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Carmen Electra made a massive life change this past week -- filing to ditch her birth name to formally go by her long-known stage name ... and now we know exactly why.

Sources close to the "Baywatch" star tell TMZ ... there's really no big reason behind the decision -- we're told it's just something she's been thinking about for a while and finally took the plunge, since there's no better time than the New Year to start fresh.

We should note, she hasn't gone by her birth name -- Tara Leigh Patrick -- in decades.

TMZ obtained the legal docs earlier this week ... revealing she wants to formally change her name to "Carmen Electra" ... so looks like this is officially goodbye to Tara! It's also just formalizing what everyone has known her as for decades now.

Fun fact -- CE didn't come up with the zippy stage name herself -- it was actually birthed as a result of the late icon, Prince ... who bestowed the name upon her when she auditioned to be part of an all-girl group he was assembling in the early '90s.

Unfortunately, she didn't make the cut ... but she went on to make a splash on TV and elsewhere, and she kept the cool moniker for herself.

Jason Patric's brother was struck and killed by a bus this week in New Jersey ... TMZ has confirmed.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Jordan Miller -- who's a year younger than Jason -- was walking across the street in Fort Lee Wednesday afternoon, when a NJ Transit bus barreled into him while making a left turn, according to a preliminary police account.

We're told Jordan was rushed to a local hospital, where he was initially listed in serious condition, but then took a turn for the worse and was later pronounced dead.

Fort Lee PD detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident to determine if it was an accident or a crime. Jordan was a customer service rep at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan. A Port Authority rep confirmed to us Jordan is, in fact, the sibling of Jason ... who apparently was friendly with folks in the agency.

As you probably know, Jason is a big-time Hollywood actor with a laundry list of film credits -- including "The Lost Boys," "Sleepers," "Geronimo: An American Legend," "Your Friends & Neighbors," "Narc," "The Losers," "The Alamo," and "Speed 2: Cruise Control." Jason has also appeared on some TV shows, such as "Entourage" and "Saturday Night Live" as host.

We reached out to Jason's camp ... they had no comment. Jordan was 56.

Ava DuVernay's just like the rest of us ... thrilled that Angela Bassett's finally bagged an Oscar at the Governors Awards, but she's also clarifying it's its own thing -- separate from an Academy Award at the big show.

TMZ got the director out in NYC, where she made the distinction between the Governors Awards and the prestigious, world-renowned Academy Awards coming up in 2 months ... where bagging a shiny gold statuette is the pinnacle of every actor's career.

Ava says it was high time for the Academy to honor Angela's body of work. Of course, she's also been nominated for 2 acting Oscars -- Best Actress for 1993's "What's Love Got To Do With It" and Best Supporting Actress for 2022's 'Wakanda Forever' -- but has yet to win one.

With that said, Ava -- who's one of the Academy Governors herself -- was thrilled to witness Angela get this well-deserved recognition ... and made it clear the Governors Award and Academy Awards are separate entities.

She also raves about getting to watch Ms. Bassett do her thing, and was especially inspired by her acceptance speech.

As for Angela ... she was stoked to be highlighted -- urging fellow Black actresses to think of who their ancestors intended them to be ... telling them to remain courageous.

She also paid tribute to the empowered women she's represented in her roles -- real queens like Tina Turner, Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King ... and, of course, Wakanda's fictional Queen Ramonda.

Mia Farrow's younger sister, Tisa Farrow -- who acted in movies in the '70s -- has died.

Her older sibling just announced her death Friday ... with Mia saying on Instagram that Tisa passed unexpectedly just a couple days prior on Wednesday, "apparently in her sleep." She adds, "If there is a Heaven, undoubtedly my beautiful sister Tisa is being welcomed there. She was the best of us - i have never met a more generous and loving person."

Mia goes on to say, the family at large is going through a hard time in light of this sad news.

Tisa used to be in showbiz back in the 1970s, but didn't nearly work as much as Mia -- and she certainly wasn't as famous either. Tisa was a teenager when she started acting in Hollywood, making her film debut way back in 1970 in "Homer," a hippie counterculture flick.

Overall, Tisa had 15 acting credits ... including a starring role in the 1979 horror film, "Zombie." She also starred in 1978's "Fingers" and made an appearance in the 1979 Woody Allen picture "Manhattan" ... right before Woody began his relationship with Mia.

While Mia was blowing up in her career way back when, she was actually pretty close to Tisa -- there's photos of them hobnobbing together in and around Hollywood as young, aspiring actresses.

Tisa quit Hollywood in 1980 and went to Vermont to be a nurse. She was 72.

Julia Roberts is proud of her G-rated career, and says NOT getting naked on camera -- ever in her career, mind you -- sounds like a choice to her.

The Oscar winner says she's opted to represent herself as a woman by not stripping down for her roles, and being physically vulnerable -- although, she's quick to say she's not shading other women who decide to do it.

Julia told Vogue UK it's just basically a deliberate decision ... as she put it, "choosing not to do something as opposed to doing something."

What makes that path interesting is that she has starred in some sexually explicit movies, such as Mike Nichols' "Closer" ... and, of course, her most famous/beloved role is as a prostitute! Albeit, a prostitute in a Disney movie.

Speaking of the biz in Hollywood ... she tells the publication it's totally changed since she started out -- everything seems too cluttered now, and being famous looks exhausting, she says.

The suit Nicole Kidman wore in her memorable AMC ad is heading to the auction block ... and heartbreak's gonna feel real good for whoever gets an outfit like this.

Nicole's grey, pin-striped Michael Kors suit is a part of Sotheby's new "Visions of America" series, and is expected to fetch $5-10k ... that's a whole lotta popcorn.

The iconic fit is known by AMC theatergoers everywhere for being pretty dazzling -- just like the images on a huge silver screen, to quote the ad that plays before every flick in the chain's theaters.

Nicole's ad quickly gained a cult following, debuting as theaters opened after the pandemic shut it all down ... and fans today are reciting her lines, cheering, and even saluting the actress when she shows up.

It's spawned a bunch of (unofficial) merch like shirts, pins, hats, bumper stickers, and more -- all referencing Nicole's brief time on the screen.

Her ad also has been getting the true parody treatment -- with the 'SNL' cast and even the promotion team behind "Saw" getting in on the fun. Also, it's just become a pop culture phenomenon in general ... people recite this thing when they go to AMC theaters now.

Amy Sedaris ended up on the floor at the National Board of Review Awards Gala, but the actress/comedian did what she does best ... and turned the fall into some comedic gold.

Amy was at the NYC event Thursday night, presenting Paul Giamatti with the award for Best Actor for his work in "The Holdovers" -- but the excitement turned into a bit of panic when she took a tumble while walking away from the podium.

Paul quickly rushed over to help the "Elf" actress, but it must not have hurt too bad, at least at the moment ... because she jokingly stayed flat on the floor while Paul returned to his speech, getting a big laugh from the star-studded crowd.

The NBR's Instagram page even poked light-hearted fun at Amy's fall -- sharing another angle of her on the floor next to Paul, writing, "Paul Giamatti literally floored presenter Amy Sedaris with his nuanced comic performance." Well played, NBR.

As for the wins, Lily Gladstone and Martin Scorsese took home Best Actress and Best Director awards for "Killers of the Flower Moon," Mark Ruffalo won Best Supporting Actor for "Poor Things," Bradley Cooper was bestowed the NBR Icon award, and Paul's costar Da'Vine Joy Randolph went home with the Best Supporting Actress award.

Other big names in attendance were Michael J. Fox, Zac Efron, Elizabeth Olsen, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Ethan Hawke, Daniel Day-Lewis and many more.

Tom Cruise can apparently have it all in showbiz -- evidenced in the fact he's developing yet another sequel with Paramount ... this right after signing a massive deal with a rival studio.

The movie star is reportedly working on "Top Gun 3" with the mountain and star crew -- and word is, it's in the early stages at the moment ... with a script being written by 'TG: Maverick' screenwriter Ehren Kruger, and Miles Teller and Glen Powell expected to return.

While we're just hearing about a new 'Top Gun' now, THR reports it's quietly been in development since Fall -- this, of course, on the heels of the huge box office hit from '22.

Now, the larger context here is that just a few days ago ... Tom shook hands with none other than Warner Bros.' chief, David Zaslav, in a big announcement that saw him being brought in as a key producer for several franchise films over at the water tower lot in Burbank.

No word on a dollar-amount figure for Tom's services here -- but he basically agreed to help develop and star in a handful of blockbuster films for WB over the next several years ... and they're even giving him his own office there at their HQ.

On its face, it sounded like he was fleeing Paramount -- a studio he's been tied to forever now ... this after reported rifts in their working relationship of late with the newest regime.

With this 'TG' news, though, it's pretty clear Tom can work with who he pleases and dip his toe into multiple ponds in Hollywood. As many have noted, the WB deal ain't exclusive.

Gary Busey has that dog in him ... as in, he's pissing in public without a care in the world.

The veteran eccentric actor was spotted pulling down his sweatpants and relieving himself Thursday out in Malibu ... urinating on a bush along a wall near a newsstand, and certainly not trying to keep it low-key. Unclear where exactly he's at -- looks like a lot of some sort.

Gary apparently felt a tingle below the belt and had no other choice but to rock a whizz at that instant ... 'cause that's exactly what he did. He even looked around a bit, but there was no shame in his game -- seriously, just look at that impish smile he's got on here.

The pee-pee seen around the world will only add to Gary's many memorable Malibu moments ... the 79-year-old is developing a bit of a reputation of late as a bit of a wild man around those parts.

Remember ... back in September, Gary was accused of a hit-and-run. A woman claimed he hit her car in a Malibu parking lot and she chased him down only for Gary to blow her off and drive away.

Gary didn't face any charges for the car incident ... and it will be interesting to see if there are any consequences for this very public bathroom break. Feels like if no one caught him in the act right then and there, he might be fine in this instance. Still ... yeesh 😬.

Tina Fey's been trying to downplay the possibility of any major cameos from any of the old "Mean Girls" stars in the rebooted musical -- but unfortunately ... the cat's outta the bag.

!!MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD ... DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT IT RUINED!!

The new "Mean Girls" hits theaters this Friday here in the States, but a clip circulating online that appears to show a Spanish-dubbed version of the movie -- which has already been released abroad, including in Europe -- is letting fans know early who's back from the past.

As it turns out ... it's Lindsay Lohan, go figure. Indeed, Cady Heron herself is in the new one.

The scene from the movie that's already leaked shows some kind of academic decathlon between students, including the new main character -- played by Angourie Rice. As they're reciting lines/singing ... you can see LiLo serving as the moderator of the contest.

So, she's not reprising her old role, per se, but she does pop up in a fun, quick moment. LiLo also appears to have some dialogue ... commenting on how this feels familiar. Of course, it's all a callback to another big scene from the OG -- aka, "The limit does not exist!"

Lindsay's appearance only seems to last a few seconds ... but it's sure to delight all longtime 'MG' fans. So far, no word of any of the other Plastics having shown up -- not yet anyway.

If you didn't already know -- seriously, how could you not?! -- Lindsay starred as Cady Heron in the original movie -- an innocent teen who goes on a tumultuous journey by Queen Bee Regina George after being initiated into the Plastics at her new high school.

The cameo comes after LL reunited with OG cast member Tina Fey -- who not only wrote the screenplay for the new film but also the musical that came before it. She's also reprising her role as Ms. Norbury in the new flick.

Lindsay's long made her desire for a "Mean Girls" return apparent ... even reuniting with other cast members Amanda Seyfried & Lacey Chabert for an 'MG'-themed commercial for Walmart last year.

But, if you're looking for a serious dose of nostalgia ... head to the cinema Friday cause that's when "Mean Girls" is officially out in the States!

Robert Downey Jr.'s joking about Robert De Niro's reaction to RDJ's win at the Golden Globes and hooking us up with a great soundbite -- even just for the sake of being glib.

We got the "Oppenheimer" star Wednesday outside "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and our photog asked him about De Niro mistakenly standing up when the winner for Best Supporting Actor was being read. It was a quick little mix-up on Bob's part -- but people definitely noticed.

In case you missed it ... RDJ and RDN were both up for the same award -- Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture -- which went to "Robert ... Downey Jr." When De Niro heard "Robert" though, he started to stir in his seat ... almost as if he'd won ... only to be let down when a different last name followed.

RDJ's having fun with it all here, telling us ... "Nothing's better than losing."  Mind you, he was doing this in the middle of signing autographs and shooting the s*** a bit.

He's joking, of course, and the reason we know that is because we asked what he meant -- with Downey Jr. adding ... "I just wanted to give you a good quote." Indeed, it was!

Looks like RDJ's still in good spirits after the big win for his role as Lewis Strauss in "Oppenheimer" ... he didn't just bless us, but he also gave autograph hounds what they wanted too. He also walked away with a big fat peace sign for the whole gang.

Selena Gomez is heading to the big screen to play one of the biggest music icons ever in Linda Ronstadt. -- with a personal sign-off from the legend herself ... TMZ has learned.

The speculation got kicked into high gear Wednesday after SG posted a photo of herself reading Linda's 2013 memoir, 'Simple Dreams' ... without much context or anything at all. That was enough to get folks to wonder if they were collaborating, or if Selena was teasing a future acting gig. Mind you, this was around the same time she said she was taking another break from social media.

Anyway, sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ that Selena has, in fact, been tapped to portray Linda in a forthcoming biopic -- although, we're told it's in the very early stages ... and the rest of the deets about other cast members and a studio being attached are hazy.

With that said ... what we do know is that Linda personally approved of Selena herself, and we're told she's happy that SG is attached to the project -- feeling like she's the perfect fit. In fact, our sources say Selena actually met with Linda a couple months ago at her home where they spoke privately.

We're told Linda and her team are directly tied to the production -- so they'll oversee this ... with our sources noting the plot will revolve around her book ... which was optioned.

Of course, people are losing their minds about this news for a couple different reasons -- one, Selena certainly feels like great casting for something like this ... 'cause she does have a passing resemblance to Linda. Plus, they're both of Mexican descent -- so there's that.

Naturally, there's also the singing element -- Linda's got a unique, robust voice ... and Selena is obviously a trained professional singer herself. So technically, she can pull this off.

With Selena's casting, ya gotta figure this is gonna be a splashy film with some major talent ... and with biopics like this in the recent past -- there may even be awards buzz around it.

Cindy Morgan's roommate noticed a bad odor and stench coming from the actress' room before growing so concerned, she called 911 ... leading to the discovery of Cindy's body.

TMZ obtained dispatch audio related to Cindy's death last month in Florida, and you hear her roommate listing all the reasons something seemed off with the "Caddyshack" actress.

The roommate told dispatchers she hadn't seen or heard from Cindy in days, there were foul smells coming from the room and the only responses to repeated knocks on the locked door were from Cindy's pets.

TMZ broke the story ... Cindy was found dead inside her room in a Lake Worth Beach house on Dec. 30 after her concerned roommate called police.

An investigation is underway, and while foul play is NOT suspected ... the cause of death remains unclear.

Cindy's best remembered for playing Lacey Underall in the famous 1980 comedy "Caddyshack" alongside Chevy Chase, Bill Murray and Rodney Dangerfield ... portraying the country club owner's hot niece who captures the attention of pretty much every male character.

Angela Bassett has been honored for her incredible career ... bagging a honorary Oscar at Tuesday's 14th Annual Governors Awards.

The 65-year-old's first-ever Academy Award from The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was handed over to her by thrilled pal Regina King ... making her the second Black actress to earn the honor after Cicely Tyson.

Angela told fellow Black actresses to fill their hearts with courage and strength in her acceptance speech ... urging them to think of who their ancestors intended them to be.

She said she was proudly sharing the celebratory moment with fellow women who speak up when they are silenced -- some of these women she's represented in her roles.

Angela has portrayed icons such as Tina Turner, Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King and 'Black Panther's Queen Ramonda.

The latter made her the first actor in a Marvel film AND the first woman from a superhero movie to earn an Oscar nom -- though she lost out to Jamie Lee Curtis.

Jason Momoa and Lisa Bonet appear to have had their divorce all figured out before they went to court -- 'cause just one day later ... the whole matter is officially settled!

A judgment has already been entered in the former couple's divorce case -- which, again, just officially started when Lisa filed for a dissolution of marriage yesterday. According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, everything's wrapped up in a nice and neat little bow.

Per the settlement, everything from custody of their 2 kids, child support, spousal support and just about everything else was hashed out privately.

The paperwork notes that JM and LB will share joint and physical custody of their children, Lola and Nakoa, and they'll share the living expenses of the kids without any formal child support payments.

Lisa and Jason have also waived their rights to receive spousal support. They're both loaded -- so maybe this isn't all that surprising either.

The one thing that's somewhat interesting about this is that Lisa and Jason won't technically be single -- at least in the eyes of the law -- until July of this year when the docs say their single status will officially be restored.

An iconic piece of Paul Reubens' past is heading home to a lucky bidder -- the bicycle he rode as Pee-wee Herman was sitting outside an auction house after it sold for 6-figures.

We spotted the 1953 Schwinn DX Cruiser in the back of a truck Monday afternoon while the TMZ Celebrity Tour was taking some lucky guests around Hollywood. Normally, we spot celebs, but this time we found this memorable celeb ride outside Bonhams auction house on Sunset Blvd.

Bonhams is known for its unique auctions, with sales of everything from Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol art to Rush drummer Neil Peart's drumkit -- and everything in between.

The auction house had its Pop Culture: Then & Now auction last month, with the whimsical bicycle from "Pee-wee's Big Adventure" fetching $140,000 ... so it seems the sweet ride was about to be shipped to the winning bidder.

As we reported, Paul died back in July after a private battle with cancer.