Netflix

Zac Efron was not too good-looking to play Ted Bundy ... in fact, the director says Zac's looks underscore the very, very dark point of the flick.

Joe Berlinger, the director of "Extremely Wicked, Shocking Evil and Vile," told our photog Wednesday in NYC ... Zac's looks were a plus, but they took a backseat to his acting chops. Joe clearly couldn't be more pleased with Zac's performance, echoing reviews that called it "career-changing."

That said, Joe notes Bundy was able to disarm people with his looks and charm, and the film makes a statement that people who seem desirable on the outside are capable of monstrous conduct.

Joe says Bundy was a testament to the notion of perceived normalcy ... everything you see on the outside may look acceptable, but it's often not what it seems.

The movie was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival and Netflix acquired the distribution rights. Berlinger also directed the series "Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes," so his Bundy knowledge runs deep.

Andy King -- the event planner who offered oral sex in exchange for Evian (lots of it) at the doomed Fyre Festival -- is ready for his close-up ... strictly above the waist.

Andy tells TMZ ... he's received offers from multiple networks for a reality series since his unforgettable scenes in the Netflix 'Fyre' documentary. He says cameras would follow him doing what he does ... hosting major events around the world.

Andy says his show will absolutely focus on the drama and stress involved in putting on huge events -- a la the Fyre Festival -- but will also show the fun side. Presumably when things do NOT implode ... a la Fyre.

As for Fyre villain Billy McFarland, Andy still thinks Billy's heart was in the right place and he's not a bad guy -- he just made some very bad decisions.

Understatement much?

Unlike Billy, Andy says the events on his show will give back to the communities where they take place. Don't get the wrong idea ... he means financially.

5:08 PM PT -- Jerry's attorney, Orin Snyder, tells TMZ, "Jerry has been working in good faith to get to the bottom of this matter. He has asked Fica Frio for evidence to substantiate the allegations. Fica Frio ignored Jerry and instead filed this frivolous lawsuit."

He continued, "Jerry consigned the car to Gooding and Company, an auction house, which is responsible for the sale. Nevertheless, Jerry is willing to do what's right and fair, and we are confident the court will support the need for an outside evaluator to examine the provenance of the car."

Jerry Seinfeld has a hit show involving cars, and now he has a lawsuit involving one.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Jerry auctioned off a 1958 Porsche 356 A 1500 GS/GT Carrera Speedster and the winning bid was a whopping $1.54 million.

The buyer, FICA FRIO Ltd., says the authentication of the vehicle was bogus. What's more ... the buyer is saying Jerry intentionally misrepresented the authenticity of the whip. The suit says in the history file of the Porsche, the person who sold it to Jerry said, "Unfortunately we do not have a lot of information on the 1958 Porsche 356 A 1500 GT Carrera Speedster. We purchased the car from a broker who would not take me to the cars (sic) original location to meet the family that owned it originally."

The buyer took the car to one of the world's foremost historic Porsche dealers who expressed concern about the authenticity, and an investigation revealed it wasn't the real deal. On June 21, 2018, the suit claims Jerry called a rep for the buyer and left a voicemail that said he wanted to "offer my apology for this nuisance and assure you that you will be completely indemnified in full and not have to keep the car and get all your money back."

Porsche built only 151 Carrera Speedsters between 1955 and 1959, and fewer than 90 had the GS/GT trim the buyer thought he was getting.

The buyer says he didn't get his money, and is now suing to rescind the sale and get his money back. He's also suing for punitive damages.

We reached out to Seinfeld ... so far, no word back.

Originally Published -- 3:10 PM PT

Netflix is being sued by the company that carries the torch for Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh -- aka Osho -- who was featured in the hit documentary, "Wild Wild Country."

Osho International Foundation claims in a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, the documentary stole "substantial portion" of Osho's copyrighted works. For instance, the lawsuit claims the first episode alone includes 88 discreet instances of appropriation.

The Netflix documentary chronicles the Rajneeshpuram takeover of a small town in Oregon in the 1980s. The production was a massive hit for the streaming service ... earning 5 nominations for Primetime Emmys, and winning for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series.

The suit claims Osho International gave Netflix a heads up in 2018 of the infringement, but got no response back.

Renewed interest in Ted Bundy has attracted tons of voyeurs to his former Utah residence -- which has become a giant pain in the ass for residents.

A tenant who lives in the 2-story, 5-unit home -- which continues to serve as a boarding house, of sorts -- tells TMZ, foot traffic at the crib has significantly increased since the release of Netflix's 'Ted Bundy Tapes' doc and Zac Efron's Bundy film trailer.

Bundy lived here from 1974-1975 -- and urban legend has it, he might've even brought some of his victims back to the home. We're told Bundy used to stay in Room #2, which has since been relabeled Room #5. The tenant says somebody currently occupies that space.

What's really upsetting ... the barrage of gawkers cropping up in increasing numbers. We're told many simply wanna snap photos of the pad, while others have the audacity to peruse the grounds to eyeball a fire escape he used to climb when he wanted to come and go unnoticed.

Jerry O'Connell wants to play Billy McFarland in the worst way ... and his impression of B.M. makes him more than worthy.

We got Jerry and his wife, Rebecca Romijn, Tuesday at LAX and asked how they'd feel about a scripted reimagining of the "the best party that never happened" hitting the big screen.

Turns out Jerry and Rebecca are Fyre nuts, who've watched both the Hulu and Netflix documentaries.

We talked to McFarland shortly after his would-be music fest came crashing down, and at the time he explained how he and his team tried hard to make it work.

As for whether the models who were involved in promoting the Fyre Fest -- some of whom are still being indirectly roped in to the story, even now -- should feel bad about their role in all this ... Rebecca -- a former model -- actually comes to their defense.

One thing's for sure ... these two definitely know their Fyre Festival history!

Zac Efron starring as Ted Bundy is pissing off a lot of people who think a full-on heartthrob shouldn't be playing a serial killer -- but, one rare survivor of Bundy's killing spree thinks Zac's a perfect fit.

We spoke with Kathy Kleiner Rubin -- who was brutalized by Bundy at Florida State University's Chi Omega house in '78 -- and she tells us she doesn't really mind Efron's "hot take" as Bundy, or the trailer for "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile." It plays more like a fast-paced action flick than a dark portrayal of a serial killer.

Kathy concedes that the movie might treat its subject matter too lightly -- but, what's most important to her is that people realize Ted's true nature: charming and handsome on the outside, and a monster on the inside.

Kathy also has a warning for women everywhere ... BE AWARE!!!

She hopes Zac's Bundy movie and the new Netflix documentary teach people to be wary when dealing with a seemingly trustworthy face.

Welcome to Netflix and chill ... Hollywood edition.

Tons of celebs hit up the streaming giant's SAG Awards after-party Sunday night at the Sunset Tower Hotel in WeHo. Netflix dominated all streaming services, cable and broadcast networks with 15 SAG nominations but only hauled in 2 statues. That didn't stop Netflix from turning up.

Lupita Nyong'o, Rami Malek, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Michael B. Jordan, Susan Kelechi, and Sterling K. Brown were just some of the celebs who made appearances.

"Black Mirror" actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw told cops she's being stalked by a woman in Los Angeles ... and the case took a super dark turn when police found a tracking device under her car.

According to a search warrant obtained by TMZ, the alleged stalker placed a GPS tracker on Gugu's vehicle and has been tailing her around the city for over 2 months.

The details of the case are shocking ... in the docs, investigators say the alleged stalker keeps popping up wherever Gugu goes -- hotels, restaurants, spin classes and even her home.

Even more startling ... the warrant states Gugu's alleged stalker lives on her street.

According to the warrant, Gugu told cops the stalker has been calling her and her boyfriend and then hanging up ... this, in addition to snapping photos of Gugu.

In the docs, Gugu says she's been living in constant fear because she thinks the alleged stalker could show up to her place and become violent.

Awkwafina highly recommends the ways of Marie Kondo if you want to be happier and cleaner ... especially if your place is cluttered with clothes and ... old lotions. Seriously.

We got the "Crazy Rich Asians" star at LAX Thursday ... she told us she's jumped on board the organization train, made popular by the Japanese author's new hit Netflix show, "Tidying Up."

Awkwafina's gone through the method -- even talks to all her clothes now -- and said goodbye to things that no longer bring her joy. She says it's done wonders for her place and her mental space.

The author of "13 Reasons Why" claims he was expelled from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators over false allegations of sexual harassment ... this according to a new lawsuit.

In the suit, obtained by TMZ, book author Jay Asher claims he was kicked out of SCBWI after 7 anonymous women alleged he was using his status to prey upon other female members of the organization and intimidated them into silence, an allegation he says was completely false.

In the docs, Jay claims he was expelled from the society after the allegations of sexual harassment came out, and says the organization never adequately investigated the allegations against him. In the docs, Jay says he believes his accusers were resentful of his success.

Jay is going after SCBWI for damages, and says he thinks the false allegations could hurt his ability to make money as an author of young adult novels.

Skylar Gaertner wanted to be one of the kids solving mysteries in Hawkins, Indiana, but he ended up being the son of a drug dealer in the Lake of the Ozarks ... and he's glad!

We got the "Ozark" star at LAX Tuesday. He plays Jonah Byrde on the show, but tells us that wouldn't be the case if he had not been rejected for another crazy popular Netflix's original series.

Skylar says he actually auditioned for 2 roles on "Stranger Things" -- back when it was called "Montauk" -- but didn't get them.

Silver lining -- he's on another mega-popular show now ... which is also entering its third season.

Ja Rule needs to put his money where his mouth his, and cough up a ton of cash to help clean up some of the mess he created with the infamously doomed Fyre Festival ... so says a restaurant owner in the Bahamas who paid out of her own pocket to feed workers and stranded concertgoers.

Maryann Rolle, the woman who claims she shelled out over $50,000 from her own savings to feed festival workers and fans stranded on Great Exuma, tells us Ja Rule should pay her $100k if the rapper is truly sorry for his role in the disastrous festival.

Maryann went viral after she appeared in Netflix's Fyre Fest documentary, after saying she burned through her savings and was never paid for her services. She started a GoFundMe to recoup some of the funds, and more than $150,000 poured in after people learned just how badly she was stiffed by Ja Rule and Billy McFarland.

Maryann tells us she still needs money to pay her employees and her bills ... so, she wants Ja Rule to throw her six figures for all of the trouble.

Netflix's new 'Black Mirror' movie rips off a popular children's book series and takes it to a dark place, according to the folks behind "Choose Your Own Adventure" ... who've chosen to file a $25 million lawsuit.

Chooseco, the company that owns the 'CYOA' trademark, claims Netflix's 'Bandersnatch' jacked its popular idea without ever getting permission. In the suit, the publisher says it was in negotiations with Netflix to develop a series for years, but they never closed a deal.

Chooseco adds, Netflix deliberately tried to connect with the audience's nostalgia for the popular '80s and '90s 'CYOA' books ... according to the suit. The publisher says it was blatant too, with 'CYOA' being mentioned by name in the first few minutes of 'Bandersnatch.'

If you haven't seen it, 'Bandersnatch' is an interactive experience that allows viewers to choose the direction of the plot, but Chooseco says the choices can take the movie in a direction that includes "references to and depictions of a demonic presence, violent fighting, drug use, murder, mutilation of a corpse, decapitation, and other upsetting imagery."

The publisher says these dark and violent themes are way too mature for the target audience of its book series ... so the association with this "grim content" tarnishes its brand.

Malik Henry -- the star of "Last Chance U" -- is getting one more shot to play FBS football .. 'cause the QB is walking on at Nevada this season -- his new head coach just announced.

Henry -- a top high school recruit in 2016 who signed with Florida State -- flamed out with the Noles ... and transferred to Independence Community College in Kansas just months later.

Malik became a star at the school -- mostly for the drama that surrounded him on Season 3 of Netflix's uber-popular "Last Chance U" show.

He was often portrayed as the bad guy ... feuding with coaches and teammates and even being described by coach Jason Brown at one point as, "f*cking borderline being kicked out any minute."

Malik stuck with the school for two seasons ... but it appears his time at the program and on the show has ended ... 'cause Wolfpack coach Jay Norvell says Malik's joining the squad.

"He spent some time at junior college and probably has one last shot to get his career corrected and we're going to give that," Norvell told Nevada Sports Net.

"He needs a coaching staff that will love him and teach him how to do things the right way and in a system he can grow and develop, and that's something we feel like we have here at Nevada."

Playing time for Malik ain't gonna be easy ... Nevada's got a crowded and talented QB room -- but Henry does have two seasons to play at his new school.

Kevin Spacey appeared in a Nantucket court to face the charge of felony indecent assault ... and interestingly he did not enter a plea.

Spacey has said in legal docs he was pleading not guilty, but the judge never asked him to enter a plea.

Spacey was ordered not to have any contact with the alleged victim or his family.

The actor's lawyer has said there are texts between the alleged victim and his girlfriend at the time of the incident and later as well. The alleged victim told cops his girlfriend didn't believe he was being assaulted by Spacey and he sent her a very short Snapchat video, showing a hand on clothes but not genitals

Spacey's lawyer asked the judge to preserve texts and cellphone records between the alleged victim and his girlfriend from July 7, 2016 to the present. Spacey's lawyer said he believes those texts were "likely exculpatory" -- translation, proof that Spacey didn't assault the then 18-year-old at a Nantucket bar.

His legal team requested he be allowed to skip the hearing, arguing it would "amplify the negative publicity already generated in connection with the case." The judge shot him down, though, and ordered Spacey to get his ass to court to enter his plea in person.

Spacey's lawyer claims the actor's contact with the 18-year-old was consensual, pointing to what he claims was 3-minutes of touching without the young man ever objecting.