TV

Zendaya and "Euphoria" director Sam Levinson are gearing up to finally shoot the show's long-delayed third season -- but a while back, he was reportedly blaming her for holding up production.

Sam, who's also the head writer and creator, took issue with Zendaya focusing on her movie career more than the hit HBO series, at least according to a source close to Sam who told THR ... "It was all about her."

Sounds like there was bad blood between them for a bit, because Zendaya's side of the story is Sam should get some blame, too, because he was busy working on another HBO show, "The Idol."

Tom Kenny -- the voice behind "SpongeBob SquarePants" -- is hitting the iconic yellow sponge with a new diagnosis ... autism.

The veteran performer, who's played SB for years, made an appearance at a Comic Con event in Detroit ... where he took questions from dedicated fans about the beloved Nickelodeon character ... and doubled down on a theory that SpongeBob is neurodivergent.

As Tom told the crowd at the convention ... SpongeBob is "kind of on the spectrum," going as far as to call the cartoon character autistic.

Lil Rel Howery is proudly showing off his body transformation -- he's looking a lot slimmer and fitter, and some folks think he's getting a helping hand from a popular drug.

The comedian is being hounded by allegations he's using one of the weight loss drugs -- like Ozempic or Wegovy -- which are super popular these days, especially among celebs looking to shed pounds.

For his part, Lil Rel says his new look is all from diet and exercise -- specifically, he's chalking it up to 5 years of physical, mental and spiritual work on himself.

Esta TerBlanche left behind a bunch of animals -- including some very unique pets -- when she died last week, and they had to be collected by a third party ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us cops got called to the "All My Children" star's home last week when her assistant went to her house to check on her because she hadn't heard from Esta ... who had just returned to the States from a trip overseas.

Our sources say the assistant found Esta Friday on the ground in her bathroom, called 911 and first responders pronounced her dead on the scene.

Lisa Kudrow isn't looking back fondly at her entire experience on "Friends" ... revealing the one thing that really bugged her during the taping of the celebrated sitcom.

The actress was on Conan O'Brien's podcast when she clarified a confession previously made by her "Friends" costar, Jennifer Aniston ... that she was never a fan of the live studio audience.

As Lisa put it ... the audience would laugh for too long at a joke -- even if it wasn't entirely funny. Being a performer, this thoroughly annoyed LK, as she thought it wasn't an honest response to what she and her costars -- Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer -- were doing on the sound stage.

Karen Read is the Massachusetts woman accused of her police officer boyfriend's death ... and after a hung jury prompted a mistrial, it's fair to wonder if she was being framed.

TMZ Studios' new series, "Strange & Suspicious," dives into weird and unexplained stories -- and here, we're looking into the possibility Karen is getting blamed for a murder she didn't commit.

Remember ... she's accused of drunkenly running over John O'Keefe.

Ana Navarro is putting George Clooney on blast after he called on President Biden to exit the election ... demanding the actor now show up for the Democratic Party in a big way.

Check it out, the political strategist sounded off on the A-lister during Monday's episode of "The View," where they discussed Biden's historic decision. Ana said she was mad, on behalf of Biden, as many of his friends dragged him for weeks and essentially forced his hand.

Specifically, she called out the donors who ran their mouths about Biden leading up to his exit ... and so, Ana said these people should thank POTUS by writing the party "a big check."

Autumn Crittendon of "16 & Pregnant" fame has died -- and it sounds like there were some health problems her family was aware of ... TMZ has learned.

The MTV star's sister broke the news on Facebook Sunday -- penning a heartfelt message to her late sibling ... which has since been deleted. However, a source with direct knowledge has given us a bit more insight into what happened.

We're told Autumn passed away Saturday at a home she was living at with her kids, her mom and her stepdad in Henrico County, Virginia. Our sources say her mother and stepfather found her unresponsive in her bedroom, after a friend notified them that something was wrong. Paramedics then arrived and attempted to render CPR.

Kim Kardashian is truly turning life into art in her latest acting project ... because we've learned she's playing the lawyer who handled 2 of her high-profile divorces.

As we reported, Kim is starring in Ryan Murphy's new Hulu project, "All's Fair." Kim is playing a divorce lawyer at an all-female L.A. law firm.

We knew her character was inspired by famed Disso Queen Laura Wasser, but now we know her character actually IS LW.

7:16 AM PT -- Montel Williams just responded to our story, and he's now clarifying ... he'll vote for whoever can beat Donald Trump in November. If Dems decide that person should be Kamala Harris -- it sounds like he's prepared to back her up.

He also pointed out that he retweeted Gov. Moore's own endorsement of Kamala -- so on its face, it appears he is in fact endorsing her.

Montel Williams didn't endorse Kamala Harris for President after Joe Biden dropped out -- this even though they dated ... something he doesn't wanna talk about with the media.

"Parks and Rec" star Aubrey Plaza entered WNBA All-Star Weekend with two healthy knees ... but she left it with just one after an unfortunate mishap amid all the festivities.

According to the All-Star Game's broadcaster, Ryan Ruocco, Plaza suffered a torn ACL while playing in a spirited game of "Knockout" at the Phoenix Mercury's practice facility just hours before Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and A'ja Wilson tipped off their Team WNBA vs. Team USA exhibition clash.

Plaza still somehow mustered up the strength to catch the game at the Footprint Center ... although she needed an ice pack and a crutch to get through the night.

"The Simpsons" writer Al Jean is boasting Kamala Harris' sudden emergence as the likely Democrat nominee for Prez is the latest in a string of pretty nutty predictions.

On Sunday, Al Jean posted on X ... showing a side-by-side pic of Lisa Simpson in a Kamala-like outfit from a 2021 episode, writing "@TheSimpsons "prediction" I'm proud to be a part of."

The 2021 episode, "Bart to the Future," shows Lisa becoming president -- the same year KH was sworn in as the first female VP of the United States.

Serial killers limit the risk of capture by drifting from place to place and killing utter strangers ... so, what better profession to join than long-haul truck driving?

TMZ Studios' new show "Strange & Suspicious" dives into weird and sinister stories ... and, this time the team's breaking down the attraction of truck driving to those who hunt their fellow humans.

The "Strange & Suspicious" squad discusses the more than 400 murders authorities believe have been committed by truckers in the U.S.A. ... pointing out prostitute subculture and mental health issues truckers face contribute to the urge to kill for the predisposed.

Sean Kanan's been kicking it in the 'Karate Kid' universe for 35 years, and isn’t about to slow down -- 'cause he's got his ear to the ground with all the buzz around a potential "Cobra Kai" spin-off.

We caught up with Sean in West Hollywood, and the actor -- famous for playing villainous Mike Barnes in 1989’s "The Karate Kid Part III" -- tells us he's totally on board with a streaming spin-off if it gets the green light.

Sean reprised his role in 'CK' season 6, which just dropped, and he tells us he's been loving the chance to reconnect with the OG 'Karate Kid' crew, including Ralph Macchio and Billy Zabka.

Television host Damien Fahey was 22 years old when he shot to stardom hosting the afternoon MTV video countdown show "Total Request Live" after Carson Daly stepped down back in 2002.

He worked alongside popular and fellow 'TRL' hosts Vanessa Lachey and Lala Anthony and interviewed big celebs like Madonna and Vanessa Carlton!

While his 'TRL' run came to an end in 2008, his career continued to soar ... In 2009, he hosted "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here" featuring controversial celebs at the time, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt.

Joe Biden dropping out of the 2024 presidential election made waves across the country ... and Hollywood was no exception -- with stars sharing their thoughts on social media.

Numerous bold-faced names posted their reactions to JB stepping down this morning -- and, while some thanked the prez for his service, others are slamming his announcement and calling on him to resign

Barbra Streisand came out quickly after the news ... thanking Biden for his significant achievements in his one term as president -- while Cardi B gloated about how she called this happening weeks ago.