LGBT

Victor Willis, who is best known for being a founding member of the Village People, is calling out the media for perpetuating the idea that "Y.M.C.A." is a gay anthem.

We caught up with the songwriter on "TMZ Live" Tuesday, where Victor elaborated on his feelings about his song's reputation and its longtime ties to the LGBTQ+ community.

As he put it ... he never intentionally wrote the song with the intention of it having a queer double entendre. While he has no problem with the LGBTQ+ community adopting the song, he's frustrated with the media for repeatedly perpetuating the idea that track was crafted in order to be a gay anthem.

Khalid just confirmed he is gay ... coming out after claiming he was outed.

The R&B hitmaker posted a rainbow flag emoji on his X account Friday night and added, "there yall go. next topic please lol."

Khalid's tweet came after another singer seemingly outed him on social media ... and fans were quick to reply to Khalid's post.

Kristin Chenoweth has made clear she agrees with Ariana Grande about an aspect of the "Wicked" character they both have played ... 'cause she always thought it, too.

Here is the deal ... AG recently shared her thoughts in an interview with Gay Times that Glinda "might be a little in the closet."

Ariana's comment made its way to an IG post from E News, which is where Kristin chimed in the comment section with ... "I thought so too way back when…."

Kataluna Enriquez -- the first openly transgender Miss Nevada USA -- is speaking out against Congress forcing members to use the bathroom according to biological sex ... calling the whole fight totally disgusting.

We chatted with the 2021 Miss USA pageant contestant Thursday ... and, she tells us she finds the whole fight over which bathrooms to use tired -- saying it's far less important than the other issues the country is facing.

Enriquez applauds Congresswoman-elect Sarah McBride -- who will begin her first term as Delaware's lone member of the House of Representatives in January -- for agreeing to the bathroom ban ... showing she's focused on her mission despite the hate.

Jojo Siwa's whirlwind romance with GF Dakayla Wilson has fizzled out just as quickly as it ignited 3 months ago -- they've officially called it quits.

The "Dance Moms" alum spilled the tea at the 11th Annual American Reality Television Awards on Monday ... confirming to PEOPLE that she and Dakayla had gone their separate ways, and she's back to being single.

The split seemed amicable, with Jojo calling Dakayla an amazing girl and adding they were both focusing on their own festive plans moving forward.

Denzel Washington is walking back his claim a same-sex kiss was cut from "Gladiator II" ... after director Ridley Scott said the lip lock "didn't happen."

We're not sure what was more tense at the Los Angeles premiere for the 'Gladiator' sequel ... the action on the big screen, or Denzel and Ridley addressing the now debated man-on-man smooch.

Denzel, who plays a former slave-turned-arms dealer named Macrinus in the flick, said the reaction to his comments was "much ado about nothing" ... accusing the media of making it more than it was.

LaMelo Ball is adamant he's not a bigot ... telling reporters Sunday that even though he used some anti-gay language earlier in the weekend, he has "love for everybody."

Ball was fined by the NBA just prior to his Sunday evening meeting with the media ... after league officials deemed the "no homo" comment he made in a postgame interview on Saturday "offensive and derogatory."

Ball told journalists following the Hornets' 128-114 loss to the Cavaliers that he "really didn't mean anything" by the remark ... and he doesn't "want to offend anybody."

Lil Nas X isn't doing much to shut down dating rumors with musician Cody Jon ... planting a kiss on his fellow singer's cheek while walking around in Los Angeles Saturday.

The rapper stepped out in Studio City to do some shopping with Cody and, while the two were walking down the street, LNX leaned over and smooched him on his left cheek.

Check out the pics ... Cody smiling while Nas goes in for the kiss, making a face when his lips make contact -- though overall it seems more like he's jokingly making a face than anything.

Denzel Washington threw some shade at the producers of "Gladiator II" when he talked about a gay kiss he had in the film that was cut, allegedly over cold feet ... but it seems there is more to the story, TMZ is told.

A production source tells us ... the moment in question happened, but it was not in the script -- and done during an improvised take of which there were many for the scene.

The kiss take -- and other improvised takes -- ended up on the cutting room floor as a story choice. No prejudice went into making the decision, we're told.

Pedro Pascal may be the star of the new 'Gladiator' flick, but all eyes were on his transgender sister, Lux, at the London premiere of the action movie.

Check it out ... Pedro posed for photographers in an all-black getup for a screening at London's Leicester Square -- but the "Gladiator II" actor paled in comparison to his sister, who was by his side on the red carpet.

While the evening wasn't about Lux, she certainly stole the spotlight ... wearing a revealing black dress that boldly showed off a saucy amount of skin. The gown featured a diamond-shaped cutout situated at the bottom off her ribcage ... and ran all the way down to her lower thigh, giving photogs an ample look at her curves.

Denzel Washington brought some authenticity to his "Gladiator II" character's sexuality ... 'cause he says he straight-up kissed a dude in a scene -- but, fans won't get to see it.

The actor sat down for an interview with Gayety -- an LGBTQ+-focused media company -- and, they asked him about his character's revelation that he'd been in same-sex couplings before ... leaving them to wonder how gay the Roman Empire truly was.

DW says they didn't just reference his character's past in the flick ... they actually showed him lip-to-lip with another man in a scene -- a full-on smooch in the Ancient Rome film.

Worlds are colliding for Jonathan Bailey ... he's starring in the new "Wicked" movie with Ariana Grande, but fans won't let him forget his toe-sucking scene in a hit TV series.

Here's the deal ... Jonathan was at Monday's "Wicked" premiere in Mexico City when some folks in the crowd got his attention ... with a printed-out photo of his infamous "Fellow Travelers" scene where he sucks costar Matt Bomer's toes.

Footage from the funny exchange shows Jonathan walking past a group of fans before stopping in his tracks when he notices someone holding up the toe-sucking print. His eyes light up and he happily autographs the photo, then poses for a pic.

3:09 PM PT -- Elon Musk has responded to his transgender daughter, Vivian Jenna Wilson's desire to leave the U.S.A. over Donald Trump's election win ... by reissuing his controversial opinion about her gender identity.

As Vivian's reaction to the election results went viral, Elon posted on X and claimed "the woke mind virus killed [his] son."

The Tesla CEO expressed a similar sentiment over the summer, when he claimed that Vivian had been brainwashed by left-wing propaganda leading to her transition ... which he dubbed the "woke mind virus."

Looks like these two won't be making amends any time soon.

Elon Musk's estranged daughter says she's bailing on the U.S.A. ... 'cause even though Donald Trump's presidency will only last 4 years, the people who voted for him are here to stay.

Vivian Jenna Wilson -- the 20-year-old transgender daughter who the controversial billionaire once said was "killed by the woke mind virus" -- claims she's moving out of the country after Trump's second presidential victory.

Wilson took to Threads to explain her choice ... telling her followers she's given the decision a ton of thought -- and, ultimately, she doesn't see a future for herself in the United States.

Jason Kelce is on video using a homophobic slur in a fight where he's defending his brother Travis Kelce and his girlfriend Taylor Swift ... and the question is was this justified?

We tackle the burning issue in today's edition of TMZ TV Hot Takes ... and this one has the office firing off their opinions.

Harvey and Charles tackled the big story from the weekend on "TMZ Live" ... breaking down the video showing the heated interaction from the Penn State campus before a big football game.

Check out the clip ... and decide for yourself if Jason was right or wrong here.

Check your local listings for when TMZ is on in your area or catch up on past episodes!

Chloë Grace Moretz is voting for Kamala Harris ... saying she's going to protect gay women just like her -- the first time she's come out publicly.

The actress posted a picture of her "I Voted Early" sticker stuck to her leg ... letting people in the caption know she's already voted and voted for Kamala Harris.

CGM says there's so much on the line in this election -- specifically mentioning women's rights over their bodies and legal protection for LGBTQ+ individuals ... important issues to her, she says, 'cause she's a gay woman.