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Kenneth Mitchell -- who starred in a 'Star Trek' television show and Marvel movie -- has died, according to a statement from his family.

The actor passed away Saturday his family announced via his Instagram account ... remembering him as not only a decorated actor but also a dedicated family man.

His family says he passed away after a battle with ALS that began more than five years ago saying he believed each day was a gift despite the difficulties he faced with his illness.

Mitchell appeared in a number of movies and television shows over the years including "Nancy Drew," "The Astronauts Wives Club," "NCIS," "Castle," "Criminal Minds," and "Grey's Anatomy."

His breakout role came back in 2006 when he received a starring part in the show "Jericho." Mitchell appeared in 27 of the show's 29 episodes during its two-season run.

More recently, Mitchell made the jump into the science-fiction realm ... appearing as Carol Danvers' father Joe in the 2019 Marvel hit "Captain Marvel" and appearing in a number of roles for the Paramount+ original "Star Trek: Discovery."

Mitchell is survived by his wife Susan, kids Lilah and Kallum, his parents, siblings and numerous nieces and nephews. The family's asking people to donate to ALS research in his memory.

Kenneth was 49.

Billie Eilish always has time for her fans ... proving she's really a woman of the people by stopping the SAG Awards to sign an autograph -- directly on Melissa McCarthy's face!

The singer-songwriter and the actress hit the stage to present the award for Outstanding Female Actor in a Comedy Series ... and Melissa -- playing up her trademark comedic enthusiasm -- couldn't help but gush over Billie.

After excitedly rambling on about all the times she'd met BE, Melissa asked her to sign her chrome silver dress ... something Eilish turned down because she said she didn't wanna ruin the gown.

So, McCarthy upped the stakes ... asking if Billie would sign her face, an opportunity Billie hopped on without much delay.

She then went to town with black Sharpie on Melissa's forehead, covering her mouth while putting the final flourishes on her signature.

The two stars are clearly having a ball, 'cause it seems Billie couldn't help but crack up laughing during the bit.

Of course, Billie's at the ceremony 'cause she contributed to the soundtrack for "Barbie" -- which is up for four awards tonight.

Barbie Land's citizens might look like they're having a great time in "Barbie," but it turns out they're actually living a hellish nightmare ... at least according to one legendary film director.

Actor/director Werner Herzog -- known for his role as The Client in 'Mandalorian' -- sat down on "Piers Morgan Uncensored" earlier this week when the biggest flick of 2023 came up ... and Herzog didn't mince words when it came to the movie.

Werner admitted he only watched about 30 minutes of the Oscar-nominated film ... but he's theorizing Barbie Land isn't a magical wonderland -- but somewhere with a much hotter climate.

Herzog said, "I don't have an answer, but I have a suspicion. Could it be that the world of 'Barbie' is sheer hell? And, for a movie ticket, as an audience you can witness sheer hell as close as it gets?"

Piers told his guest he's actually seen the whole flick, and he thinks Werner's spot on when it comes to his assessment.

Werner's words are perhaps the most shocking indictment of the film that's charmed worldwide audiences and received a lot of awards buzz. It's up for eight Academy Awards this year and made over $1 billion at the box office ... not exactly torturing viewers.

Still, it's not like Barbie's winning every award this season ... it was completely shut out at the BAFTAs and only won two of the nine Golden Globes awards it was up for.

So, it seems "Barbie" isn't exactly putting the critics in a heavenly mindset ... but to call parts of the movie hell might be taking it a bit too far.

FWIW ... "Barbie" is up for four SAG Award nominations with the show kicking off in just a few hours, so we'll have to wait and see if the guild gives the movie its laurels.

The BBC is largely defending an interview with Andrew Scott at the BAFTAs that's been slammed as homophobic ... over a question about a Barry Keoghan nude scene.

In a statement Friday, the BBC says it's received complaints from folks who didn't like the way entertainment correspondent Colin Paterson asked Andrew about Barry stripping down at the end of "Saltburn."

Colin's been dragged online for asking Andrew, who is gay and was at the BAFTAs promoting another movie, about Barry's penis ... but the BBC says Colin's questions were "meant to be a light hearted reflection of the discussion around the scene and was not intended to cause offense."

The BBC says Colin began the interview by asking Andrew about his movie, "All of Us Strangers," before moving on to ask him about the popularity of his fellow Irish actors, like Barry.

Andrew was clearly uncomfortable with questions about Barry's nude scene, but Colin kept pressing and asked, "There was a lot of talk about prosthetics ... how well do you know him?" The BBC says this specific question was "misjudged."

Still, the BBC says there was reason behind asking Andrew about Barry getting naked in "Saltburn" ... the network says the film had a cultural impact and the nude scene grabbed a lot of attention, which Barry himself addressed.

The BBC also says Colin asked similar questions to "Saltburn" writer and director Emerald Fennell, plus singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor, whose song "Murder On The Dancefloor" plays during the nude scene.

Tyler Perry says he's down to use artificial intelligence in his projects going forward, 'cause it'll save him money and resources ... which is why he's temporarily halting his studio expansion.

The media mogul -- who has his own production studio in Georgia -- told THR this week that he's been keeping a close eye on AI ... and he's impressed by what he sees, so much so that it's actually influencing some big plans he had for the massive 330-acre lot.

He was asked about OpenAI's Sora program -- which can create very lifelike scenes and visuals with nothing but a text command -- and TP says it's gonna revolutionize filmmaking.

Tyler says, "I have been watching AI very closely and watching the advancements very closely. I was in the middle of, and have been planning for the last four years, about an $800 million expansion at the studio, which would’ve increased the backlot a tremendous size -- we were adding 12 more soundstages. All of that is currently and indefinitely on hold because of Sora and what I’m seeing."

He adds, "I no longer would have to travel to locations. If I wanted to be in the snow in Colorado, it’s text. If I wanted to write a scene on the moon, it’s text, and this AI can generate it like nothing. If I wanted to have two people in the living room in the mountains, I don’t have to build a set in the mountains, I don’t have to put a set on my lot. I can sit in an office and do this with a computer, which is shocking to me."

Tyler was even more candid on what impact he thinks it will have on the industry ... saying, "It makes me worry so much about all of the people in the business. Because as I was looking at it, I immediately started thinking of everyone in the industry who would be affected by this, including actors and grip and electric and transportation and sound and editors, and looking at this, I’m thinking this will touch every corner of our industry."

He adds, "So I am very, very concerned that in the near future, a lot of jobs are going to be lost."

Bottom line ... Tyler sees the future, and he's embracing it -- but his words here have not been well-received. Take a look on X and you'll see ... people are dragging him for what they characterize as abandoning creatives and openly being willing to slash jobs to save a buck.

Whether that's fair or not is for the Internet to decide, we suppose ... but the fact is, Tyler sees how big a deal AI is and will continue to be -- and he's ready to implement it to his benefit.

Natalie Portman is seeing declining popularity of film with young people ... and it seems like she's got mixed feelings about it -- pointing out the double-edged sword of its downfall.

The actress sat down with Vanity Fair earlier this week for an interview, and she opened up about the increased influence of social media stars on kids when compared to traditional movie stars, like herself.

Portman says film feels "much more niche" these days -- and notes if you ask someone in her kids' generation -- she's got a 12-year-old and a 7-year-old -- they tend to know way more YouTubers and viral people as opposed to actors.

Now, Natalie's not saying this is necessarily a bad thing ... she points out the freedom in making movies in an era when commerce isn't the chief concern, while also walking the fine line of not making projects that are too elitist -- saying ya gotta keep the audience in mind.

Plus, Natalie says it's cool kids in more remote small towns now have access to great art anywhere, which has led to traditional gatekeepers being demoted -- making H'wood more inclusive.

This liberation Natalie's referring to in the entertainment industry isn't sitting well with everyone however ... remember, Billie Eilish got caught talking some smack about influencers being invited to the People's Choice Awards this past weekend.

ICYMI ... Eilish was talking to Kylie Minogue and -- despite trying to whisper -- she could clearly be heard complaining about the number of TikTokers at the event. She seemed none too happy at their involvement.

Mel Gibson was on the shortlist for the leading role in "Schindler's List" ... but despite his interest, the director was never going to pick him.

When the producers were casting the lead role in the iconic 1993 movie, Mel's name came up ... according to Hollywood agent and CAA co-founder Michael Ovitz, who helped make the film.

Ovitz told The Hollywood Reporter Mel was interested in the project and his agent tried to land him the part ... but he says director Steven Spielberg was looking for a "non-movie" star as his leading man.

Mel was, and still is, a huge name in Hollywood ... and by 1993 he had just starred in his third 'Lethal Weapon' movie ... and already had a bunch of popular credits to his name.

Ultimately, Liam Neeson was cast as Oskar Schindler ... and he helped the film win 7 Oscars at the 1994 award show, including Best Picture.

The irony here ... we first reported on Mel's racist and antisemitic comments during his 2006 DUI arrest. So it's wild that he was considered for this film back then -- which is obviously all about the Holocaust.

Shaun Weiss has some fans thinking he relapsed on drugs ... but he says folks are reading way too far into a video he posted online.

The "Mighty Ducks" star shared a video Wednesday on Instagram, talking about how blessed he is to be paid to travel around and interact with fans ... but his physical appearance seemed to throw people off.

Shaun, who recently celebrated 4 years of sobriety, is looking kinda thin and he has a red substance smudged between his eyes ... leading some to wonder if he busted his head open, even though his caption says it's "consecrated ash from Sadhguru."

Shaun tells TMZ ... he's still 100% clean and has not relapsed.

He says he's doing great and has never been better, adding ... "If I ever need help I promise I will reach out to people. No going backward."

As for what's on his forehead, Shaun tells us it's from his "spiritual practice." He says it's supposed to "activate my third eye."

Shaun says he's getting into the inner engineering teachings of Sadhguru, a famous Yogi ... telling us, "It has been a game changer in terms of my overall balance and levels of joy."

The video that first sparked relapse concern among fans was on Shaun's page for about 5 hours until we talked to him ... and he's since uploaded a new video where he wipes off the red substance from his face and says he's fine and there's nothing to worry about.

Megan Thee Stallion said the infamous "fire crotch" line in the new "Mean Girls" on the big screen -- but you won't find it in the digital release ... and Lindsay Lohan's probably happy.

The rebooted flick -- which is now a musical -- finally hit VOD this week ... so it's available to rent on all your major players, Amazon and the like. The only difference this time around ... Meg's quote that pissed off LiLo in theaters is completely gone.

Indeed ... eagle-eyed fans noticed it right away as they started to stream the flick from home -- the part where MTS is supposed to say "Y2K fire crotch is back" has been edited out.

Instead, Meg here just ends her little piece of dialogue with "We are going back to red," and it then cuts to her laughing ... totally glossing over the line that was featured and seen in theaters, and which drew the ire of Lindsay and team -- who publicly denounced it.

Remember, Lindsay's rep came out and said LiLo was hurt by the fact the phrase had been included ... and not just that, but apparently, nobody had told her it would be in there.

The crazy part about that was ... Lindsay herself is ALSO in the movie, making a cameo.

It was all very bizarre ... and what made it even stranger was the fact that Tina Fey -- who EP'd and wrote "Mean Girls," and who's presumably pals with Lindsay -- didn't come out and address any of this last month when Lindsay made a big fuss about it ... just crickets.

However, now ... we can clearly see she heard LiLo loud and clear -- and made a change.

As you probably know by now ... the "fire crotch" insult first started with oil heir Brandon Davis -- who used to party with Paris Hilton back in the 2000s, and who used to run his mouth a lot to paps after nights on the town with his famous friend.

He was happy to trash Lindsay at the time, and even though it was years ago ... it clearly still bothers her to this day -- making it all the more surprising TF put it in the film at all.

A star in the OG "Top Gun" is suing Paramount, claiming the movie company ripped off his image for the hit sequel.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Barry Tubb, who played Wolfman in the 1986 monster hit, says the term "sequel" was never mentioned or contemplated in his original contract. Therefore, they had no right to use his mug in "Top Gun: Maverick."

The scene in contention -- two of the sequel's main characters Hangman (played by Glen Powell) and Coyote (Greg Tarzan Davis) discover Rooster Bradshaw (Miles Teller) is Goose's surviving son.

Rooster points at the photograph of the Top Gun Class of '86 hanging behind him ... and when the camera zooms in, you see Wolfman sitting beside Goose, Iceman, and Maverick.

Tubb says they had no right to use that photo, never asked permission and never paid him a cent. He's asking for unspecified damages, but given that the flick has grossed nearly $1.5 billion, he wants a lot.

Jonathan Majors was quickly dropped by Marvel in the wake of his assault conviction -- but as it turns, the studio was already inclined to move on ... at least according to a new report.

As everyone knows, the actor was cut loose just minutes after word came down from a NYC jury in December that he was guilty on two of four counts -- including harassment and assault -- as it pertained to charges that he'd harmed his ex-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari.

Granted, he only ended up getting convicted on what happened outside of the car -- not inside, where prosecutors claimed he'd really roughed her up -- and yet ... Marvel immediately announced he wasn't working with them going forward. They didn't skip a beat.

Welp, per a new THR story ... Marvel is now in the cleanup process of their next chapter -- as they were originally planning on hitching their wagon to Majors' star as the new big villain ... but those plans changed once he got caught up in this DV case.

They say the next 'Avengers' movie -- which was going to be called 'The Kang Dynasty' -- is now not going to include Majors' character's name at all ... and they're rewriting the next slate of films to either cut out Kang altogether, or to seriously sideline him and make him a footnote in the larger plot. It's a heavy lift, but everyone expected that to be the case.

The more interesting tidbit here in this report is the notion that Marvel/Disney had apparently already made a decision in terms of where they wanted to go with Kang and Majors.

THR, citing sources, says Marvel was already making moves to minimize Kang's involvement in future movies -- and the apparent reason ... money. It sounds like Majors' appearance in 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' wasn't a financial success (it definitely wasn't) and because of that ... they felt audiences just weren't in the mood for more Kang.

The movie made $476 million globally through its theatrical run ... but by superhero movie standards, that's pretty trash. So, on its face ... it sounds like Majors' fate was sealed.

Zendaya has been making a showstopping impact on the "Dune" promo tour so far ... and seems like her costar Timothée Chalamet wanted in on the action, 'cause he's copying her.

Check out what these costars were rockin' at the "Dune: Part Two" premiere in South Korea Wednesday ... they're literally two peas in a pod in matching leather jumpsuits, posing away in sync with their hands in their pockets and all. That's double the impact for ya!

TC opted for a gray version of the one-piece ... while Zendaya, true to her fashionista form, styled up her light peach version, wearing it slung off her shoulder and with towering matching heels.

Both getups are by Seoul-based designer Juun J ... and Zendaya gushed during a sit-down interview about how wonderful it was to support local designers.

Timothée also addressed their twinning during the same interview ... saying it was actually Zendaya's longtime stylist, Law Roach, who came up with the genius idea.

Of course, it comes as no surprise as LR was also behind Zendaya's incredible full vintage suit at the movie's London world premiere last week.

The pics spoke for themselves ... Zendaya literally hogged the spotlight with a metallic Thierry Mugler Fall '95 haute couture look, which only she could pull off.

Tony Ganios -- famous from "Porky's" and a ton of other cult classic films -- has died.

The actor's fiancée, Amanda, tells us Tony passed away Sunday at a NY hospital -- this after he was taken in on Saturday and was found to have been suffering a severe spinal cord infection. We're told he went into surgery, but suffered a fatal heart attack the following day as he was recovering.

Amanda says Tony was on his way to a dialysis treatment Sunday morning when he went into cardiac arrest ... and we're told he was experiencing organ failure too. Amanda says his death came so suddenly, and she's absolutely shattered right now ... explaining they were just planning their wedding last week. They'd been together for a couple for at least 9 years.

She posted a sweet tribute to Tony online, writing ... "The last words we said to each other were "I love you." Love is an understatement. You are everything to me.  My heart, my soul and my best friend. #I love you #tonyganios."

Tony will best be remembered for his lead role in the 1981 film, which went down as a fan-fave sex comedy flick and developed a cult following. "Porky's" also went on to churn out several sequels ... including "Porky's II: The Next Day" and "Porky's Revenge!" -- both of which he starred in.

Of course, fans know him as Meat Tuperello ... one of the guys trying to lose their V-cards at a brothel, and who ended up playing peeping Toms. The shower scene from the movie is probably one of the most iconic in the raunchy comedy category of movies.

While "Porky's" was arguably his biggest flick/franchise ... Tony was in a handful of other memorable films as well -- including 1979's "The Wanderers," in which he played Perry.

Other movies of his include "Back Roads," "Continental Divide," "Body Rock," "Die Hard 2," "Rising Sun," "The Taking of Beverly Hills" and more. TG had been in shows as well -- such as "The Ring of the Musketeers," "Wiseguy," "The Equalizer" and "Scarecrow and Mrs. King."

He appears to have left showbiz behind in the '90s ... but he certainly left his mark on pop culture. In fact, film producer Sean Clark had some kind words for Tony upon hearing about his passing.

SC wrote, "Sad to hear of the passing of Tony Gainos aka Meat from Porky's This photo is from 20 years ago with Tony and Porky's co-star Scott Colomby Although I had many business conversations with him over the years I would not say he was a friend."

He adds, "I did not know him well at all. However he was a nice guy and it's a shame he passed just 2 weeks away from the big Porky's reunion at Cult Classics Weekend in Bastrop TX in which he was supposed to attend. So with that said I'm sorry for OUR loss."

Amanda tells TMZ Tony had been working and active in the final years of his life. He was 64.

Dakota Johnson's new superhero movie bombed at the box office -- but she's not trippin' ... 'cause the water in Mexico is fine, especially with her boyfriend right next to her.

The actress stripped down to a white halter neck-style swimsuit as she cooled off with her man Chris Martin in the beachy waters of Puerto Vallarta Sunday -- continuing her IDC tour by proving not even a major film flop was gonna ruin her good time.

The couple could be seen recharging on a sunlounger ... before Dakota dried off with a towel after a refreshing dip in the ocean.

Now, some may argue that DJ, perhaps, fled to Mexico to avoid all the 'MW' noise after it tanked this weekend. However, given her unbothered promo tour -- where she even admitted she hadn't watched the film much to the dismay of comic book fans -- something tells us she probably didn't even register how poorly it was received ... by fans and critics alike.

Safe to say ... Dakota didn't really put her best foot forward promoting the film -- at least on the face of it -- and the figures speak for themselves. Whether she's to blame for any of it though ... well, that's anyone's guess.

The running total for the six-day holiday weekend -- beginning Valentine's Day and ending on President's Day -- was just $25.8 million domestically and about the same amount globally ... definitely not up to par for a major superhero flick opening.

In fact, The Hollywood Reporter put it down as the worst opening for a Sony movie featuring Spider-Man-related characters ... and the consensus seems to be the same across the board.

Major Beatles alert -- Sam Mendes will direct four different movies from each band member's perspective ... and all of them are apparently supposed to come out the same year.

The famed filmmaker was announced as being hired to helm what can only be called a massive undertaking in the movie biz -- namely, making four feature-length films ... with each one focused on a different Beatle, including Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon and George Harrison.

Sony is the studio getting behind this -- they'll finance and distribute these flicks -- and not just that ... but the two living Beatles and the families of the late members are all on board.

All 4 members/their estates have given Sam and Sony the life and music rights for the respective scripted films -- and what he says he'll do is intertwine all their stories in an intricate web of storytelling to bring the band's full legendary history to life on the big screen.

The craziest part ... Sam and co. plan on releasing all 4 films in 2027, which is crazy.

BTW, a multimedia company the Beatles started way back when -- Apple Corps Limited -- is going to be a partner in producing these ... so yeah, everyone's coming together for this.

It goes without saying ... this will be the first time the Beatles, at large, are depicted in a film as a unit that wasn't a doc. In other words -- the definitive Beatles biopic(s) has arrived.

Sylvester Stallone says he doesn't advise actors to do their own stunts in the movie biz ... and 7 surgeries oughta serve as a warning -- you listening, Tom Cruise???

The legendary action star made the revelation in an upcoming episode of his Paramount reality show, "The Family Stallone," where he said he'd undergone more than half a dozen back surgeries to deal with an injury he suffered on the set of "The Expendables" back in 2010.

Basically, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin -- who's also in the movie -- was body-slamming Sly on set ... and the dude was actually absorbing the blows, going take after take after take.

He says, "I did stupid stuff. I was directing 'Expendables' and like an idiot I’m doing take ten, take whatever, and I remember one slam and I could actually feel one bang. Steve knew. I never recovered from Expendables 1. After that film, it was never physically the same."

Sly adds .. "I’ve warned people -- don’t do your own stunts."

SS fractured his neck and needed a metal plate inserted to stabilize things -- and as he jokingly notes ... his next role might be Quasimodo in a 'Hunchback' flick.

While he might be discussing it in jest on his show -- the injuries/surgeries are quite serious ... apparently, Sylvester's doctors have told him he might need artificial discs popped into his lower spine down the line, and his wife Jennifer Flavin says on the show it's tough on the family.