tenía temas fuera de límite, y aunque Don admite que la conversación se puso tensa a ratos, en última instancia dice que las cosas salieron bien.

Sin embargo, parece que Musk no se sentía de la misma manera, y afirma que su acuerdo con X -acordado hace apenas dos meses- se terminó apenas unas horas después de su entrevista.

Lemon le dijo a sus fans que trabajó con X porque es un creyente en la libertad de expresión y quería que su mensaje llegara a un público masivo, y ser "despedido" de X no impide que el ex presentador de CNN lo transmita en la plataforma y en otros lugares.

Lemon dice que todavía piensa publicar la entrevista el lunes 18 de marzo en YouTube y X, lo que podría tomarse como una afrenta hacia Elon. También va a seguir con el programa sin el respaldo de X, así que "The Don Lemon Show" sigue en pie.

En cuanto a lo que exactamente discutieron, no sabemos mucho, pero los informes sugieren que Don hizo algunas preguntas contundentes, incluyendo preguntas sobre el uso de Musk de la ketamina.

Aparentemente, Lemon todavía piensa que X le debe dinero, con un portavoz de Don diciéndole al sitio de noticias Puck, que está dispuesto a ir a los tribunales por el dinero que cree que le deben.

Por su parte, X dice que su plataforma apoya la libertad de expresión, y Don puede publicar libremente lo que quiera, pero X, por otra parte, sigue siendo un negocio y puede optar por iniciar o terminar asociaciones con empresas como mejor le parezca.

En cuanto a Elon... le respondió a una cuenta de parodia de Mark Zuckerberg en X y afirmó que Don todavía estaba haciendo sus trucos de CNN en X y dijo que sentía que solo estaba repitiendo los mismos pasos que su antiguo jefe en la red, Jeff Zucker. Elon también dice que sentía Don no estaba siendo auténtico... y parecer esto fue suficiente para desechar el acuerdo.

Don Lemon's X partnership is dunzo -- his deal falling apart before the first episode could even air ... and he blames his Elon Musk interview, where he apparently struck a nerve.

The former CNN anchor took to social media Wednesday to announce the end of his exclusive deal with Elon's platform -- both via written statement and in a short video he posted to X, ironically enough.

The way Don explains it ... he sat down with Elon Friday to interview him for the first episode of "The Don Lemon Show," saying he wanted to speak with Musk as his debut guest because Elon considers himself a major proponent of free speech.

Don said the interview had no off-limit topics, and -- even though DL admits the convo got tense at times ... ultimately, he says he felt it was a good, fair back-and-forth.

However, it sounds like Musk didn't feel the same way according to Lemon ... who claims his deal with X -- agreed upon just two months ago -- was terminated mere hours after their interview wrapped.

Lemon told his fans he worked with X because he's a believer in free speech and wanted his message to reach a mass audience ... and, getting "fired" from X ain't stopping the former CNN anchor from airing it on the platform and elsewhere.

Lemon says he's still dropping the interview in all its glory Monday, March 18 on YouTube and X as well -- seemingly a big middle finger to EM and co. He's also gonna carry on with the show without X's backing ... so, the "The Don Lemon Show" is still on.

As for exactly what the two discussed ... we don't know much, but reports are floating around Don asked some hard-hitting questions -- including queries about Musk's use of ketamine.

BTW ... Lemon apparently still thinks X owes him money -- with a spokesperson for Don telling news site Puck he's willing to go to court for the cash he believes is owed ... to be continued, we suppose.

For their part, X is saying their platform is all about free speech, and Don can freely post whatever he wants ... but also X is still a business and can choose to begin or end partnerships with businesses as it sees fit.

As for Elon ... he responded to a Mark Zuckerberg parody account on X -- and claimed Don was still doing his CNN shtick, just on X -- and he said he felt Don was just parroting his old boss at the network, Jeff Zucker. EM also says he felt Don was putting on an act and not being his authentic self ... which was apparently enough for him to scrap their deal.

Ben Shapiro's popping off on retirement in the U.S., saying people who want to hang it up professionally at age 65 are off their rocker ... arguing the threshold should be raised.

The conservative talk show host made his case loud and clear on Tuesday's "The Ben Shapiro Show" ... saying the notion that retirement age should remain at 65 is absolutely absurd -- especially since President Biden is running for reelection at the ripe age of 81.

Ben says he's actually shocked the retirement age hasn't been bumped up already -- especially considering folks in the U.S. are living a lot longer nowadays.

The host continues arguing that working well past retirement age is a good thing ... 'cause, according to him, everyone he knows who's retired around 65 has lost their purpose in life. BS adds that it's ridiculous folks would solely rely on Social Security benefits for the next two decades after retirement rather than work ... seemingly suggesting it's a lazy way to go.

Ben uses his parents as a shining example of people older than 65 who've stayed on the grind -- although, it's unclear exactly how old they might be. Point is ... he thinks people oughta keep working into old age, and he says there's many examples of people doing so.

He also makes the point that people retiring at 65 and leaning SS isn't financially sustainable for the country ... a right-wing talking point that's been brought up by Republicans, etc.

Jason Derulo tuvo que ceder al llamado de la naturaleza durante un reciente show, haciendo que todo se detuviera de repente justo en medio de una canción... ¡para ir corriendo al baño!

El cantante de "Swalla" se encuentra actualmente en su gira mundial "Nu King", y el sábado estaba en Leeds, Inglaterra, donde abruptamente detuvo su concierto dentro de First Direct Arena, y cortésmente le pidió a la los asistentes un momoento.

Después de darse cuenta de que no estaba bromeando, el público del Reino Unido abucheó y se quejó, pero ni siquiera eso pudo detenerlo, Jason salió del escenario para hacer lo que tenía que hacer.

Así que los fans no tuvieron más opción que esperar.

El maestro de TikTok y su equipo decidieron burlarse de la situación con un sketch de Jason haciendo sus necesidades en una botella de Gatorade, ¡pero no hubo photoshop en las caras de desaprobación de los fans durante su pausa para ir al baño!

El destino de TikTok pende de un hilo en Estados Unidos, con la Cámara aprobando la idea de prohibir la popular aplicación de redes sociales a menos que su matriz con sede en Beijing, ByteDance, venda su participación.

La votación tuvo lugar el miércoles y fue aplastante: 352 votos a favor y 65 en contra en un raro momento de acuerdo bipartidista, con 197 republicanos y 155 demócratas dando luz verde a esta moción y citando que la propiedad de la aplicación sea de China corresponde una importante amenaza para la seguridad nacional.

La Cámara no perdió el tiempo con la legislación, bautizada como Ley para Proteger a los Estadounidenses de las Aplicaciones Controladas por Adversarios Extranjeros, pero el futuro de TikTok aún pende de un hilo, ya que todavía tiene que pasar por el Senado y luego llegar a Joe Biden.

El proyecto de ley actual da a ByteDance un ultimátum estricto: o vende TikTok y sus otras aplicaciones en un plazo de seis meses o se enfrenta a la expulsión de las tiendas de apps online de Estados Unidos y otros servicios de alojamiento web.

Los legisladores llevan mucho tiempo temiendo que el gobierno chino obligue a ByteDance a entregar los datos de sus 170 millones de usuarios estadounidenses, a pesar de que TikTok ha negado vehementemente que esté espiando a ciudadanos del país.

El representante Dan Crenshaw no se anduvo con rodeos antes de la votación y dijo: "TikTok es propiedad de ByteDance. ByteDance está en China y cuando estás en China, tienes que hacer lo que te diga el Partido Comunista Chino".

Y añadió: "Si quieren que espíes para ellos, espiarás para ellos; así es como funciona".

Sin embargo, Liu Pengyu, portavoz de la embajada china en Washington, acusa a Estados Unidos de llevar a cabo una campaña de desprestigio para acabar con la empresa con sede en China, añadiendo en un comunicado que Estados Unidos "no ha sido capaz de dar pruebas contundentes para demostrar las supuestas amenazas de TikTok a la seguridad nacional de Estados Unidos".