Movies

The director of 'The Holdovers' is being accused of ripping off another Hollywood creative, who claims the guy hijacked his own years-old script in what he calls outright plagiarism.

Simon Stephenson -- whose story/writing credits include 'Luca,' 'Paddington 2' and other big hits -- levied a heavy plagiarism allegation against Alexander Payne earlier this year with none other than the WGA ... and his claims are just now coming to light publicly.

According to Variety -- which has reviewed and published emails from this whole ordeal -- Stephenson hit up some WGA honchos to complain that Payne's script/story for 'The Holdovers' was a "brazen" ripoff of a script he wrote back in 2013 called 'Frisco.'

Not only are the plots nearly identical, Stephenson alleges, but he goes on to claim there is "line-by-line" replication ... adding he has proof Payne reviewed his screenplay in years past.

Stephenson wrote in one of his emails to WGA, "I’ve been a working writer for 20 years -- in my native U.K. before I came to the U.S. -- and so I’m very aware that people can often have surprisingly similar ideas and sometimes a few elements can be ‘borrowed,’ etc."

He adds emphatically ... "This just isn’t that situation. The two screenplays are forensically identical and riddled with unique smoking guns throughout."

Stephenson was reportedly told his gripes were not a guild issue, and that he might need to consider a lawsuit to address his concerns -- no word on whether he's done that yet.

As for Payne -- who's not a writer on 'Holdovers,' but who says he heavily supervised the script-writing process -- he's publicly said his flick is loosely inspired by a 1935 French film.

Hollywood está de fiesta, y la cosa está muy animada momentos antes que empiecen los Oscars. Las celebridades se miran las caras y se encuentran entre las miles de fotos.

Jeff Bezos y Lauren Sánchez estuvieron allí con sus amigos Kris Jenner y Corey Gamble, mientras que Andy Cohen, Rumer Willis, Tracee Ellis Ross, Nicky Hilton y Kathy Hilton también asistieron al evento.

Échale un vistazo a las galerías, porque hubo muchos más asistentes de los que pudimos mencionar.

Más tarde, algunas de esas mismas personas hicieron cambios de vestuario y se dirigieron al Hotel Beverly Hills para el evento pre-Oscars de Chanel.

Los recién casados Usher y Jennifer Goicoechea se codearon con personajes de la talla de Robert De Niro -nominado a Mejor Actor de Reparto- Lily-Rose Depp y Kristen Stewart, Willem Dafoe, Sánchezos (Lauren & Jeff) de nuevo y America Ferrera, nominada a Mejor Actriz de Reparto.

Y, después de todo eso, el tren de la fiesta estuvo lejos de terminar.

La siguiente parada fue el famoso Chateau Marmont, donde Willem hizo otra aparición en la noche del sábado, y otros invitados incluyeron Lil Nas X, Alessandra Ambrosio, Billy Zane, Abigail Spencer y Jodie Turner-Smith.

Si todo esto te parece agotador es porque probablemente lo sea: es la parte del mundo del espectáculo en la que hay que dar la cara, y es una gran parte de lo que hace girar a Hollywood.

Vanessa Hudgens is pregnant, and she let the world know in the biggest way possible -- showing up to the Oscars ... with a big ol' baby bump in tow!

The actress is one of the hosts on the red carpet Sunday at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood -- where the ceremony will be going down later today -- and before all the stars arrived to take their own pictures ... Vanessa made sure to steal the spotlight with shots of her own.

She had a very good reason, too ... clearly, Vanessa is expecting a child -- and this is the first time anyone's hearing about it publicly. On its face, it seems she's fairly far along.

Of course, this is major news ... seeing how this would be VH's first child, and ditto for her husband, Cole Tucker. Remember, they just got married a few months ago down in Mexico ... and now, they're having a kid together in record time. No time like the present, right?!

Cole and Vanessa have been together as a couple since 2020 ... after she broke things off with her longtime boyfriend, Austin Butler -- with whom she'd been with for many years.

Vanessa and Cole were two peas in a pod ... she said she knew he was the one right away.

While she's clearly happy with her hubby ... the topic of her relationship with Austin has come up quite a bit lately -- especially with him being launched into superstardom through all these movies he's been in the past couple years, including 'Elvis.'

Vanessa just said last week she's happy her split with Austin led her to Cole -- and Austin, meanwhile, has said he valued his time with Vanessa ... and still respected/cared about her.

Austin himself is not scheduled to be at today's Oscars ceremony -- although, he has been out and about for Oscars-related parties this weekend.

So, he might be around somewhere later tonight as well. Ya gotta wonder how he might feel about this big development.

As Hollywood's rich and famous trickle in for the Oscars this weekend -- a massive protest is going down just a stone's throw away ... with folks hitting the streets to speak on Palestine.

A huge demonstration is unfolding about a mile away from the Dolby Theater in Hollywood Sunday -- at none other than the Dome Entertainment Centre, in fact -- where hundreds of people gathered with signage, megaphones and Palestinian flags ... while up in arms.

Of course, this is a pro-Palestine protest -- one that's been organized by groups like Writers Against the War on Gaza LA, Film Workers for Palestine, SAG-AFTRA Members for Ceasefire and others ... with their main message being, "No awards during a genocide!"

Another tagline being used for this protest ... "While You're Watching Bombs Are Dropping."

It goes without saying ... these folks are protesting against the ongoing war in the Middle East -- this as Gaza continues to be under siege as Israel seeks to eradicate Hamas.

As you can see ... tensions were high here, as people chanted and made their voices heard ahead of the biggest night in Hollywood. The Oscars are just about an hour from starting.

Unfortunately for these demonstrators, they won't be getting much closer to the actual Oscars venue itself -- the Dolby Theater is blocked off by cops, who've set a wide perimeter ... and who are standing guard with their riot gear ready to go in case things escalate.

Meanwhile ... the stars are getting ready for the big show -- lots of red-carpet arrivals are happening right now ... and they don't seem too worried about the ruckus up the block.

Millie Bobby Brown ha estado cambiando de acento últimamente, y en medio de algunas críticas, le dicie a los haters que se vayan a la mierda. La actriz sostiene que es camaleónica en cuanto a su forma de hablar.

La estrella de "Stranger Things" abordó recientemente esta cuestión cuando tuvo una conversación con el TikToker Max Balegde, mientras estaba promocionando su nueva película de Netflix, "Damsel", y donde se le preguntó directamente sobre su acento cambiando constantemente, aunque, en términos muy aduladores.

Max insiste en el tema, pero lo hace poniendose de parte de Millie. Dice que entiende perfectamente la idea de que el acento de una persona cambie dependiendo de dónde se encuentre.

Ese es el razonamiento que muchos de sus fans y simpatizantes han ofrecido en defensa de Millie después de que se hiciera viral una entrevista que le concedió a Jimmy Fallon hace casi dos semanas... en la que sonaba como una norteamericana a pesar de haber saltado a la fama con su característico acento británico.

Millie tomó las riendas de la conversación aquí y explicó por qué su acento cambia tan fácilmente -por cierto, durante esta conversación con Max, sonaba con su acento habitual casi exageradamente- básicamente dijo sí... mi acento cambia con mi entorno.

Dice que de niña se crió en distintos lugares, tanto al otro lado del charco como aquí en Estados Unidos, y ahora vive en Nueva York con su prometido, Jake Bongiovi... así que dice que últimamente ha adoptado más el acento americano.

Eso está muy bien, pero Millie también admite que cambia su acento dependiendo de con quién esté hablando, al parecer por cortesía y para encajar mejor. Lo cual es... interesante.

Millie Bobby Brown has been flip-flopping accents lately -- and amid some criticism, she's telling haters to piss off ... 'cause she says she's a chameleon in terms of how she speaks.

The "Stranger Things" star recently addressed this issue head-on in a sit-down with TikToker Max Balegde -- where she was plugging her new Netflix movie, "Damsel," and where she was asked directly about her accent constantly switching up ... albeit, in very fawning terms.

Watch ... Max prods the subject, but does so in a way that's already taking Millie's side. He says he totally gets the notion of someone's accent changing depending on where they are.

That's the rationale a lot of her fans/supporters have offered up in defense of Millie after an interview she did with Jimmy Fallon nearly two weeks ago went viral ... where she sounded like a straight-up Yankee, despite having risen to fame with her signature British accent.

MBB took the reins in the convo here and explained why her accent changes on a dime -- BTW, during this conversation with Max ... she sounded like her usual red coast self, almost exaggeratedly so -- and basically said, yeah ... my accent changes with my surroundings.

She notes that she bounced around as a kid in terms of where she grew up -- including living across the pond, as well as here in the States -- and now, she's living in NYC with her fiancé, Jake Bongiovi ... so she says she's adopted more of an American accent lately.

That's all fine and good, but what Millie also admits is she'll tweak her accent depending on who she's talking to -- as a courtesy, it seems, and to fit in better. Which is ... interesting.

Ya sabes que es fin de semana de los Oscars cuando Nicolas Cage está en escena... Y esta vez apareció para honrar al director de "Killers Of The Flower Moon" Martin Scorsese y el elenco de su película nominada a Mejor Película.

TMZ tiene un video dentro de la celebración en Bevery Hills, donde Nic, él mismo un ganador del Oscar, y su esposa -Riko Shibata- se mezclaron en la fiesta organizada por Giorgio Armani.

Es raro ver a Cage en eventos del mundo del espectáculo. Él es más de un tipo de bar de karaoke, pero, como hemos dicho, es ese tipo de fin de semana en Hollywood.

También pudimos ver a la gran Lily Gladstone, que es candidata a Mejor Actriz. Ya ha hecho historia como la primera mujer nativa americana nominada al premio, y la mayoría de los críticos dicen que tiene muchas posibilidades de ganar el domingo por la noche.

Su coprotagonista y nominado al premio al mejor actor de reparto, Robert De Niro, también estuvo ahí y parecía estar de buen humor, ya que se paró a tomarse unas fotos con la gente.

También pudimos ver a Ke Huy Quan, ganador del premio al Mejor Actor de Reparto del año pasado, a Olivia Munn y John Mulaney, y a Jane Seymour y Paris Jackson charlando.

Y'know it's Oscars weekend when even the likes of Nicolas Cage are out on the scene ... in this case to honor "Killers of the Flower Moon" director Martin Scorsese and the cast of his Best Picture-nominated film.

TMZ got video inside the Bev Hills celebration, where Nic, himself an Oscar winner, and his wife Riko Shibata mingled at the Giorgio Armani-hosted party.

It's a rare sighting of Cage at showbiz events. He's more of a karaoke bar kinda guy, but, like we said, it's that kinda weekend in Hollywood.

Several other nominees were front and center ... including 'Flower Moon' star Lily Gladstone, who's up for Best Actress. She's already made history as the first Native American woman nominated for the award, and most critics say she's got a good shot to win Sunday night.

Her costar, and Best Supporting Actor nominee, Robert De Niro was there and looked to be in good spirits ... as he stopped to take a few snaps with folks. We also got shots of last year's Best Supporting Actor winner Ke Huy Quan, Olivia Munn and John Mulaney, Jane Seymour and Paris Jackson doing the small talk thing.

Other faces in the crowd -- Best Actor nominee Jeffrey Wright, Alessandra Ambrosio, Scott Eastwood and Callum Turner, who was not with his relatively new GF Dua Lipa ... unfortunate, for him, and everyone else there.

La carrera de Jonathan Majors en Hollywood aún no ha terminado, incluso con su sentencia acercándose, él ha estado yendo al gimnasio a tiempo completo para ponerse en forma para un próximo papel en una película y nos dejó tener un vistazo de su rutina.

Fuentes cercanas a Majors le dicen a TMZ que el actor estuvo en Los Ángeles una semana, entrenando duro en el gimnasio y poniéndose en forma para un posible rol antes de volar de regreso a Nueva York.

No se sabe cuál podría ser ese papel, pero nos dicen que requeriría que él esté en increíble forma y es por eso que estaba entrenando tan intensamente.

Nuestras fuentes dicen que Jonathan tiene como objetivo verse súper musculoso, como un superhéroe musculoso, y el video muestra que se está acercando bastante a su meta.

Jonathan solía ser una estrella de Marvel antes de que el estudio lo dejara luego de que un jurado de Nueva York lo declarara culpable por el delito menor de agresión y acoso por el ahora famoso incidente con su ex novia, Grace Jabbari.

Nos dicen que Jonathan está haciendo ejercicio con sus entrenadores habituales, quienes lo están poniendo en plena forma.

Nuestras fuentes dicen que durante el próximo mes Jonathan viajará entre Los Ángeles y Nueva York para ver a Meagan Good y entrenar en L.A.

Lo que no está claro es cuándo comenzaría el rodaje de la película, si lo consigue, el tiempo es esencial, suponiendo que tenga que hacerlo antes de ser sentenciado.

Lukas Gage definitely got people talking when he referred to fellow actor Archie Madekwe as his new husband -- but now, he's setting the record straight on where their bromance stands.

We got the "Euphoria" actor at LAX, and while he's quick to acknowledge the "Saltburn" star is a major hottie, he says they're categorically not dating -- and, at this stage anyway, they're just really good friends.

The clarification was necessary after their joint arrival at a Vanity Fair party this week ... where Lukas dubbed AM his new spouse when one of the paps grilled him about their status.

As you can see in the clip, LG said, "Yes, this is my new husband" -- but his body language certainly suggested he was just joking around.

It also looks like Lukas was poking fun at that speculation when we talked to him -- especially since his 6-month marriage to Chris Appleton just came to an end in November. Having already found himself a new hubby would have been quite the rebound!

But, it did seem like the 'White Lotus' star was giving love another shot, joining Hinge at the start of the year. However, the update on his dating app activity is they're just not his thing ... for now.

Lukas says he's focused on finding himself, and happily dating himself. Preach!

Lukas Gage definitivamente dio que hablar cuando se refirió a su compañero Archie Madekwe como su nuevo marido, pero ahora está aclarando las cosas sobre su bromance.

Nos encontramos con el actor de "Euphoria" en el aeropuerto de Los Ángeles el jueves y aunque se apresuró en reconocer que el actor de "Saltburn" es un bombón, dijo categóricamente que no están saliendo y que solo son buenos amigos.

La aclaración era necesaria después de que llegaran juntos a la fiesta de Vanity Fair la noche anterior, donde Lukas apodó a Archie como su nuevo marido después de ser consultado por los paparazzis.

Como se puede ver en el clip, Lukas dice: "Sí, este es mi nuevo marido", pero su lenguaje corporal sin duda sugería que solo estaba bromeando.

También parece que Lukas se estaba burlando de las especulaciones cuando hablamos con él, especialmente porque su divorcio de Chris Appleton ocurrió apenas en noviembre. Haber encontrado un nuevo marido tan rápido habría sido un poco exagerado.

De todos modos, parecía que la estrella de "The White Lotus" le estaba dando otra oportunidad al amor cuando se unió a Hinge a principios de año. Sin embargo, la última actualización es que la app no es lo suyo, por ahora.

Lukas dice que por ahora se está encontrando a sí mismo y está feliz con su soltería.

Jonathan Majors' Hollywood career isn't over yet -- even as his sentencing looms, he's going full gym rat, getting in shape for an upcoming film shoot ... and we got a glimpse of his routine.

Sources close to Majors tell TMZ … he was in L.A. for a week, hitting the gym hard and training for a possible gig before flying back to New York.

No word on what Jonathan's potential role might be, but we're told it would require him to be in incredible shape ... and that's why he was training so intensely.

Our sources say Jonathan's aiming to get shredded -- like superhero ripped -- and the video shows he's getting pretty close to that goal.

Remember, Jonathan was a Marvel star before the studio dropped him immediately after a New York jury found him guilty of misdemeanor assault and harassment for the now-infamous incident with his ex-GF, Grace Jabbari.

We're told Jonathan's working out with his regular trainers, who are getting him in tip-top shape.

For the next month or so, our sources say Jonathan will be shuffling back and forth between visiting Meagan Good in New York and training in Los Angeles.

What's unclear is when the movie shoot would begin -- if he lands it, time is of the essence ... assuming he'd have to get it done before he's sentenced.

La fiesta de CAA previa a los Oscar era el lugar para estar este viernes, pues tuvo entre sus invitados a los mejores representantes del negocio, quienes se prepararon para el glamour del domingo en el Sunset Tower Hotel.

La legendaria fiesta es conocida como uno de los principales eventos previos a los Oscars, y como cada año, la noche del viernes contó con un montón de figuras de Hollywood, incluyendo muchos de los nominados, como el aspirante a Mejor Actor Cillian Murphy, quien estuvo en la fiesta codeándose con sus compañeros.

Los ya ganadores del Oscar Viola Davis y Brendan Fraser también estuvieron en el evento junto con Chris Rock y Sacha Baron Cohen. Por supuesto, han pasado dos años desde que Chris fue abofeteado por Will Smith en el escenario de los Oscar, así que es agradable verlo nuevamente disfrutando de las festividades.

Danny DeVito, Demi Moore, Jeff Goldblum, Donald Glover, Sir Patrick Stewart, el nominado a Mejor Actor Jeffrey Wright, Chris Evans, Salma Hayek, Olivia Wilde, y Neil Patrick Harris fueron otros de los invitados a la fiesta.

El futuro del cine también estuvo presente, con actores más jóvenes como el actor de "May December", Charles Melton, Anya Taylor-Joy, Glen Powell de "Top Gun: Maverick" y la modelo Kaia Gerber.

Aunque no son grandes figuras de la pantalla grande, los anfitriones Andy Cohen y Kelly Ripa animaron la fiesta, que tenía a DJ Rashida y Lady Sha haciendo a todos bailar.

CAA representa algunos de los nombres más grandes del negocio, como a las estrellas de "Barbie" Margot Robbie y Ryan Gosling, y organiza esta fiesta previa a los premios cada año para celebrar a sus clientes, colegas y compañeros.

The CAA Pre-Oscars shindig was the place to be ... with the best of the biz out to play at The Sunset Tower Hotel, gearing up for the glitz and glam to come on Sunday.

The legendary bash is known as one of the major Oscars warm-up events, and just like every year, Friday night's shindig featured a who's who in Hollywood with lots of the nominees -- like Best Actor hopeful Cillian Murphy -- in the mix and rubbing elbows.

Previous Oscar winners Viola Davis and Brendan Fraser were also part of the line-up -- along with Chris Rock and Sacha Baron Cohen. Of course, it's been 2 years since Chris was targeted by Will Smith onstage at the Oscars -- so, it's nice to see him back enjoying the festivities.

Some of the others mingling the night away were Danny DeVito, Demi Moore, Jeff Goldblum, Donald Glover, Sir Patrick Stewart, Best Actor nominee Jeffrey Wright, Chris Evans, Salma Hayek, Olivia Wilde, and Neil Patrick Harris.

The future of the movie biz was also on hand ... younger actors like "May December" star Charles Melton and Anya Taylor-Joy, "Top Gun: Maverick's Glen Powell and model Kaia Gerber.

Now, they're not big screen stars, but the hosts with the most Andy Cohen and Kelly Ripa kept the party vibes going strong at the bash, which had DJ Rashida and Lady Sha spinning the beats.

CAA reps some of the biggest names in the biz -- such as "Barbie" stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling -- and it hosts this pre-awards bash every year to celebrate clients, colleagues and peers.

Hollywood's elite are warming up for Sunday's Oscars with pre-parties every bit as celeb-packed as the main event will be ... as Usher, John Legend and Leo DiCaprio rallied in one of the town's more iconic mansions!

TMZ got this video inside the William Morris Endeavor talent agency's big bash in Bev Hills Friday night -- it was held at the Beverly Estate, sometimes referred to as the "Godfather" mansion, and it was absolutely swimming with A-Listers.

Check out these faces in the crowd -- Justin Timberlake, Tobey Maguire, Teyana Taylor, Busta Rhymes, Rob Lowe and, of course, the 3 aforementioned superstars ... all rubbing elbows, literally and figuratively.

Even the celebs themselves seemed starstruck at times ... you can see Justin, Usher and Teyana were posing together for a few snaps as they chatted and laughed.

After their little photo sesh, Justin chatted a bit with some of the other guests as Teyana walked around, mingling.

At one point, Teyana bumped into Busta and the two began to shoot the breeze. Rob was also spotted making the rounds.

Never one to miss a party filled with beautiful people ... Leo, along with his pal Tobey, popped in just as the music started pumping and everyone was hitting the dance floor.

By all accounts, Leo was in good spirits and not even hiding his face that much, as we usually see him.

As for John Legend ... Mr. EGOT got off his feet to do the small talk thing ... sitting on a couch to chat up some other guests.

By the way, the mansion where all this was going down is the spot where they filmed the famous horse's head scene for "The Godfather" flick.

La élite de Hollywood se prepara para los Oscars este domingo y las fiestas previas han tenido tantas celebridades como el evento mismo. Usher, John Legend y Leo DiCaprio, por ejemplo, se reunieron en una de las mansiones más emblemáticas de la ciudad.

TMZ consiguió este video de la fiesta de la agencia de talentos William Morris Endeavor en Beverly Hills el viernes, que se celebró en la denominada mansión "El Padrino" y contó con un montón de A-Listers.

Fíjate bien en los invitados, Justin Timberlake, Tobey Maguire, Teyana Taylor, Busta Rhymes, Rob Lowe y, por supuesto, las 3 superestrellas antes mencionadas se estaban codeando literal y figurativamente.

Incluso las propias celebridades parecían deslumbradas con sus colegas famosos por momentos. Se puede ver que Justin, Usher y Teyana posaron juntos para algunas fotos mientras charlaban y se reían.

Después de su pequeña sesión de fotos, Justin charló un poco con algunos de los otros invitados mientras Teyana se mezcló con el resto de la fiesta.

En un momento dado, Teyana se encontró con Busta y los dos empezaron a conversar. Rob también fue visto hablando con todos los invitados.

Nunca se pierde una fiesta llena de gente guapa. Leo, junto a su amigo Tobey, apareció justo cuando empezó a sonar la música y todo el mundo se fue a la pista de baile.

Sin lugar a dudas, Leo estaba de buen humor y ni siquiera ocultó tanto su cara, como suele hacer.

En cuanto a John Legend, el Sr. EGOT también conversó alegremente con los invitados, sentado en un sofá y muy animado en la charla con los otros invitados.

Por cierto, la mansión donde pasó todo esto es el lugar donde filmaron la famosa escena de la cabeza del caballo para la película "El Padrino".