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Robert Downey Jr. is the front-runner to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor -- but one Academy member is openly admitting ... he's voting for him because he met him in person.

The Hollywood Reporter did their annual writeup that polls anonymous AMPAS members to see what their thought process is going into the new Academy Awards -- which are a couple weeks away -- and one of them was candid on their thoughts about RDJ.

This member said they were voting for Bob ... but it sounds like it might have more to do with his personality than his actual performance -- which is a little disheartening to hear.

They say, "I was torn between Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr., and even though it’s cheesy I’ll be real with you: I met Downey at an awards season party, we had an interaction that I did not initiate, and it tipped the scales for me."

This anonymous voter adds ... "Campaigning matters! What’s really great about him as an actor, in this film and so many others, is his ability to be believable all the time. I loved watching him turn as the story turned on Strauss."

In other words ... they liked RDJ's work in "Oppenheimer," but a little schmoozing went a long way with this person when they met Rob in real life. So, no ... it's not all on merit, it seems.

The reason that kinda sucks ... well, in a perfect world -- you'd like to think people who vote at the Oscars are only looking at what they see on screen, and are judging off of that. But, as this person is confessing, there are some politics involved in this process.

This mystery Academy member calls it campaigning ... another word for it is, lobbying.

While Downey Jr. has been considered a shoo-in from the start -- yes, his performance is actually spectacular and worthy of recognition -- this is the type of stuff you don't really wanna hear if you're Ruffalo, Robert De Niro, Sterling K. Brown or Ryan Gosling.

The visuals from the Willy Wonka pop-up attraction in the UK are pretty sad and underwhelming ... but the script is even worse, and more out of touch with reality.

The 13-page script that the actors were given to perform at the now-viral "Willy's Chocolate Experience" in Glasgow, Scotland, has surfaced online ... and if you thought the actual experience itself looked rough, wait until you get a load of the fake plotline behind it.

The first thing that jumps off the page ... set descriptions painting a picture of a whimsical, enchanting and immersive experience do not line up AT ALL with what was actually awaiting paying parents, who ended up demanding refunds for the bait and switch.

The trainwreck doesn't end there ... the script is littered with predictions for how the audience would respond to the set and the actors playing Willy Wonka and the Oompa Loompas ... but the rosy outlook didn't play out that way in real life.

Paul Connell, the actor hired to play Wonka, says the cast only got the script the day before the event, leaving them little time to memorize their lines ... and he told The Independent the writing was a bunch of AI-generated gibberish.

A perfect example of how the script greatly deviates from the real deal ... the "Bubble and Lemonade Room."

In the script, the space is described as "a room where the air sparkles with floating bubbles, and rivers of sparking lemonade flow freely." Sounds cool, but in reality, it's just a fold-out table with plastic cups containing a few sips of lemonade ... and a clearly visible trash bag.

There's also mention in here of some kind of evil villain/spirit thing called The Unknown -- and video of an actor portraying it during one of the tours last weekend is out too.

Let's just say ... it was creepy as hell, and scared the crap out of the kids who witnessed it.

Bottom line -- the execution of the script didn't turn out great ... but to be honest, the actual writing itself isn't very good either. The whole thing is disjointed and somewhat hard to follow ... and it sounds like that manifested in the real world when they tried to bring this to life.

Remember ... parents complained their kids were given a quarter cup of lemonade and a few jellybeans, and they piled on the crappy decorations and said the whole thing took a minute to walk through.

Everything about the event is so grim it's almost funny ... seriously, if you need a good laugh read through the script. It's pretty wild.

A first look at Bill Skarsgård in the remake of "The Crow" is out ... and fans are pissed -- blasting the over-the-top body art, unkindly comparing him to Jared Leto's Joker.

Here's the deal ... Bill's the lead in a remake of the gothic cult classic hit movie from 1994 -- and the first pictures of his revamped "Crow" character just dropped Wednesday via Vanity Fair. There's a lot of set photos they have ... but everyone's focused on this money shot.

FYI ... "The Crow" follows a murdered man who comes back to life to enact his revenge against the men who killed him and his fiancée -- which is it has this dark, noir-esque vibe. The whole film is basically a fantasy revenge flick ... with memorable makeup/costumes.

In the OG film, the eponymous character -- played by Bruce Lee's son Brandon -- wore black leather jackets and bodysuits, and white face makeup made him look more like a corpse, but overall his look was pretty understated ... especially when compared to Bill's version. That's how the internet seems to feel about it anyway!

Just check out the pics ... Bill's got the leather and white face/body makeup -- as well as a series of unseemly and sorta cartoonish tattoos ... including a giant eye in the middle of his chest and the word "Lullaby" written above his right eyebrow.

All of these tats have fans thinking about another outlandish character look ... namely, Leto's Joker in "Suicide Squad" who literally had "Damaged' written on his forehead -- just so the audience wouldn't miss that particular character trait, we guess.

Point is, fans are super upset ... with some even going as far as saying this concept of the character spits in the face of Brandon's memory.

If you don't know ... Brandon was actually shot and killed on "The Crow" set after a prop gun fired an uncleared bullet fragment from a previous scene at him. No one was criminally charged, but his mom Linda Lee Caldwell successfully sued filmmakers.

Safe to say ... fans are pretty protective of Lee's character and his legacy -- and they're pretty sure Skarsgård's look is only going to hurt the memory of Brandon and "The Crow" -- that's what some are saying about this.

Rebecca Ferguson says she once got berated by an A-list costar who she refuses to work with ever again -- and while she didn't name names ... she did exclude two people, which has left the internet rife with guesses.

The actress dished this tea on the "Reign with Josh Smith" podcast -- and she was responding to a question about a time when she owned her voice and took control of her situation ... which led to this wild anecdote about a mystery fellow cast member.

Rebecca doesn't ID them, nor does she implicate gender, but what she does say is that this actor she was working on the film with was absolutely horrible ... allegedly yelling at her.

She says they were frustrated while they were doing scene work together, and they'd apparently hurl insults at Rebecca -- openly questioning her acting methods and tenacity ... while also noting they were the number 1 person on the call sheet. So, a big star basically.

Rebecca goes on to explain that nobody had her back on that set, but eventually ... she found her own inner strength and told this actor to f*** off -- and apparently even demanded that the person turn around while she recited her own lines.

In other words, she didn't wanna be in the same space as this person, and it sounds like she put her foot down while shooting. The big question ... who the hell is this awful person???

Like we said, Rebecca went out of her way to protect this celeb's anonymity -- but she did give some clues ... including the fact this supposedly happened in the last 10 to 12 years. Of course, the internet is rife with speculation on which costar this could possibly be.

We should note ... RF explicitly said it wasn't Hugh Jackman and it wasn't Tom Cruise. Technically -- with the parameters she's described -- there's only a select few actors it could possibly be We're not gonna name anybody and fuel speculation ... but folks seem to know who the options are here, guy or girl.

One person who's stepped forward to seemingly distance himself from this drama is The Rock -- who starred opposite Rebecca in 2014's 'Hercules.'

He responded, "Hate seeing this but love seeing her stand up to bullshit. Rebecca was my guardian angel sent from heaven on our set. I love that woman. I’d like to find out who did this."

So, that's one person down ... and a handful of others left as the would-be culprit. Just goes to show -- not everyone in Hollywood is all that sweet -- at least according to Rebecca.

Buddy Duress, best known for starring opposite Robert Pattinson in the Safdie Brothers hit "Good Time," has died ... according to his brother.

Christopher Stathis confirmed the news to People Tuesday saying Buddy died back in November ... a death Christopher attributes to cardiac arrest brought on by drugs.

Duress has several credits on IMDb including "Person to Person," "The Great Darkened Days," "Beware of Dog," "Flinch," "Funny Pages" and "Heaven Knows What."

Buddy dealt with drug abuse and legal issues for much of his adult life it seems. He met director Josh Safdie after his release from NYC's Rikers Island prison -- where he did time for drug charges -- and filmed his part in "Heaven Knows What."

After that, he was rearrested for not going to rehab.

Josh and his brother Benny Safdie asked Buddy to journal his experiences in prison -- which partly served as a basis for "Good Time" according to the Los Angeles Times.

It appears Buddy still has 2 more projects set to be released posthumously ... "Mass State Lottery" and a short film called "Skull" should be coming out over the course of the next year.

He is survived by Christopher and his mother Jo-Anne.

Buddy was 38.

Gary Sinise is mourning the loss of his son after a battle with a rare form of cancer -- and his obituary for his boy is beyond moving.

The "Forrest Gump" star -- who played Lieutenant Dan -- posted a tribute Tuesday to his son, Mac, who he revealed died last month. Gary says Mac passed away on Jan. 5 and was laid to rest on Jan. 23 ... this after he succumbed to chordoma, which affects the spine.

Gary says Mac was diagnosed with this cancer in 2018 ... the same year his wife, Moira, was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. Luckily, she's recovered since and is in remission.

Gary posted photos of himself and Mac together -- including a shot that features his son in a wheelchair. He also notes Mac was heavily involved in his foundation, and had a love for music -- noting he even helped create an album with original compositions.

He writes of his son, "In sharing our story, we hope to shine a little bit of light on what has been a difficult time for us as Mac was truly a light for all of us."

Gary adds, "An incredible inspiration to those who knew and loved him, he faced his battle with grace, courage, and love. Even with one setback after another, he never stopped living and learning, creating, and giving, and loving. He loved all our family."

He ends his tribute post with this ... "Thank you, Mac. You did it. Resurrection & Revival will live on. And so will you. In our hearts forever. We were blessed to have you in our lives as son, brother, and friend...and we will miss you and love you for eternity."

Mac was only 33.

"Mary Poppins" is getting a fresh look in 2024 across the pond -- its age rating has been raised because it features discriminatory language ... which ain't appropriate for all audiences.

While you probably may have never noticed the offensive term in the live-action flick ... the British Board of Film Classification -- commonly referred to as the BBFC -- is calling out the film's use of the phrase "Hottentots," as it's said to be unsuitable for youngsters.

It may sound like gibberish to us here in the States -- but that term has history there in Britain. It's a dated phrase that's been deemed too racially offensive ... and was used way back in the day by European colonizers in Africa -- specifically as it pertains to the Khoikhoi, an indigenous group from Southwestern Africa.

It's believed the term "Hottentots" came about as an imitation of the group's language, which featured clicks ... and these days, it's an old-timey racially charged word that isn't really used anymore. And yet, it's in "Mary Poppins."

As for when the insensitive phrase is used in the beloved Disney movie ... it occurs during one of the film's more iconic moments -- the "Step in Time" number led by Dick Van Dyke's Bert, the chimney sweep ... when all the guys have black soot covering their faces.

Specifically, when Bert and his band of chimney sweeps break into a rooftop dance ... the Banks family's eccentric neighbor, Admiral Boom (Reginald Owen) -- who thinks he's still commanding a naval ship -- declares, "We're being attacked by Hottentots."

Owen's Admiral Bloom also says the term at the start of the film, when he asks the Banks children ... if they're "going to fight the Hottentots." Remember, this flick came out in the 1960s ... so even then, it was a different time.

The shift in age rating will hopefully help concerned parents from exposing their children to "discriminatory language or behavior," which could be unintentionally repeated.

It went from being rated U (their version of rated-G) to PG ... so, there ya go!

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.