Movies

Bradley Cooper is being dragged over his portrayal of legendary conductor Leonard Bernstein, and one of the criticisms is at least worth talking about, while the other is utterly ridiculous.

Cooper stars in "Maestro," chronicling the life of the New York Philharmonic conductor, who happens to be Jewish.

One criticism is that Cooper wore a prosthetic nose for the role, which some folks online are calling a "Jewface" stereotype. Point of fact -- Bernstein did have a large nose, so we suppose that's a fair issue to debate.

The ridiculous criticism ... some folks are slamming Cooper, who is not Jewish, and producers for casting him in a role that could have gone to a Jewish actor.

Note to critics -- Bernstein became famous because he was a great conductor who HAPPENED to be Jewish. So if Neil Armstrong were Mormon, should producers only cast a Mormon actor to play him? Absurd.

BTW ... the movie was produced by Steven Spielberg ... 'nuff said.

Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner are lighter in their real estate portfolio, but heavier in their pockets as they just sold off their beautiful Miami home.

The two purchased the home for $11 million about a year ago, listed it for $16.995M and eventually sold it for $15M. Definitely an impressive profit over such a short period of time, but they also reportedly did some renovations on the pad, so you gotta account for that too.

The lucky owners of the 10,400 sqft home will enjoy its tall ceilings, renovated kitchen and a ton of windows to take in all that Miami sunshine.

There's also a beautiful pool in the backyard with direct water access and a dock for any potential boaters. Carl Gambino of Compass held the listing.

Unclear why Joe and Sophie made the decision to unload the place so quickly, but they've got two small kiddos ... so maybe they've decided to go elsewhere and potentially continue to expand their fam.

Arnold Schwarzenegger's son, Christopher, is in the middle of an impressive transformation ... looking super fit as he steps for a workout.

25-year-old Christopher hit up a gym Tuesday in L.A., and while it wasn't his dad's iconic spot -- Gold's Gym in Venice -- it's clear he's been putting in the kinda fitness work for which his dad became famous. Just check the muscles poppin' outta Christopher's sleeves!

Christopher started his weight loss journey back in 2020 ... and while he tends to keep a lower public profile than the rest of his fam, it's easy to see how much more fit he's gotten over the last 3 years.

Arnold congratulated Christopher on his exercise regimen on his 24th birthday, writing, "Between your boxing classes, your weightlifting classes, your stretching classes, your cycling classes, and on and on, I can’t even keep up with you!"

BTW, he and his brothers -- Patrick and Joseph -- have all been working hard on their physique, walking in pops' footsteps.

NYC native and American actor Jason Patric was in his early 20s when he became known for his movie characters, such as playing Michael Emerson -- the handsome and laid-back guy -- in "The Lost Boys" back in 1987 and Jim Raynor -- the undercover narcotics officer -- in "Rush" back in 1991.

Some of his other early notable parts include "Sleepers" with Kevin Bacon and Brad Pitt and "Speed 2: Cruise Control" with Sandra Bullock.

During the mid 2000s, Patric veered from the movie screen to the Broadway stage ... appearing in shows like "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof" and "That Champion Season."

The Tuohy family says before Michael Oher made "outlandish," "hurtful" and "absurd" claims about them in court on Monday ... he actually tried to shake them down for $15 MILLION.

Marty Singer -- the Tuohy family attorney -- said it all happened recently ... and, what's worse, he claimed this is not the first time Oher has done this.

Singer -- in a lengthy statement to TMZ Sports -- said Oher came to the Tuohys prior to filing his 14-page petition in Shelby County, Tenn. ... and threatened them, saying if they didn't pony up an eight-figure check, he'd "plant a negative story about them in the press."

Singer denied all of the allegations in Oher's court filing ... explaining that Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy absolutely did not trick the former NFL star into getting into a conservatorship when he was 18 years old as he had claimed.

The conservatorship "was established to assist with Mr. Oher’s needs, ranging from getting him health insurance and obtaining a driver’s license to helping with college admissions," Singer said. "Should Mr. Oher wish to terminate the conservatorship, either now or at anytime in the future, the Tuohys will never oppose it in any way."

As for Oher's claims that the Tuohys used the conservatorship to broker a movie deal with Fox behind Oher's back that netted them millions -- while leaving Oher with nothing -- Singer said that was BS as well.

"The notion that a couple worth hundreds of millions of dollars would connive to withhold a few thousand dollars in profit participation payments from anyone -- let alone from someone they loved as a son -- defies belief," Singer said.

Instead, the attorney claimed Tuesday the Tuohys had "received a small advance from the production company and a tiny percentage of net profits" from "The Blind Side" ... money Singer said the Tuohys have always either shared with Oher or have tried to share with the former Baltimore Ravens tackle.

"Over the years, the Tuohys have given Mr. Oher an equal cut of every penny received from 'The Blind Side,'" Singer said. "Even recently, when Mr. Oher started to threaten them about what he would do unless they paid him an eight-figure windfall, and, as part of that shakedown effort refused to cash the small profit checks from the Tuohys, they still deposited Mr. Oher’s equal share into a trust account they set up for his son."

Singer continued, "Unbeknownst to the public, Mr. Oher has actually attempted to run this play several times before – but it seems that numerous other lawyers stopped representing him once they saw the evidence and learned the truth. Sadly, Mr. Oher has finally found a willing enabler and filed this ludicrous lawsuit as a cynical attempt to drum up attention in the middle of his latest book tour."

Singer added the Tuohys are "heartbroken" over it all and they hope to reconcile with Oher soon ... though "they will not hesitate to defend their good names, stand up to this shakedown and defeat this offensive lawsuit."

Twitter is home to a lot of ridiculous opinions, but the latest trend involving Sandra Bullock might be the app's worst ... users are calling for her to lose her Oscar on the heels of "The Blind Side" controversy.

It's about as crazy as it sounds, especially since there's zero evidence Bullock -- who played Leigh Anne Tuohy in the movie -- had any clue of the drama behind the scenes with Michael Oher and the Tuohy family.

One user wrote, "So Sandra Bullock should have to give back her Oscar right, and man do we need to start checking these good feeling stories. The parents blocked $300 in earnings the movie from him getting any of it and gave the money to their real children? WOOOOOOOW!"

Another says, "If the Michael Oher allegations are true then we have to go AND TAKE THE OSCAR back from Sandra Bullock and give it to Gabourey Sidibe for 'Precious'" and "Sandra Bullock should give her Oscar back. She knows she didn't deserve that s***."

However, there's also people coming to her defense, writing, "Not y'all calling for Sandra Bullock's Oscar to be revoked. It ain't her fault the real life people were exploitative scammers and thieves," and "You know Sandra Bullock deserved her Oscar because she acted so well, she made the Tuohy family likeable."

As we reported, the former NFL star claims the Tuohy family never adopted him -- as the movie suggests -- but he was instead placed under a conservatorship. Oher claims the family made a ton of cash off his life story in "The Blind Side," while he got nothing.

Sean Tuohy is calling BS on Oher, saying the family's only option to legally make him part of their family was a conservatorship -- as he was over 18 -- and each family member made about $14,000 from the movie ... including Oher.

We covered it all on the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.

Sean Tuohy is firing back at Michael Oher ... calling BS on all of the former NFL star's "insulting" allegations -- while insisting he and his family made little money off of the success of "The Blind Side."

The 63-year-old -- who was played by Tim McGraw in the 2009 hit movie -- said he was "devastated" to learn that Oher had accused him and his wife, Leigh Anne, of exploiting him for fame and money in a court filing in Tennessee on Monday morning.

Tuohy told the Daily Memphian he never tricked Oher into getting into a conservatorship ... and he certainly didn't make millions off of it either.

Instead, Tuohy said the whole ordeal went down because the NCAA told him if Oher wanted to attend Ole Miss -- he'd have to be considered part of the family due to Touhy's status as a "booster" at the school.

"I sat Michael down and told him, 'If you're planning to go to Ole Miss -- or even considering Ole Miss -- we think you have to be part of the family,'" Tuohy said. "'This would do that, legally.'"

He continued, "We contacted lawyers who had told us that we couldn't adopt over the age of 18; the only thing we could do was to have a conservatorship. We were so concerned it was on the up-and-up that we made sure the biological mother came to court."

Tuohy then said he'd "of course" end the conservatorship if that's what Oher wanted.

As for the allegations that Tuohy used the conservatorship to negotiate a big movie deal with Fox that netted massive profits for him and his family ... Tuohy said that just simply never happened.

"We didn’t make any money off the movie," Tuohy said. "Well, Michael Lewis ['The Blind Side' book author] gave us half of his share. Everybody in the family got an equal share, including Michael. It was about $14,000, each."

Tuohy says he was in no need of cash after he had sold his fast-food franchises for over $200 million.

"I will say it’s upsetting that people would think I would want to make money off any of my children," he said.

Tuohy also told the outlet his family and Oher had remained very close in the years after the release of "The Blind Side" ... though he began to notice a schism forming about a year and a half ago.

Tyrese Gibson says he's all torn up inside about the $1 million lawsuit he filed against Home Depot ... because the home improvement store is his happy place.

The 'Fast & Furious' actor was at LAX when a photog asked him how he's holding up after suing Home Depot ... and Tyrese explained why it was hard for him to pull the trigger.

As crazy as it sounds, Tyrese says Home Depot was "like my Disneyland" ... estimating he's spent close to $10 million there over the last 2 decades, which made suing the corporation all the more difficult.

Remember, Tyrese is going after Home Depot in court because he believes a cashier racially profiled him and his Latino crew members because she wouldn't allow them to use his credit card to buy supplies.

Tyrese says he hasn't heard a peep from Home Depot since he posted video of the store interaction and filed the suit ... and he says it's just one of the reasons he's thinking of taking his business over to Home Depot's biggest competitor, Lowe's.

It's interesting ... during the Home Depot incident, Tyrese name-dropped the company's CEO, threatening to have him call the cashier because they're neighbors in Atlanta. But, Tyrese says the CEO has clammed up, too, despite their supposed friendship.

Tyrese says despite his reservations, he's going through with the lawsuit on behalf of all the people who claim they've been racially profiled in Home Depot stores across the country ... and he says the lawsuit is not a money grab, but a tool to make a statement.

For Tyrese, it sounds like the defining moment of the whole fiasco was when his crew member was brought to tears by the treatment in Home Depot. Tyrese says he's standing up for minorities everywhere with his suit.

Shocking allegations from Michael Oher ... the former offensive lineman says the family who took him in, helped him become an NFL star and was later portrayed in the hit movie "The Blind Side," lied to him, never adopted him and screwed him out of potentially millions of dollars.

The ex-Baltimore Ravens tackle spelled out the eyebrow-raising claims in a petition filed in Shelby County, Tenn. on Monday ... alleging Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy "exploited" him "for their own benefit" after realizing he was a "gullible young man" with athletic talent.

Oher says he initially got involved with the Tuohys during the summer following his junior year of high school ... after he claimed "a broken social system" in Tennessee left him homeless and in need of aid.

In the docs, Oher says the couple invited him to stay in their home often during that summer to help him out, and took him on shopping trips where they'd buy him clothes. Eventually, before his senior year started, he says they asked him to move in with them.

"The Tuohys did tell Michael they loved him and that they intended to legally adopt him," Oher said in the documents. "Michael believed them, was delighted to be part of a real and stable family, and trusted Mr. and Mrs. Tuohy completely."

A short time later, however, Oher says the Tuohys pulled one over on him.

In the docs, the former football player -- who's now 37 years old -- claims the Tuohys presented him with legal papers that he believed were needed to begin the process of the family adopting him. Instead, however, he says he just learned in February 2023 that they were actually a petition to appoint them as his conservators -- a filing that would allow the Tuohys to "have total control over Michael Oher's ability to negotiate for or enter any contract, despite the fact he was over 18 years of age and had no diagnosed physical or psychological disabilities."

Oher claims the conservatorship then allowed the Tuohys to negotiate a deal with Fox for "The Blind Side," the '09 flick based on Oher's life.

Oher says the Tuohys got themselves and their kids -- but not him -- "a contract price of $225,0000 plus 2.5% of all future 'defined net proceeds.'" The movie -- in which Sandra Bullock won an Oscar for her portrayal of Leigh Anne Tuohy -- ended up grossing over $300 million.

Oher claims as part of the deal with Fox, a contract giving away the rights to his story without any form of payment whatsoever, was signed. Oher says he "at no time ever willingly or knowingly signed this document and that nobody" ever made him aware of what the document actually entailed.

Oher is asking for a judge to end the conservatorship. He's also asking for damages ... as well as an accounting of the money the Touhys made through contracts negotiated on his behalf. It all appears to be potentially a precursor to a lawsuit.

Oher -- who's previously been critical of "The Blind Side" over the way he feels he was wrongly portrayed as dumb -- played in the NFL from 2009 to 2016 ... starting 110 games in his career.

CMFTR + SAG-AFTRA!

AEW star CM Punk showed big-time support for the striking actors, rockin' a Screen Actors Guild t-shirt to the ring on AEW Collision over the weekend.

Punk's shirt read ... "SAG-AFTRA ON STRIKE"

The "Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists" is an American labor union representing over 150K people working in the entertainment industry, including actors (from Tom Hanks to bit actors). They've been on strike since July 14.

After making the in-ring statement, CM Punk, government name Phil Brooks, has been receiving some hate online.

Punk shared a screenshot on Instagram where a fan sent him a message ... "You have become what you hate"

The wrestling superstar responded ... "I have become what I hate? A guild/union member who stands in solidarity with fellow members fighting for what's right. Bitch, I have become what I LOVE."

Punk isn't the only wrestling star who has the backs of the actors on strike. WWE Superstar Seth Rollins recently professed his support during a conversation we had with him at LAX.

Donnie Yen had one helluva 60th birthday party ... a lavish surprise bash in Lake Como, Italy ... and it looks like no expense was spared.

Our sources tell us the "John Wick: Chapter 4" star's wife, Cissy Wang, organized the surprise party ... flying out 150 guests into Villa Pizzo in Lake Como to celebrate the birthday boy.

The evening's special guest ... none other than Paul Anka!!!

Paul performed his timeless hit, "My Way," for Donnie and his guests.

Donnie, who plays Caine alongside Keanu Reeves in the latest 'John Wick' flick, had lots to celebrate during his Italian getaway ... because he also marked 20 years of marriage.

The actor and his wife renewed their vows on the shores of Italy's most famous lake ... the happy couple was dressed to the nines, as were their son and daughter.

Donnie and his son also slipped into tuxedos for a family photo shoot outside an Italian villa ... posing in front of a classic car with his wife and daughter, who were wearing extravagant dresses.

The Rock and Jason Momoa are speaking up after the devastating wildfires in Maui -- and they're offering ways to help ... as well as some strongly-worded advice to outsiders.

The two Hollywood heavyweights -- both of whom have Hawaiian heritage -- have issued public statements this weekend, reflecting on the destruction left behind in Lahaina ... where the body count is now nearing the 100-person mark, with several still unaccounted for.

Jason has been posting about it all weekend, and he's plugging an organization called the Hawai'i Community Foundation ... specifically, a fund they've created to help the victims of Maui. In addition to the laying out a roadmap to resources, he's got a clear message.

To all tourists considering traveling to Hawai'i, especially Maui, JM is saying ... stay away.

He writes in no uncertain terms, "Maui is not the place to have your vacation right now. DO NOT TRAVEL TO MAUI. Do not convince yourself that your presence is needed on an island that is suffering this deeply. Mahalo to everyone who has donated and shown aloha to the community in this time of need."

Might sound like a no-brainer, but there've been on-the-ground reports of folks/tourists still frolicking in the area and enjoying their vacays, right in the middle of this disaster.

One video, in particular, has been going viral for what appears to be a group of tourists being taken out to sea near Maui by an excursion company ... this as the photog bashes the hell out of them for being insensitive about the deadly situation all around them. That company has since apologized, insisting they were gonna donate the funds from this to charity -- but vowing to halt operations for the time being. Safe to say ... that's a good call.

Now, as for Dwayne Johnson ... he, too, has addressed the crisis and is pointing people to the Hawai'i Community Foundation Maui Fund as well -- saying any donations and assistance will go a long way in helping restore the community, which is still reeling from the fires.

The Rock writes, "Heartbroken but our faith and mana is strong. First responders, health care teams, hotels, locals businesses, boots on the ground organizations and all our local heroes, stay strong - we love you and appreciate you."

He adds, "All our local families, our ohana, our aiga, stay strong thru this devastating time. Resilience resolve is our DNA. Our ancestors are in our blood. This is who we are. This is what we do. I love you. Stay strong. More to come."

Others celebs are chiming in as well -- including "Moana" star Auliʻi Cravalho -- who's been guiding people to helpful resources too. Of course, people like Jeff Bezos and Oprah are helping in a big way as well ... be it with major cash donations, or other means.

Stephen Amell seems to have changed his tune when it comes to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike -- first demonstrated in his actions, and now further cemented by his own words.

The "Arrow" star spoke to a photog this week not long after he was spotted out in NYC with other fellow SAG members, hitting the picket line and showing support/solidarity for his union amid the ongoing negotiations ... which have dragged on for about a month or so now.

Check out what he had to say ... SA says he doesn't believe he's done a 180 on the issue, but rather -- that he just misspoke at first, and now has some clarity on how he feels.

What that manifests into, as he notes, is unwavering support for SAG-AFTRA ... something he's had since the beginning. And while he did say he didn't support the act of striking -- pointing out how hard it was on working actors -- he now says he's been educated on the process ... this after speaking to SAG leadership, who explained it wasn't done lightly.

You'll recall ... Stephen got a lot of backlash, at first, for saying what he said about striking, but since then ... it sounds like the dude has come around to realizing it's for a larger purpose, despite some growing pains people might be experiencing on the ground.

Interestingly, what Stephen says here on camera strongly echoes what he told us on "TMZ Live" a couple weeks ago ... when he was trying to put his original remarks in context.

Rachel Zegler has shown what many are calling a deep disdain for the story of 'Snow White' -- morphing one controversy into a new one ... and now, Halle Bailey's getting dragged in.

Here's the deal ... we already know folks have been outraged about the forthcoming Disney reimagining for months now, whether it's because of Zegler's race ... or 'cause they didn't cast many "dwarfs." On all fronts, the live-action remake has been called "woke" by some.

Now, a new anger is taking shape this weekend ... and it all has to do with resurfaced press remarks Zegler made back in September (almost a year ago) while promoting the film, alongside her costar Gal Gadot. No, not the blue carpet Variety interview ... the EW one.

In this Q&A -- which, again, is several months old at this point -- Zegler confesses to having only seen the OG 'Snow White' once as a child ... and not liking it because she thought it was scary. She says she never watched it again -- at least, not until she was cast.

After seeing it anew ... it sounds like Zegler was turned off by what she saw -- the way she's described the cartoon, it comes across as dated and, perhaps, even regressive for women ... that's certainly how Zegler views it anyway, and she's made that clear in fierce terms.

The problem ... it seems her attitude toward the old 'Snow White' -- kinda bashing it -- has turned a lot of people off ... and not just conservatives either! There are a good handful of (seemingly) normal women who are speaking up and rolling their eyes over Zegler's take.

As one user put it ... some of the elements of the 1937 film (not to mention the original German fairy tale) are still appealing to certain women, even today. As you can see above, she laments the "girl boss" trend that some feel is being pushed by Hollywood these days. In short, this woman argues that some ladies still wanna be saved by Prince Charming. 😆

Enter Halle Bailey ... press interviews she was doing last year in the lead-up to 'Little Mermaid' are also being resurfaced right now, and they're being compared to Zegler's clips.

There are a lot of interviews Halle did at the time where she's talked about how much she loved "The Little Mermaid" growing up ... and how much influence Ariel, specifically, had on her as a Disney princess. Basically, Halle was a big fan of the IP and sounded grateful to give her own portrayal -- which, by and large, has been praised ... despite the loud haters.

The point of all this is that a question is now being rhetorically asked of Zegler ... if you hated the movie and the character of 'Snow White,' why sign on for this role at all?

She's recently said she wants nothing to do with all the chatter that's taken shape, but she'll undoubtedly do more press as the movie release date nears -- so we'll what she says then.

Like "Thelma and Louise" ... you are on a mission to hit the streets and be thick as thieves with acting legend Susan Sarandon. Can you find the changes in these two shots before going over the falls?

The NYC native threw on her sneaks and picketed around her neighborhood -- along with countless other famous folks -- in support of the SAG-AFTRA strike. And, considering it was a hot summer day in the Big Apple, it's a good thing H2O was present ... Can you handle the switch-ups?

Check out how contentious the Kevin Costner/Christine Baumgartner divorce has gotten ... here's the first line of Kevin's latest filing ... "Christine asserts she cannot admit or deny that she understood the Premarital Agreement because she (and apparently all of her attorneys) do not understand the word "understand."

It's all over whether Christine understood the terms of the prenup when she signed it. There have been signals she is going to contest the prenup, on grounds she did not get what it meant. So Kevin's lawyers have asked her lawyers if she "understood" what she was signing.

Kevin's lawyer, Disso Queen Laura Wasser, writes in the latest filing, "Christine's counsel asked for a definition of 'understood' and Kevin's counsel provided the dictionary meaning of the word 'understood,' to wit, 'comprehended or perceive the intended meaning of words.'"

Wasser is asking the judge to make Christine's lawyers answer the question ... did she understand the prenup or not?

Here's the question that fueled the latest battle ...

Wasser: "You understood the legal effect of the premarital agreement before you signed the premarital agreement."

Christine's lawyer: "Objection. This request is vague as to the scope and meaning of the terms 'understood' ... [Christine] is unable to admit or deny the request."

A lot is on the line here ... if Christine challenges the prenup at an upcoming hearing and the judge enforces it, she'll have to return the $1.5 million Kevin fronted her, and pay his attorney's fees to boot.

The judge has indicated during several hearings he is inclined to enforce the prenup.