Family

Erik Menéndez is outraged over the new Netflix series about how he and his brother Lyle notoriously murdered their parents in 1989 ... and he says Ryan Murphy went out of his way to slander the infamous siblings!

Here's the deal ... "Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story" debuted Thursday on Netflix ... dramatically chronicling what happened before, during and after the brothers shot their affluent parents José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menéndez.

The actual Erik called BS on the series ... and lambasted RM for his “naive and inaccurate” depiction of the brutal home slayings that made international headlines.

Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are doing their best when it comes to their kids ... TMZ has learned they walked into a school together despite their divorce in full swing.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the exes were seen making their way to the back-to-school night Tuesday at an L.A. area school where they each have kids that attend. Our sources tell us the exes were totally cool with each other and very cordial.

But don’t get it twisted -- our sources are adamant they’re not rekindling anything -- they're still getting divorced.

A new Manning Era is officially upon us ... Texas has just named Arch Manning -- the nephew of Peyton and Eli -- its starting quarterback.

The Longhorns announced the move on Thursday via X ... by posting a photo of Arch from when he entered the UTSA game last week following Heisman Trophy candidate Quinn Ewers' injury.

Head coach Steve Sarkisian said with Ewers' oblique still ailing ... Arch will get the QB1 nod for the first time in his UT career when the Longhorns take on ULM on Saturday in Austin.

Lady Gaga's going to have to keep her "Poker Face" on during family dinners ... 'cause her dad just endorsed Donald Trump -- despite her past support for Democrats.

Joe Germanotta -- a New York City restaurateur -- went on Fox News just minutes ago to throw his support behind the former president over Democratic opponent Kamala Harris, calling DJT "pure" and "a patriot."

Germanotta says he thinks the whole concept of voting for people is a bit odd ... but, even though he admits he finds DJT abrasive, he rattles off a series of Trump policies that align with his own views.

Eric Roberts is offering a mea culpa to his little sis, Julia Roberts, saying it wasn't cool for him to take credit for her career years ago ... and, he laments their fractured relationship.

People released several excerpts from the prolific actor's upcoming memoir, "Runaway Train" ... where the outlet says he writes a public apology to Julia after years of estrangement.

Back in the day, ER says Julia's fame quickly overtook his own ... and, he defensively told reporters there "would be no Julia Roberts" without him charting the path.

Jamie Lynn Spears is going from the small screen to the big diamond -- at least for one day -- 'cause the actress is gearing up to compete in a charity softball game on Saturday.

Britney's little sister is slated to field ground balls and take hacks at the plate at the University of Louisiana Monroe ... in an effort to help the school's softball team raise funds.

It'll all go down at 6:30 PM -- and general admission tickets start at $40 ... but for an extra $20, university officials say you can get an autograph from her following the game.

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are no longer together, but they're both making an active effort to spend quality time with their kids ... proving family is the most important priority.

The SKIMS mogul put on her mom hat Tuesday, sharing on social media a back-to-school photo of herself with all 4 of her kids -- North, 11; Saint, 8; Chicago, 6; and Psalm, 5.

Kim offered up a sweet smooch while she snapped a selfie with her kiddos ... some of whom looked more excited for school than others. Little Psalm sported his famous dad's signature scowl posing alongside his older siblings.

Hayden Panettiere is speaking out for the first time about her brother Jansen’s death last year, saying she felt like it was her job to protect her only sibling ... and losing him was like losing half her soul.

The actress also shared her body reacted so strongly to Jansen’s death from an undiagnosed heart condition at 28, she gained a bunch of weight within days ... due to stress and cortisol surges coursing through her body.

Hayden told PEOPLE her changing appearance hit her self-esteem hard, making her feel insecure about leaving the house. She felt trapped in a "destructive hamster wheel" of needing to keep moving while battling those feelings.

Diddy's sons are in New York watching their father go through an indictment and court proceedings ... but his teenage twin daughters are hanging back in California with a family friend.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ … Diddy's teen, twin girls 17-year-old D'Lila and 17-year-old Jessie are currently in Los Angeles under the care of their late mother Kim Porter’s best friend, Lala.

We're told Lala has acted as a caregiver for the girls for several years, though she is NOT a legal guardian.

Cardi B isn't listening to critics as she faces backlash for hitting the gym a mere week after giving birth to her third child ... though, doctors tell us she might want to heed the warnings.

Here's the skinny ... the rapper took to Instagram Sunday, documenting herself on the StairMaster a little over a week after welcoming her third baby with Offset. This sparked a big reaction online ... with fans expressing concern for her well-being, while others slammed her for succumbing to "snap back" pressure.

Cardi made it clear she was tuning out the peanut gallery ... returning to the gym again Monday, pointing out she's only doing 30-minute sessions, and taking it slow. As Cardi put it, she's using cardio to help prevent postpartum depression, noting it's her third time going through this experience.

The son of the man suspected of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump says his father hates the former president ... but is shocked, because his dad isn't a violent person.

Ryan Wesley Routh's son, Oran, spoke with the Daily Mail ... saying his father hates Trump like "every reasonable person does." Like father, like son -- Oran also isn't a fan of the former prez, but was floored to find out his dad is the gunman who allegedly targeted Trump at one of Trump's Florida golf clubs Sunday.

Oran says as far as he knows, his father's run-ins with the law only include a couple of traffic tickets ... but there's more to the suspect's record.

Dan Levy may be one and done when it comes to hosting award shows ... hinting as much to us when we caught up with him after the 76th Primetime Emmys.

The "Schitt's Creek" co-creator hosted the year's 2nd Emmy Awards with dad Eugene Levy at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles Sunday evening ... and while the father-son duo got mostly rave reviews for their hosting work, DL made it clear he was burnt out after all of it.

As Dan told TMZ ... he wasn't sure he had another awards show in him ... and stayed tight-lipped on whether he was eager to take the father-son act on the road, noting it took "a lot of work."

9/16 10:17 AM PT -- We're told there was some PDA between Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez during the lunch, but it was more to show the kids that they're getting along ... however, this divorce is going to happen according to sources with direct knowledge.

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are clearly trying to keep their relationship civil as their divorce plays out ... grabbing lunch with their kids -- and, not looking super excited about it.

The estranged megastars went for a bite to eat at the Beverly Hills Hotel Saturday afternoon ... walking in together after the kiddos raced ahead, ready to chow down.

Let's be clear here ... there was absolutely no PDA between Ben and Jenn -- not even the slightest bit of touching. In fact, it seems pretty frigid between the two, if we're being honest.

Britney Spears is shouting out her sons, wishing them a happy birthday month ... right after posting about how she had to cut people off for playing mind games.

The singer-songwriter hopped on Instagram Saturday to share several posts ... including a tribute to her two kids -- Jayden who turned 18 Thursday, though Brit will keep paying child support through November, and Sean who turned 19 today.

The mother-of-two says she hopes all their bday wishes come true ... and shared a few sweet photos from back in the day as well.

Mariah Carey and her twins had a Great recent visit to China ... stopping to check out one of The Seven Wonders of the World!

The superstar musician posted a few snaps of the visit to Instagram ... she looked fabulous, of course ... adding that, "It really is great!"

MC's twins Monroe and Moroccan ... whom she shares with ex-husband Nick Cannon -- and who just turned 13 -- also appear to be enjoying the moment ... but their smiles aren't nearly as bright as mom's!

Nikki Bella isn't just a former WWE Superstar ... she's a super-mom too -- spending some quality time with her four-year-old Matteo after filing for divorce.

The former wrestler stepped out in Napa Valley Friday ... taking her son to his dance class with a big smile on her face.

Check out the pics ... both Nikki and her son look ready to work out -- twinning in all-black, sporty outfits.