Netflix

Things are getting tenser than a lethal game of Red Light, Green Light -- "Squid Game" creator Hwang Dong-hyuk heard LeBron James bashing the show's ending loud and clear ... and fired back by clowning his panned 'Space Jam' movie!!

James was heavily critical of the Netflix series' final scene ... discussing his dissatisfaction with Anthony Davis in front of reporters after a preseason game earlier this month (don't worry, we won't spoil it here ... but seriously, why haven't you watched yet?!?)

Hwang was asked about James' review in a recent interview with The Guardian ... and his response is clearly dissing the King's recent "Space Jam: A New Legacy" flick, which currently has a 26% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

"Have you seen Space Jam 2?" Hwang asked in response to James' comments.

"LeBron James is cool and can say what he wants. I respect that. I'm very thankful he watched the whole series."

So, will Hwang roll out an alternate ending to appease James' critique??? Don't hold your breath.

"But I wouldn't change my ending," he added. "That's my ending. If he has his own ending that would satisfy him, maybe he could make his own sequel. I'll check it out and maybe send him a message saying, 'I liked your whole show, except the ending.'"

Dave Chappelle has finally spoken for himself on his ongoing Netflix controversy -- saying he is, indeed, down to meet with members of the transgender community and hear 'em out ... but he has a few conditions.

The comedian was in Nashville over the weekend for a new show ... where a ton of his comic buddies opened for him, including Jeff Ross, Donnell Rawlings, Tom Segura and Joe Rogan. Eventually, Dave himself came out and addressed the elephant in the room.

According to eyewitnesses, he started his set with a "statement" to those he'd offended with "The Closer," jokingly pulling out a piece of paper and reading ... "F*** y'all, n****s!"

The jokes kept flying from there, with DC saying he was in so much trouble that he couldn't even get DaBaby on the phone. He asked the audience, what do you call a Black trans person in the U.S.?

The response ... "A n***a!" Dave also joked his wife feared for his safety, and had bought him a handgun which had a pearl handle -- and he was worried that if he used it, someone's last words to him would be, "f****t!" So, he's hardly backing off any LGBTQ content.

On a more serious note, Dave said there'd been a lot of interest in his untitled documentary from film festivals -- which he recently screened at the Hollywood Bowl -- just as the swirling controversy over his new Netflix special, "The Closer" began. But now, he says he's being dropped from those same festivals. Dave shouted out Netflix for standing firm, and not taking down the special.

Dave went on to note that if he's canceled, there's a ton of people who clearly believe otherwise ... pointing out the sold-out show at Bridgestone Arena. Then, he laid out his terms for meeting with Netflix employees from the LGBTQ community who've been protesting.

One, he says whoever talks to him has to watch the special from start to finish; two, it has to be a time and place of his choosing; and three, they must admit Hannah Gadsby isn't funny.

That last condition is a clap back at the Australian comedian who jabbed at Dave's comedy a couple weeks ago, and ripped into Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos.

DC also says even though film festivals are abandoning him ... he's going to air his documentary film in 10 cities across America.

Bill Maher unsurprisingly leaned in hard Friday night, defending Dave Chappelle, saying embracing Dave's latest Netflix special does not make someone transphobic.

The "Real Time" host was jawboning with Andrew Yang and NYT opinion writer John McWhorter, and on this one, all 3 were in lockstep ... all saying they support the LGBTQ community but also standing firm on Dave's right of commentary.

Maher's central point -- there is not one true opinion about anything, and he referenced the view of one of those outraged by Chappelle ... someone who said there are not two sides to this controversy.

Maher didn't mention Chappelle said he's open to having a conversation with members of the trans community to hear them out. The reality is this ... some people in the trans community are not only hurt by Chappelle's "The Closer" ... they believe it engenders hatred and even violence.

Yang chimed in with this ... it's a comedian's job to entertain and to make us think, but goes on to suggest no one believes the role of a comedian is to tell us what and how to think. Some members of the trans community, however, say whether a comedian tells people what to think or not ... they still have an influence.

The centerpiece of the discussion is about people on both sides feeling like there's only one side to any argument. McWhorter, who wrote the book, 'Woke Racism,' suggests this type of thinking has become a religion of intolerance. He also says believing in the notion of absolute right or wrong is simplistic, childlike thinking.

The same thing that's hurt Kate Beckinsale's career is helping Ross Butler's take off in Hollywood, and that thing is ... brain power!!! Lots of it.

We got the "13 Reasons Why" and "Riverdale" star Thursday at LAX, and considering his collegiate history, he's the perfect person to address Kate's recent reveal about her high IQ.

ICYMI ... KB told Howard Stern her intelligence has hurt her career. She wasn't specific about why, but added that doctors have said she'd be much happier if she were less brilliant.

Well, Ross -- who studied biomolecular and chemical engineering -- says he's had a much different experience. Check out his explanation for why his smarts are making him a better actor. BTW, it's not like he's playing brilliant scientists on camera.

The heartthrob also opened up about another hot topic ... his dancing session with "Outer Banks" star Madelyn Cline! Y'know, the one that had everyone thinking she'd broken up with her costar Chase Stokes?

Dave Chappelle's camp says no one from Netflix has approached Chapelle or his team about setting up a meeting or conversation ... which is the opposite of what the woman who organized the Netflix walkout claims.

The comedian's rep tells TMZ ... Dave would be open to dialogue if folks from Netflix actually reach out to him for a discussion.

As we reported ... Ashlee Marie Preston says she invited Dave to come to the table to talk about the damage she and others believe he's inflicted on the LGBTQ+ community, but she said, "Dave chose not to show up."

Dave's camp tells us they're unsure why Ashlee is making those claims ... they say she NEVER reached out to him. He's not against open dialogue with any group, as he points out in his Netflix special jokes.

Dave also makes this point in his special ... empathy should go both ways and we should get away from cancel culture ... so a sit down would make sense.

Jon Stewart has a message for everyone pissed off at Dave Chappelle -- he's asking them to pay attention to what's in his friend's heart ... as much as what comes out of his mouth.

We got Jon as he was leaving Capitol Hill, and asked for his take on the beef between Chappelle and Netflix employees who staged a walkout Wednesday. Jon thinks there's clearly been a miscommunication, and seemed confident both sides will squash the feud ... once they start talking.

The reason he's confident? Well, Jon -- who, ICYMI, is a close friend of Dave's -- says, "I know his intention is never hurtful. He's not that kinda person."

TMZ broke the story ... Dave's team says he's ready and willing to sit down with Netflix employees who are protesting their company continuing to stream "The Closer," Dave's latest standup special. One of those employees, Ashlee Marie Preston, claimed Dave had rejected a meeting ... but Dave's camp says he's totally down for it.

Speaking of people with good intentions ... Jon was in D.C. to continue lobbying lawmakers to approve medical benefits for military veterans who were exposed to toxic burn pits.

Dave Chappelle's living it up, seemingly without a concern, 'cause here he is walking out of a packed London nightclub ... the same day Netflix employees walked out of work to protest him.

The comedian hit up the super exclusive Annabel's nightclub Wednesday night ... partying at the members-only spot while the controversy over his latest Netflix special kept swirling back home

Safe to say, Dave doesn't look like he's feeling the heat from across the pond.

As we reported, Netflix HQ was the scene of a mass protest Wednesday, when employees staged a walkout to show displeasure with the CEO's decision to keep streaming Dave's special, "The Closer."

There's been a ton of backlash over Dave's LGBTQ+ jokes, but so far, he doesn't seem bothered.

Ashlee Marie Preston, who helped organize the Netflix walkout, says she's invited Dave to have a conversation about the harm she and others believe he's inflicted onto the LGBTQ+ community, but claims he's ghosted them.

Leslie Jordan is visibly conflicted over the conflict raging at Netflix over Dave Chappelle's latest special.

We got Leslie Wednesday at Reagan National Airport in D.C., and he said right out of the gate he has conflicting loyalties ... he's both a comedian and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ+ community.

Leslie feels good comedy must have a subversive element, but at the same time, it shouldn't be designed to hurt people's feelings.

You see his mind at work as he navigates the controversy. He ultimately concludes Chappelle crossed the line because of the impact it had on the trans community ... a community that has been misunderstood and marginalized for decades.

As we reported, there was a walkout over at Netflix Wednesday to protest the CEO's decision to keep Chappelle's special on the menu.

Netflix's top dog is apologizing for how his words about the Dave Chappelle special may have come across to some employees -- but he's not changing his actual stance.

Ted Sarandos gave some new thoughts on the drama over at his company that's been brewing for 2 weeks now -- confessing he "screwed up" in his initial email to Netflix staffers (which leaked), where he defended "The Closer," while also downplaying transphobic concerns.

The guy says he should've led those emails with humanity first, and acknowledged that there were a group of people that were hurting over the sheer nature of Dave's stand-up.

As far as what Sarandos says he might change in hindsight, he says he probably would've mentioned that content can, in fact, have real-world impact ... be it bad or good, something he seemed to dismiss by analogizing Chappelle's special to first-person shooter games.

That said, he's standing firm on his main point -- namely, that this special, specifically, does NOT fall under hate speech, does NOT cause real-world harm ... and won't be taken down. So, essentially, Ted's apologizing for how he relayed that sentiment ... not the sentiment itself.

He noted their business has to appeal to a variety of customers with differing tastes and views than some of his employees -- and that's just something they'll have to accept.

Sarandos also said content that literally has a call to action to cause harm or remove protections from a certain protected group would cross the line -- but he simply feels Dave didn't cross that with 'Closer' ... even if some at Netflix feel differently.

There are certainly a group who are still riled up over this -- because there's an employee walkout happening Wednesday that's in direct protest to Netflix's decision to keep it up.

It was as inevitable as snow in winter ... "Saturday Night Live" did a sketch Saturday night on Netflix's hit show, "Squid Games."

Pete Davidson and guest host Rami Malek did the honors, with a country-type song about the phenomenon.

The song was a takeoff on Branchez & Big Wet's hit, "Turn Up On the Weekend," and it was pretty hilarious. It went like this ... the 2 guys were in a deep financial hole, so they signed up for the game.

They played the usual kids games, like Red Light Green Light, and the results were fatal for some.

One of the lyrics ... “There’s a robot girl who caught me running, better duck behind the nearest guy.” At one point Pete's face is splattered with blood as he keeps singing.

There's a really funny reference to the confusion over Korean cash and the prize money.

Davidson boasts in song how he killed all of his friends to make a killing in the game. Pete returns to the U.S. triumphant and flush with cash ... which he loses on a really bad bet.  Sorry NY Jets, but it was super funny!

Pete goes back to Korea for more, but this time things don't work out as well.

Jeff Lowe is taking his show on the road, but not voluntarily -- he's being evicted from his "Tiger King" Park, and now has to set up shop in a new location.

According to new legal docs obtained by TMZ ... the owner of the park went after Jeff claiming he owes more than $10,000 in unpaid rent and other damages. Court documents show the judge ruled Jeff had to fork over $10,000 and vacate the premises by Oct. 22 at noon.

Our sources tell us Jeff's wife, Lauren, showed up to court and said Jeff was taking care of their sick child ... so she asked for an additional 30 days before the eviction, but that request was denied.

Jeff tells TMZ ... he is going to move the zoo to a new, still to be determined, location.

Hannah Gadsby just went scorched Earth on Netflix's honcho and Dave Chappelle over "The Closer," his controversial stand-up special.

The Australian comedian teed off on Ted Sarandos, the streaming giant's co-CEO, after he brought her name into the conversation about how Netflix is "working hard to ensure marginalized communities aren't defined by a single story."

Sarandos said, "So we have 'Sex Education,' 'Orange Is The New Black,' 'Control Z,' Hannah Gadsby and Dave Chappelle all on Netflix. Key to this is increasing diversity on the content team itself."

Hannah's reaction to Ted is basically ... keep my name outta your mouth, and she's hurling a few jabs at Dave too. Hannah says, "Hey Ted Sarandos! Just a quick note to let you know that I would prefer if you didn’t drag my name into your mess. Now I have to deal with even more of the hate and anger that Dave Chappelle’s fans like to unleash on me every time Dave gets 20 million dollars to process his emotionally stunted partial world view."

Hannah gained a lot of popularity following her 2018 Netflix specials, "Nanette" and "Douglas" ... but clearly didn't get Chappelle dough.

Hannah adds, "You didn’t pay me nearly enough to deal with the real world consequences of the hate speech dog whistling you refuse to acknowledge, Ted. F**k you and your amoral algorithm cult…I do s**ts with more back bone than you. That’s just a joke! I definitely didn’t cross a line because you just told the world there isn’t one."

Hannah also noted -- for Chappelle fans, we presume -- that she's watched all of "The Closer" and added, "Leave me alone."

The scathing criticism comes after Sarandos said Netflix wasn't pulling Chappelle's special from the platform because its transphobic shots, don't "directly translate to real-world harm."

A UFC champ is no match for Halle Berry -- at least that's how it looks in the trailer for the actress' new UFC flick, where she goes head-to-head against Valentina Shevchenko ... and beats her face in!!

The Academy Award winner has been working on her Netflix project, "Bruised," for years -- teaming up with big fighters like Brian Ortega and training at Cris Cyborg's gym in Huntington Beach to prepare for the role.

Now, the first glimpse of the movie has been released -- and it's pretty badass.

FYI -- Berry plays a fighter aiming to make a comeback in the sport while battling her own demons ... all while raising her young son.

Shevchenko plays Berry's rival fighter in the movie ... and the trailer shows their characters facing off in the Octagon for a bout.

Berry looks like the real deal in the clip ... and remember, she claimed she broke several bones after taking shots from "Bullet" while filming the flick.

"She had to throw some real kicks and I had to really take them and that really broke some bones," Berry said on "The Tonight Show."

"She’s a beast but I couldn’t have asked for a better teacher, a better scene mate, a better fight partner."

"Squid Game" is the No. 1 show on Netflix in 90 different countries ... but North Korea's blasting it as a "sad reality of a beastly South Korean society."

The North Korean propaganda website, Arirang Meari, chimed in with its review of the survival-game drama ... claiming the show "gained popularity because it exposes the reality of South Korean capitalist culture."

The site went on to claim the show exposes "a world where only money matters -- a hell-like horror." The site views South Korea's capitalist culture as a place where "corruption and immoral scoundrels are commonplace."

The propaganda site also reportedly cited unnamed South Korean film critics saying the series shows an "unequal society where moneyless people are treated like chess pieces for the rich."

The 9-episode thriller pits cash-strapped contestants playing childhood games with deadly consequences ... and the last person standing taking home a pot worth $38 million.

The propaganda site is pissed about the plotline saying, "It is said that it makes people realize the sad reality of the beastly South Korean society in which human beings are driven into extreme competition and their humanity is being wiped out."

Netflix dropped "Squid Game" in September and it's the streamer's most successful show ever. BTW, North Korea levies stiff fines, and even prison, to anyone caught watching South Korean content. That the outlet's not a fan of the show should be no surprise.

Carole Baskin hasn't been this astonished since Joe Exotic ran for president -- she can't figure out how Kate McKinnon copycatted her so perfectly for the upcoming Peacock series.

Carole tells TMZ ... she was stunned to see the 'SNL' star's transformation for "Joe Exotic" ... the dramatic series based off the Wondery podcast with the same title. As you know by now, Joe and Carole have major beef, to put it lightly.

He's accused her of feeding her 2nd husband, Don Lewis, to a tiger.

Anyway, she's stunned because producers nailed the wardrobe -- Carole says she has almost exactly the same outfit as the one Kate's wearing in a new photo from the set. Even Kate's necklace is spot on, which surprises Carole because she never wore that piece of jewelry on the Netflix docuseries.

Her only explanation for Kate's doppelganger act is sooo Baskin. Carole says Kate must be channeling her inner cat lady to be rocking those flats, jeans, sunglasses, purse and messy hair. Hell, they're even using the same 2012 Toyota pickup CB drives.

BTW, Carole says Kyle MacLachlan also did a good job portraying her current husband, Howard -- but it's not identical. She says Howard never wears short-sleeve button-up shirts nor a wedding ring, but she still approves.

Carole says she heard the series will explore her relationship with Howard -- but she's in the dark when it comes to how her battles with Joe will play out on the show.

Remember, she's never actually spoken to him in real life, so she hopes whatever the writers come up with is based on facts.

Dave Chappelle cracking jokes over the LGBTQ+ community is fair game, and should NOT be censored in the slightest -- so says a transgender comedian, who's backing the dude.

Flame Monroe -- a Black trans comic -- tells TMZ she's not in favor of taking Dave's new Netflix special, "The Closer," off the service ... because she says in the world of comedy, nothing is off-limits -- and she simply doesn't believe in censoring standups.

Watch her explanation here, because it's very interesting. Obviously, Flame has a multi-dimensional perspective to offer -- from race to gender identity, and also her chosen craft -- and the one she feels most strongly about is a comic's right to joke freely.

That jibes with what Damon Wayans told us just the other day on this whole debate. He, too, seemed more focused on the comedy side of things ... rather than the LGBT vs. Black comparisons Dave raised in the special.

Flame goes further ... praising Dave as "great," while also saying she believes he's brought people together in a way -- to have a much-needed dialogue.

Bottom line ... Flame seems to be OK with Dave using Netflix's platform to speak his mind -- and clearly believes that outweighs the actual inflammatory content itself.