Garth, 52, shared her thoughts with TMZ in an encounter posted on Wednesday, March 5. When a reporter for the outlet approached her on the street and asked about the snub, the actress replied, “Yeah, that’s messed up.”
“What do you think should happen now? Should the Oscars issue an apology maybe?” the reporter questioned Garth, who responded with: “Maybe.” But her expression conveyed that, yes, perhaps the show’s producers should apologize for the omission.
While Doherty was not included in the montage, which played during the Sunday, March 2, ceremony held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, she was listed as one of the names that Hollywood lost in 2024-2025 on the official Academy website. (Michelle Trachtenberg, who died on February 26 at the age of 39, was also missing from the ceremony’s montage and only listed online.)
Garth and Doherty starred in the hit TV show Beverly Hills, 90210, which aired from 1990 to 2000. Garth stayed in the cast for the whole 10 years, while Doherty departed after four seasons.
In July 2024, Doherty died at age 53 following a long battle with cancer. Garth was one of the first of Doherty’s former costars to speak out in the wake of her death.
Jennie Garth and Shannen Doherty in “Beverly Hills, 90210.”Cover Images
“I am still processing my tremendous grief over the loss of my long time friend Shannen,” Garth shared via Instagram at the time. “The woman I have often described as one of the strongest people I have ever known. Our connection was real and honest.”
She added: “We were so often pitted against each other but none of that reflected the truth of our real relationship which was one built on mutual respect and admiration. She was courageous, passionate, determined and very loving and generous. I will miss her and will always honor her deeply in my heart and in my memories.”
Later that month, Garth appeared on Today, where she further addressed the loss of her friend.
“I was in shock because we all know that Shannon was fighting cancer for a long time, but I don’t know, there was just something about her,” she said. “She was such a fighter and a pro. I just didn’t think that would happen for some reason.”
“I think the big takeaway in the last two weeks is I’ve really been going back in time privately and thinking about the enormous effect that Shannen had,” Spelling, 51, said on her “Misspelling” podcast last summer. “Not just on a generation and generations to come. It’s going to keep going. She will live on in her work and in the people that loved her and the things she stood for.”
Meghan Markleis explaining why she opted not to film her new Netflix show inside her actual home in Montecito, California.
“I wanted to protect that safe haven,” Meghan, 43, told People in an interview published on Wednesday. March 5. “We’re a close-knit family, and I love those moments — putting Lili down for a nap, having lunch together, having sacred time together at the end of the day.”
She noted: “Our kitchen is where Mama just cooks for the family, and with a crew of 80-plus people, that’s a lot of people to have in your house!”
Meghan and Prince Harry, 40, moved into their coastal property in 2020 after leaving the United Kingdom and their official royal duties behind. They share two children, Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3.
With Love, Meghan, produced by the couple’s Archewell Productions, highlights Meghan’s cooking, gardening and more, alongside her celebrity friends. In addition to a brief cameo by Prince Harry, Mindy Kaling, Alice Waters and Abigail Spencer appear throughout the series. Meghan used a rental home for indoor scenes, and filmed outdoor segments in her own garden, orchard and chicken coop.
The show premiered on Monday, March 4, coinciding with the launch of Meghan’s lifestyle brand, As Ever.
“Archie did the [filming clapboard]! Sweet moments,” she told People. “They would also come with my husband and visit me on-set, and I loved that my children were able to watch me working and see the balance of that and understand what Mama does and is working to create and share. It was really special because up until then, they hadn’t seen me at work.”
The Duchess of Sussex gushed about her family life in a segment on The Drew Barrymore Show that is due to air on Thursday, March 6.
“OK, what’s your favorite thing that you see in your kids that you go, ‘Oh, that’s their dad?’” Drew Barrymore asked Meghan.
Meghan replied: “Oh, some of the words that they still say with a British accent, so they’ll say z-e-b-r-a and what else do they say? They have these little moments where it comes out and because they have very American accents, but they say words that are just like him and I think it’s adorable.”
Meghan also told Barrymore, 50, that she incorporates bedtime stories into her kids’ routines when she travels, and will “always pack a really thin book and I’ll videotape myself reading it so whoever’s with them or Papa can say, ‘Here’s mama reading your bedtime story,’” she said.
She added, “You find ways to show up for each other and if that’s the one thing that I can convey through the show or through As Ever as a brand, I want people to know you can show up for each other because you know how good it feels when someone shows up for you.”
Tom Sandoval was “somewhat aware” fellow Vanderpump Rules alum Jax Taylor had been struggling with cocaine addiction — and thinks it’s “amazing” that he’s taking steps toward getting the help he needs.
“I mean, I think that’s amazing,” Sandoval, 42, said on the Wednesday, March 5, episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen. “I ’m so proud of him, I think that’s so awesome. He really seems like he’s really been working on himself. For real. For real this time.”
Sandoval also noted that he was “somewhat aware” of Taylor’s “problems” since the pair costarred on a Bravo series for years together, telling host Andy Cohen, “I mean, I’ve been around him over the years.”
When Cohen, 56, asked if “the cast was aware” of Taylor’s struggles, Sandoval replied, “Yea.”
Taylor, 45, announced on the Tuesday, March 4, episode of Alex Baskin‘s “Hot Mic” podcast that he is “an addict.”
“I have substance issues — primarily with cocaine. It’s hard to say out loud,” he said. “I’ve been dealing with this on and off since I was 23 and now I’m 45. There was times where I would stop doing it but then there were times where I’d go heavy on it.”
Taylor, who made his Bravo debut on Vanderpump Rulesin 2013, acknowledged that fans had suspected his issues over the years. “[They] could kind of tell that I was on something. Obviously production and [other] people, they didn’t know what I was doing,” he said. “Everything I was doing was on my own but I was just on that train and I couldn’t get off.”
Taylor said recently that he cut out alcohol to help him stay clean from cocaine. “People ask you, ‘Do you have an alcohol problem too?’ I don’t necessarily think I have an alcohol problem but the two go hand in hand,” Taylor said. “I can’t do cocaine without drinking. So I just gave up both. I’m proud to say I’m 83 days sober right now, which is the longest I’ve ever gone in my life without either.”
Lala Kent, who starred with Taylor and his estranged wife, Brittany Cartwright, on Vanderpump Rules for nearly five years, expressed her support for him on Tuesday.
“That is not easy to admit,” Kent, 34, said during an Amazon Live. “This is going to be his journey and his journey only, and he should be the only one to speak on it because none of us know what he’s been through in his life.”
Kent, who has also struggled with addiction, said she was hopeful that Taylor’s quality of life would take a turn for the better.
“Now that Jax has come out talking about his addiction, it’s a very, very delicate subject,” she said. “Sobriety for someone, it’s not one size fits all. Everyone has a different level of addiction but addiction is addiction.”
Kent also voiced her support for Cartwright, 36, who shares 3-year-old son Cruz with Taylor.
“Brittany is one of my dearest friends. I know a lot,” Kent said. “I don’t know what is going to be shown on their new season of The Valley. What I do know is I’m very close with her and anything that we’ve discussed, that is her story to share.”
After Taylor’s podcast appearance, Cartwright addressed Taylor’s revelations via her Instagram Story.
“His addiction unfortunately has done irreparable damage to my son and I,” she wrote Tuesday. “I’ve spent years trying to help him. I wish more than anyone I could say how proud I am of him today, but I’d be lying. His actions will speak for themselves.”
Kent, however, wished Taylor “nothing but the best in his sobriety” and added: “I went to a really great meeting last night that was much needed and then Scheana [Shay] texted me about Jax. Your heart feels broken, but there’s so much hope in sobriety. That’s what I’m feeling for him. Very, very hopeful and excited to see what his future holds if he chooses down this path. Absolutely amazing.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
The Kansas City Chiefs on January 7, 2024.(Photo by Ryan Kang/Getty Images)
Two men have been charged in connection with the deaths of three Kansas City Chiefs fans.
Jordan Willis and Ivory Carson were charged on Wednesday, March 5, with three counts of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of the delivery of a controlled substance, KMBC News in Kansas City, Missouri reports. Each of those charges carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
“People may have doubted this investigation because it has spanned more than a year,” Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd stated Wednesday, according to the news station. “The Kansas City Police Department and my office do not rest on homicide cases until we have exhausted every possible resource. Today’s charges are the product of the hard work of Kansas City detectives and prosecutors over those many months.”
On January 9, 2024, the bodies of Ricky Johnson, Clayton McGeeney and David Harrington were found frozen in the backyard of Willis’ home. The three men had gathered to watch a Chiefs game at Willis’ house two days before police discovered their dead bodies. Court documents stated that they had consumed alcohol, marijuana and cocaine.
In a press conference Wednesday, Zahnd said that McGeeney’s fiancée had worried about his whereabouts and showed up at Willis’ house and “found at least one person dead on the back patio. Temperatures had dropped below freezing the night of the Chiefs game.”
When police searched the scene, they found two plastic bags containing a white powdery substance that was later forensically identified as a mixture of cocaine and fentanyl. Willis and Carson were linked to the drugs via DNA evidence, and an investigation identified Carson as the primary drug supplier. He admitted he had sold cocaine to Johnson, McGeeney and Harrington prior to their deaths.
On January 12, 2024, a medical examiner revealed that the three had died of fentanyl and cocaine combined toxicity.
Carson is being held in county jail on Wednesday and Willis is expected to surrender to authorities. Willis intends to post a $100,000 bond for his release, Zahnd stated.
There were no details on when Willis and Carson will appear in court.
“This case is a tragic reminder of the dangers of street drugs,” Zahnd said. “But make no mistake. The people who supply those drugs can and will be held accountable when people overdose.”
The prosecutor added, “The sad part of these cases is we’re not able to ask [the victims] what happened that night.”
Doja Cat performing at the 2025 Oscars.Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Doja Cat is clapping back at critics who slammed her performance at the 2025 Oscars.
The artist, 29, took to Instagram on Monday, March 3, and defended herself a day after performing “Diamonds Are Forever” during a James Bond medley.
“Thanks to the Academy Awards and Vanity Fair for having me,” Doja Cat captioned a photo of her in the curve-hugging, gold sequined Balmain gown that she’d worn to the Vanity Fair Oscar Party the night before. “I never get to sing like that and what I did was brave and scary as f— for me. I know a lot of people didn’t like it but a lot of people did and I feel good that I pushed myself. The song is a classic and I put a lot of work into it but the nerves got to me and a bitch hit some flats.”
She added, “I can’t wait to do something like that again. What a blessing that was. I feel amazing about the whole thing. Bye. .”
The rapper, singer and songwriter teamed up with Raye and Blackpink’s Lisa for the Bond tribute that took place toward the midpoint of Sunday’s Academy Awards ceremony. After Margaret Qualley appeared in a dance number, Lisa, 27, performed a rendition of “Live and Let Die” from the 1973 Bond movie of the same name. Afterward, Doja Cat sang “Diamonds Are Forever” — originally sung by Shirley Bassey in 1971 — while wearing a jeweled dress befitting a Bond girl. Then Raye, 27, crooned “Skyfall,” the theme song of the 2012 movie.
Watching the tribute unfold, many viewers criticized Doja Cat, airing their grievances via X.
“Shirley Bassey deserves an apology on so many levels. Why was this approved,” one user complained, while another wrote, “That’s a really tough song to replicate and I don’t think she was the correct artist for this one.”
Despite the negative reactions, Doja Cat’s fans came to her defense.
“She was frickin’ great!” a fan gushed via X. “The entire Bond medley was powerful and awesome.”
Doja Cat, Lisa and Raye recently released their collaboration “Born Again,” but the official Oscars X account noted ahead of the telecast that the trio wouldn’t be singing that song.
“Not ‘Born Again!’ But still legendary. Stay tuned. ,” read a message posted in late February.
The announcement of the group’s performance surprised Oscar aficionados, as neither of the women had a connection to any of the movies up for awards this year. In 2022, Doja Cat contributed the song “Vegas” to the soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, which starred Austin Butler as the titular rock icon. The film was nominated for eight awards at the 2023 Oscars but came away empty-handed.
“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together,” Parton, 79, wrote via an Instagram statement. “Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
The pair tied the knot in 1966, when Parton’s music career was taking off. While the “Jolene” singer became super-famous, branching out into acting and philanthropy, her intensely private spouse preferred to stay out of the limelight.
After Parton gave her statement Monday, People published photos that reportedly showed Dean visiting a post office near their Brentwood, Tennessee, home in December 2019. The outlet reported that it was the first time Dean had been photographed publicly in 40 years. In the snapshots, Dean was then 77 years old and dressed in jeans, a checkered shirt and a tan coat. According to People, Dean had stepped out with an assistant that day.
“We’re the perfect partners,” Parton exclusively told Us Weekly in January 2022. “We both have a great sense of humor. … We’re able to solve any problem and any situation, making a joke about it and not letting it get too heavy, but we respect each other and we like each other. We lucked up, let’s put it that way.”
Parton and Dean in their younger days.Courtesy of Dolly Parton/Instagram
She added, “You know, most people can keep a marriage [going strong] if you make a little effort. Some people just get slouching and lazy and about stuff that ain’t important, like leaving the toilet seat up. And if that’s the worst thing you’ve to worry about, you’re already in trouble.”
The day after graduating from high school in 1964, Parton moved to Nashville from her hometown of Sevierville to pursue singing. She soon met Dean outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat.
When Dean set eyes on Parton, “My first thought was I’m gonna marry that girl,” he revealed on their 50th anniversary in 2016. “My second thought was, Lord she’s good lookin.’ And that was the day my life began. I wouldn’t trade the last 50 years for nothing on this earth.”
As for Dolly, “I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me). He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”
Dean supported his wife’s high-profile career but wasn’t interested in being famous himself. He disliked the spotlight so much that he avoided attending events with his wife.
While interviewing Parton for a profile in 1979, a Cosmopolitan reporter finally caught a glimpse of Dean. “Tall and good-looking, rather like a young Gregory Peck, he has a way of moving his angular body so that he seems to come toward you in sections,” the article read. “He is a fan of television and nightclub comic Steve Martin.”
Parton previously addressed Dean’s need for privacy in a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight.
“A lot of people have thought that [he doesn’t exist] through the years, because he does not want to be in the spotlight at all,” Parton told the outlet. “It’s just not who he is. He’s, like, a quiet, reserved person.”
“He said, ‘I didn’t choose this world, I chose you, and you chose that world. But we can keep our lives separate and together.’ And we do and we have,” Parton said at the time, adding that she “always respected and appreciated” that side of him.
The comedian, 50, and the actor, 62, sparked romance rumors after they were spotted leaving Vanity Fair’s Oscar party arm-in-arm on Sunday, March 2. In photos published by People on Monday, March 3, Handler wore a strapless silver gown and her blond hair long and wavy. Fiennes sported a black tuxedo with the jacket buttoned.
Us Weekly has reached out to reps for Handler and Fiennes for comment.
Earlier Sunday, Fiennes attended the Academy Awards, where he was among the Best Actor nominees for his role in the film Conclave. He lost the trophy to The Brutalist star Adrien Brody.
Handler teased Fiennes while she hosted the Critics Choice Awards in Los Angeles last month. She stood next to him in the audience for a staged bit, joking that he “played a ruthless Nazi, an evil lord and a celibate cardinal, and somehow you’ve made me want to have sex with you in all roles. … I’m begging you never play Vladimir Putin. I can’t do that again.”
Handler had also included Fiennes in another bit where she referenced Nicole Kidman’s notorious milk-drinking scene in Babygirl. That film “inspired me to hire a new sexy intern,” Handler quipped, drinking a glass of milk. “Good girl. Good girl. Good girl,” Fiennes, playing along, said encouragingly.
The Harry Potter star was previously married to actress Alex Kingston from 1993 to 1997 and later moved on with actress Francesca Annis. Handler previously dated fellow comedian Jo Koy and now has a new man in her life.
“I’m dating. Dating is wonderful,” she told Us Weekly exclusively last month, without naming her beau. “Now, I understand what kind of date I am. I want lovers all around the world. I want lovers all around the globe.”
Handler told Us that she’s “very honest and upfront with anyone who I’m dating, that you may not be the only one. And if you need to know, I’ll let you know, but I’m just letting you know. Hopefully you don’t need to ask any further questions.”
Handler said she doesn’t “thrive with dependency,” especially in a romantic relationship.
“I think an attractive quality in a man — the most attractive quality — which is hard to come by, is to find small egos on men. Men who have no egos,” Handler explained to Us. “Right now, I’m dating someone who has no ego. He’s very good at a lot of things, but he’ll never ever show you. He doesn’t need that kind of validation. He doesn’t need to be good at something. He doesn’t need to show off.”
She also described a nice moment they shared recently.
“The other day, he goes, ‘God, you know how lucky I am to be waking up next to you. Do you know how many men would die to wake up next to you?’ I wanted to go, ‘Do you know how many men would never in a million years even think about that?’ Nevermind, say it,” Handler said. “What a sweet thing to even think. Then a sweeter thing to even say, because just by virtue of saying that to someone means that you don’t have a big ego.”
Dolly Parton and Carl DeanCourtesy of Dolly Parton/Instagram
Dolly Parton is one of the most beloved stars on the planet. As a singer, actress and philanthropist, she looms larger than life; as a wife, she kept a veil of privacy over her marriage to late husband Carl Dean, who died in March 2025 at the age of 82.
Parton and Dean tied the knot in 1966, just as her music career was getting off the ground. While she soared to fame, making her mark in both Nashville and Hollywood, Dean managed to stay out of the public eye. Their union stood the test of time, perhaps because she was famous and he was not, making for an easy, yin-yang balance.
“We’re the perfect partners,” Parton exclusively told Us Weekly in January 2022. “We both have a great sense of humor. … We’re able to solve any problem and any situation, making a joke about it and not letting it get too heavy, but we respect each other and we like each other. We lucked up, let’s put it that way.”
She continued: “You know, most people can keep a marriage [going strong] if you make a little effort. Some people just get slouching and lazy and about stuff that ain’t important, like leaving the toilet seat up. And if that’s the worst thing you’ve to worry about, you’re already in trouble.”
Here’s everything Parton has said about her late husband over the years:
Why Dean Stayed Out of the Spotlight
The “Jolene” singer addressed Dean’s aversion to the limelight in a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight.
“A lot of people have thought that [he doesn’t exist] through the years, because he does not want to be in the spotlight at all,” Parton told the outlet. “It’s just not who he is. He’s, like, a quiet, reserved person.”
She explained at the time that Dean “figured if he ever got out there in that, he’d never get a minute’s peace, and he’s right about that,” adding that she’s “always respected and appreciated” that side of him and has honored his wish for privacy.
“He said, ‘I didn’t choose this world, I chose you, and you chose that world. But we can keep our lives separate and together.’ And we do and we have,” Parton said. “We’ve been together 56 years, married 54.”
Parton and Dean Had a Shared Sense of Humor
“When people ask me why it’s lasted this long, I say, ‘Because I stay gone.’ And there’s a lot of truth in that — the fact that we’re not in each other’s faces all the time,” Parton explained in 2020. “But we do have a great respect and admiration for each other. We both have a great sense of humor. So, we have a lot of fun.”
Despite their different comfort levels with fame, the Steel Magnolias star has said that she and Dean traveled well together.
“We have very similar tastes,” she said. “We love to travel around our little RV, and we don’t like parties and all that stuff.”
Parton and Dean Rarely Bickered Throughout Their 60-year Marriage
“Any time [there is] too much tension going on, either one of us can, like, find a joke about it to really break the tension, where we don’t let it go so far,” Parton told the “Dumb Blonde” podcast in December 2024. “We never fought back and forth — and I’m glad we never did.”
Parton and Dean Had Compatible Zodiac Signs
According to Parton, she and Dean were astrologically matched.
“Well, he was a homebody, and that worked well for us,” she said in her “Dumb Blonde” interview. “He was in asphalt paving, but his sign is Cancer and I’m Capricorn, and those are compatible signs. The Capricorn is the mountain goat because it’s always climbing and the Cancer is more of a homebody. He really was. He wanted to be around home. I loved to go and see what else is out there, but I think that’s worked well for us.”
How They Met
The couple met outside a Nashville Wishy Washy laundromat in 1964.
“I left two boyfriends that had wanted to marry me and kept saying, ‘No, I’m gonna move to Nashville,’” Parton said in 2024, the year they celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. “I thought, ‘The last thing I want is a boyfriend,’ and so, I got here … the very day I got to Nashville, I met Carl Dean. And 60 years later, I’m still with Carl Dean!”
When Dean set eyes on Parton, “My first thought was I’m gonna marry that girl,” he revealed in a statement on their 50th anniversary in 2016. “My second thought was, ‘Lord she’s good lookin.’’ And that was the day my life began. I wouldn’t trade the last 50 years for nothing on this earth.”
As for Dolly, “I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me). He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”
Parton once “begged” Dean to attend her 1967 BMI Song of the Year award ceremony.
“I rented him a tux and begged him to go and, oh, he was so uncomfortable the whole night,” she recalled to “Dumb Blonde” host Bunnie Xo. “As soon as we hit the door, he started pulling off stuff. He said, ‘Look, now, I want you to do everything you want to do and I wish you the best, but don’t ever ask me to go to another one of these damn things because I ain’t going.’ And he never did!”
Despite his distaste for attending industry events, Dean would go on to celebrate the couple’s personal milestones — away from Parton’s devoted fanbase.
“He doesn’t even like to go out to dinner, so even on anniversaries we usually stay home and make something special,” she reminisced two months before Dean’s death. “Now, we will go to Mexican restaurants and sit in a booth. He loves that! We’ll go sit in a booth … we know where to go before the big crowds come, but he’s just special to me.”
How They Felt About Not Having Children
Parton and Dean never become parents — something neither seemed to regret.
“Now that Carl and I are older, we often say, ‘Aren’t you glad we didn’t have kids?’ Now we don’t have kids to worry about,” Parton told Billboard in 2014.
They Kept The Romance Alive
The “Here You Come Again” songstress celebrated Valentine’s Day with Dean by wearing “some little fun” outfit and showering Dean in presents.
“I always wear some heart-shaped something and I always get him several Valentine’s cards,” Parton revealed to Us Weeklyin 2022. “You know, cause when you start looking for cards, you find so many and you want ’em all.”
At the time, she filled Us in on her secret to maintaining the spark with her spouse.
“You find little ways,” said Parton, who was then 76 years old. “Like last year on his birthday, I dressed up in my Playboy bunny suit, made him breakfast and [ran] around in that for a little while.”
The Couple That Cooks Together, Stays Together
“I’m the better cook, but [Carl] actually can cook pretty good,” Parton told Us, adding that “every once in a while” she’d let her husband lend a hand in the kitchen. “I’ve been gone so much [that] he had to [learn to] cook, but he actually does pretty good. He knows how to cook the things he likes, but he loves my cooking better.”
“Can’t they put all the Housewives serving time in the same prison and just do a show from there?” Janetti, 58, quipped via Instagram on Wednesday, February 26.
The post prompted Cohen, 56, to reply in the comment section, writing: “too soon, Gary.”
Responding to Cohen, Gary wrote that his idea was “something to think about.”
Lisa Rinna also popped up in the comments, expressing her disapproval with Janetti in one word: “GARY.”
Janetti, who’s married to Hollywood stylist Brad Goreski, was an executive producer on Will and Grace and wrote for Family Guy. His Housewives prison concept came amid the news that Karen Huger — a star of The Real Housewives of Potomac — was sentenced to one year in jail after she was found guilty in her DUI trial.
“You were filled to the gills with alcohol,” the judge reportedly told Huger, 61, during Wednesday’s sentencing. She was expected to begin her sentence immediately.
In March 2024, Huger was involved in a car accident and charged with a DUI and DWI, negligently driving a vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner endangering property, life, and person, as well as recklessly driving a vehicle. That December, she was found guilty on all charges except for reckless driving.
“No, I’m not an alcoholic, let’s be clear,” she recently stated in a pre-taped video that aired during the RHOP reunion. “This is very frightening but I accept full responsibility for everything that went on with my car accident. I don’t care about me right now. I care about my children, I care about my family. They are so hurt.”
Huger missed the reunion taping to seek treatment and “get to the bottom” of “taking antidepressants and drinking.” In court Wednesday, her lawyer said that the “overuse of prescription medicine is what caused the accident.”
Previously, The Real Housewives of New Jersey’s Teresa Giudice served 11 months in jail (circa 2015) after being involved in a federal fraud scheme. And Luann de Lesseps famously spent one night in jail following her 2017 arrest for battery, trespassing and disorderly intoxication in Palm Beach, Florida. The Real Housewives of New York City alum accepted a plea deal in 2018 after completing two rehab treatments. De Lesseps addressed her brush with the law on camera, quipping: “I’ve been traveling, I’ve been to prison.”
Alan Cumming claims that his ex-wife Hilary Lyon initially expressed disbelief when he revealed he was a victim of childhood abuse.
Cumming, 60, detailed his difficult past in his 2014 memoir Not My Father’s Son, where he described being emotionally and physically abused by his dad, Alex Cumming.
The Traitors host spoke about his relationship with Alex on the Tuesday, February 25 episode of the podcast “Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky.”
“In that situation, you’re so worried about being believed. … And some people didn’t,” Cumming said.
When host Monica Lewinsky asked who’d doubted him, he replied: “My ex-wife.”
Without using Lyon’s name, Cumming added that he thought “she did, eventually” believe him. “But she told me that I used it as an excuse to get out of the marriage,” he said, noting that “she was angry” at the time.
“You’re so tender and you’re so raw that … you can’t be around people who don’t believe you,” Cumming told Lewinsky, 51. “It’s just too much. You can hardly believe it.”
Cumming and the actress were married from 1985 to 1993. In 2007, he and artist Grant Shaffer tied the knot in a London civil ceremony. The couple later remarried in New York on their fifth wedding anniversary.
“I’d had a lot of bad failed relationships, and I was ready to not have a bad one,” Cumming told People earlier this month. “There’s certain things that happened in my life that have made me who I am and made me understand myself so much better.”
He explained, “By the time I met Grant — we started going out with each other when we were nearly 40 — all those things had sort of come out and I had done a lot of therapy. I was ready to be honest and open about what I could bring to the table and what I felt I wasn’t capable of. We started our relationship just being very honest with each other.”
Cumming revealed in his People interview that he’d married Lyon partly out of a need to achieve stability in his life.
“That’s not a great thing to do,” Cumming said. “I wouldn’t recommend that. I was 21 when I got married the first time. I knew I was bisexual when I was married the first time, as did my wife.”
The Good Wife actor has been open about his sexuality for quite some time, telling Oasis magazine circa 2007, “For me, bisexual is a good thing, because it’s in the middle. Even now that I have a husband, who’s a man, I still find lots of people attractive.”
Cumming celebrated his milestone 60th birthday on January 27.
“I don’t want to conform or follow the pack or ‘act my age’ because that means allowing other people’s opinions to dictate my existence, and I have always found the more I stick to my guns and am prepared to be vulnerable and authentic and true to myself the more successful and happy I am.”
The Scottish Tony-and-Emmy winner has a long Hollywood resume that includes his role as political operator Eli Gold in the former CBS series The Good Wife as well as his appearances in the films Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion and Eyes Wide Shut. Since 2023, he’s hosted the hit Peacock show The Traitors, a mafia-style game with a prize of up to $250,000 and an eclectic group of celeb competitors.
Amanda de Cadenet(Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
Amanda de Cadenet says Michelle Trachtenberg called her from a “hospital bed” before her death at age 39.
The podcaster, 52, took to Instagram on Wednesday, February 26, to post a photo she’d taken of Trachtenberg when she was younger and mourn the loss of her longtime friend.
“What sad news this morning to wake up to,” de Cadenet wrote in a caption. “It feels weird and awful to be posting this, but I want to acknowledge your death because I cared about you. I will always remember you as the young vivacious woman I met when I took this photo of you … and seeing your face from the hospital bed when we FaceTimed recently, even though you did not look like you, your sweetness and humor were still alive. I’m so sad for you that the outcome was not a better one. Wishing you a peaceful transition sweet friend and may your spirit finally rest.”
Police sources confirmed to Us Weekly earlier on Wednesday that Trachtenberg was found unconscious inside her New York City apartment. No cause of death has been reported, and the incident is not believed to be suspicious.
Trachtenberg’s representative later addressed the news in a statement, telling Us on Wednesday, “It is with great sadness to confirm that Michelle Trachtenberg has passed away. The family requests privacy for their loss. There are no further details at this time.”
The tragedy sparked an outpouring of tributes from the actress’ famous friends and loyal fans.
“She was electricity,” Blake Lively, who costarred with Trachtenberg on Gossip Girl, stated via Instagram on Wednesday. “You knew when she entered a room because the vibration changed. Everything she did, she did 200%. She laughed the fullest at someone’s joke, she faced authority head on when she felt something was wrong, she cared deeply about her work, she was proud to be a part of this community and industry as painful as it could be sometimes, she was fiercely loyal to her friends and brave for those she loved, she was big and bold and distinctly herself.”
Prior to appearing on The CW series, Trachtenberg played Dawn Summers on the last two seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
“My heart is heavy today. We have lost a beautiful soul,” James Marsters, who portrayed Spike on the series, wrote via Instagram. “Michelle was fiercely intelligent, howlingly funny and a very talented person. She died much too young, and leaves behind scores of people who knew and loved her. … Godspeed Michelle. You are missed.”
The Barstool Sports personality recently claimed that the country singer offered her $12 million to sign an NDA, ensuring that she would never publicly speak about their past relationship. (Us Weekly has reached out to Bryan’s team multiple times for comment.)
On Tuesday, February 25, TMZ approached LaPaglia, 25, at Los Angeles International Airport and asked whether she regretted not signing the document — and taking the money.
“No, no, no, no,” she told the outlet. “That’s, like, devil’s money. I don’t want someone else’s money.”
When a TMZ reporter said that $12 million was a lot of money, she replied, “Yeah, I know, but that’s OK. I’ll make my own money. Twelve million’s kind of excessive. What am I gonna do with that?”
LaPaglia was also asked about her current dating situation.
“I don’t really have time for a boyfriend,” she said, noting that she’s “too busy” to date.
She said she’d like to meet someone who’s “hardworking” and “just nice” — but he can’t be a musician, as she’ll “never” date another. When the TMZ reporter asked whether she’d consider “someone who works at Burger King,” she responded, “I’m not opposed to it. I’m not opposed to anybody at this point!”
Last month, LaPaglia was hooked up to a lie detector test during an episode of her “BFFs” podcast when cohost Josh Richards questioned her about Bryan.
“Do you know if Zach’s exes signed NDAs?” Richards, 23, asked. LaPaglia replied, “Yes.”
Richards followed up by asking whether LaPaglia knew “which exes” signed the paperwork.
“I know two exes signed NDAs,” she replied, ending the conversation without naming names.
Prior to LaPaglia, Bryan was in two semi-public relationships. He married Rose Madden in 2020 but filed for divorce the following year. Bryan went public with Deb Peifer that same year. He announced their breakup in May 2023 and moved on with LaPaglia shortly afterward.
LaPaglia revealed in November 2024 that she and Madden had FaceTimed.
“I f—ing love her. I’ve never felt more seen and validated in my life,” LaPaglia said on the “BFFs” podcast at the time. “Oh, my gosh. She’s a great person.”
Millie Bobby Brown and Jake Bongiovi(Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Millie Bobby Brown and husband Jake Bongiovi brought a dose of old-school glamour to the premiere of The Electric State in Los Angeles.
The couple hit the black carpet on Monday, February 24, posing for photos outside The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood. Brown, 21, looked regal in a metallic gown that boasted delicate embroidery and dramatic draping, which she accessorized with a short jacket in matching fabric, a gold beaded choker necklace and diamond drop earrings. The actress’ golden blond hair was swept into an updo, and she flaunted a shimmery silver shadow on her eyelids.
Brown stars alongside Chris Pratt and Stanley Tucci in Netflix’s The Electric State, a sci-fi film set to premiere March 14.
Her dashing date, 22-year-old Bongiovi, sported a black-and-white tuxedo and a floppy hairstyle reminiscent of Leonardo DiCaprio’s Titanic ‘do at Monday’s premiere.
The Stranger Things star and Bongiovi — a model, actor and son of musician Jon Bon Jovi — tied the knot in May 2024 after two years of dating and are now living on a farm in Georgia, a low-key lifestyle that she finds fulfilling.
“I’m not doing it for the aesthetic,” Brown told Vanity Fair in an interview published earlier this month. “I’m doing it because I love it.”
She said that she feels her happiest on the farm, regularly going off the grid by unplugging her phone and letting others handle her social media. And while she enjoys the rustic life, she does not subscribe to the “trad wife” trend.
“There are maybe some trad wives out there doing it because it seems wholesome, but it is not,” Brown said. “If you’re not picking up horse s— or washing a cow with your bare hands, then that life is not made for you. At all.”
Bongiovi is also enjoying a slower pace away from the spotlight.
“We were pretty united going into it,” Brown said of her man. “We talked about our political views, what kind of family we want to build, the kind of home we want to live in, the kind of relationship we’re looking for, the kind of careers we want. It’s such an important decision, and we wanted to make sure we were making the right one. I knew I was. It always felt right with him.”
Brown previously opened up about how she and Bongiovi first met, revealing that they first connected on Instagram, instantly hitting it off from their initial conversation.
“I was curious about him and wanted to learn more,” she told The Sunday Times in August 2023. “From our very first chat, I knew he was going to play a significant role in my life. After we met, it was clear we never wanted to be apart.”
Patrick and Brittany, both 29, attended the Texas Tech vs. University of Houston game in Lubbock, Texas, on Monday, February 24. Patrick, who previously played football for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, was caught on the Jumbotron sporting a huge grin, shorter hair and red-and-black merch from his alma mater. (Brittany wore the team’s colors too.)
It was the latest loss for a team near and dear to Patrick’s heart, but this time he wasn’t a participating athlete. Earlier this month, the star quarterback and his Kansas City Chiefs lost their Super Bowl battle to the Philadelphia Eagles 40-22. Patrick bid farewell to his iconic mohawk hairstyle and debuted a shorter cut several days after the defeat.
Not surprisingly, Patrick’s new look, first seen at a family event, sparked lots of conversation online.
“Mahomes finally got rid of the mohawk and that could only mean one thing!” one fan wrote via X on February 17. “MVP and SBMVP season loading…redemption season.”
Patrick previously signaled that a hair change was in the works. While appearing in Netflix’s 2023 docuseries Quarterback, he admitted that he was considering changing up his signature curls.
“Hair’s gone next year. Going with different hair next year,” he told his trainer, Bobby Stroupe. “I can’t have two kids and a Mohawk. ‘Cause I gotta be a dad at some point. … Imagine being 40 years old with this haircut.”
In January, Patrick and Brittany welcomed their third child, daughter Golden Raye. The NFL power couple, who tied the knot in March 2022, are already parents of daughter Sterling and son Bronze, who arrived in February 2021 and November 2022, respectively.
Patrick is focused on family amid the offseason. On Saturday, February 23, he and his wife hosted a celebratory Bluey-themed gathering in honor of Sterling turning 4 years old.
“I think people don’t even realize how much she does,” Patrick said of Brittany during a May 2024 appearance on the “Impaulsive” podcast. “I mean, taking care of the day-to-day stuff and make it where I can focus on football and focus on my craft and everything like that. [She’s] a Hall of Fame mom and a Hall of Fame wife, [which] makes it a lot easier.”
He continued, “I mean, when you get to come home and your best friend’s there and you can just hang out, it makes you want to be there all the time and she pushes me to be great and she’s done a lot of great things herself.”
The couple hit the black carpet on Monday, February 24, posing for pics outside The Egyptian Theatre Hollywood. Both wore spring-like ensembles. Pratt, 45, sported a dusty lavender suit and white dress shoes, while Schwarzenegger, 35, looked chic in a strapless black top and black pants with white floral embroidery. She accessorized with white heels and minimal jewelry.
Pratt stars alongside Millie Bobby Brown and Stanley Tucci in Netflix’s The Electric State, a sci-fi film set to premiere March 14.
The event marked Pratt and Schwarzenegger’s first major outing since the birth of their son, Ford, in November 2024. The pair, who tied the knot in June 2019 after one year of dating, also share daughters Lyla, 4, and Eloise, 2. (Pratt is also the father of son Jack, 12, whom he shares with first wife Anna Faris. He and Faris, 48, were married from 2009 to 2018.)
“I love the idea of having a lot of kids around and a big family,” Katherine, the daughter of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, told Us Weekly in 2022. “Whatever God has in his plan for us is what we’ll do.”
The self-help author added at the time that she often turns to Shriver, 69, for parenting advice.
“I feel really lucky to be able to have obviously an amazing role model in my mom, and just being able to see how she balances it all,” she gushed. “Just learning from her, being able to bounce things off of her and, at the end of the day, just knowing that family time is the most important time.”
Both Schwarzenegger and Pratt routinely sing each other’s praises via social media.
“I simply can’t imagine how lost I’d be without you,” Pratt wrote of his wife in 2021. “You’re beautiful, tough as nails, reasonable, deeply thoughtful, extraordinarily smart, you’re a complete boss, eternally driven and you communicate like no other.”
He thanked her “for being so instrumental in my growth over the past few years. We fit so perfectly into each other’s lives that our Union is a daily reminder that God is looking out for us. Navigating the odd circumstances of our world is a task I cannot handle alone. And I’m so grateful I don’t have to.”
As for Schwarzenegger, she paid tribute to her Marvel star husband on his 43rd birthday, writing via Instagram: “I feel like the luckiest in the world to live life with you. You’re the most loving father, the most supportive partner and you have the biggest heart and we are so blessed to feel and witness your love. Happy happy handsome.”
Eric Mabius has pleaded not guilty after being arrested for allegedly ripping a woman’s hair out.
Mabius, 53, submitted the plea through his attorney on Monday, February 24, in court in Nassau County, Florida. He also waived the right of appearance at pre-trial hearings in the case.
The actor, who’s best known for his leading role on ABC’s Ugly Betty, was arrested on Thursday, February 20, and booked into the Nassau County Jail and Detention Center, which released a mug shot in which Mabius is seen with a laceration next to his right eye. At the time, an arrest record explained that he was taken into custody for battery and resisting arrest without violence.
However, new details have emerged that give a fuller picture of the ordeal. According to a police report obtained by Us Weekly, Mabius was involved in a fight with two women, Jennifer Moreno and Amelia Bell, at a bar in Yulee, Florida, last Thursday. The altercation resulted in both Mabius and Moreno’s battery arrests.
After arriving on the scene, a police officer “observed a white male trying to help [Moreno] stand. They were both extremely intoxicated and kept trying to yell at everyone in the bar. I escorted them outside to try to separate everyone. [Moreno] just laid on the ground and refused to listen and or speak.” Meanwhile, Mabius “became more belligerent” and did not follow “simple commands to just sit on the bench.” At one point, he “tried to stand up and walk behind” the officer while he was investigating the incident.
Bell told police that Moreno had been allegedly “disrespectful to everyone at the bar” and was repeatedly asked to leave. She claimed that Moreno “began to spit on several people and then looked at [Bell] as if she was going to spit on her.” Bell alleged that Moreno started to push her after she told her to exit the bar. Then Mabius got involved, Bell claimed, knocking both her and Moreno to the ground.
Bell “said this only took a few seconds but while she was on the ground Eric got on top of her and was pulling her hair” and “ripping a handful of her hair from her scalp,” the report stated, citing Bell’s recollection.
A witness named Michael Webb told police that he had been spit on by Moreno and watched as Mabius “slung both girls to the ground.” Webb “grabbed Eric off” them while police were on the way to the bar.
The day of his arrest, Mabius was ordered by a court not to contact Bell or be within 500 feet of her home, vehicle or place of employment.
Mabius appeared on all four seasons of Ugly Betty as Daniel Meade, the editor-in-chief of Mode magazine. Mabius’ television credits also include Party of Five, The L Word and Popular.
Most recently, Mabius appeared in a number of Hallmark Channel originals, including playing Oliver O’Toole in the Signed, Sealed & Delivered franchise. He also appeared in 2019’s It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, 2022’s Haul Out the Holly and 2023’s Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up, all Hallmark original films.
Danielle Fishelmay have many fond memories of her time on Boy Meets World, but returning for the show’s spinoff, Girl Meets World, was an entirely different — and “difficult” — experience.
After portraying the role of Topanga for seven seasons on the ABC ‘90s hit, Fishel, 43, returned for the Disney Channel revival from 2014 to 2017.
“It was a very, very difficult set,” the actress recalled in the Monday, February 23 episode of her “Pod Meets World” podcast, which she cohosts alongside her former Boy Meets World costars Rider Strong and Will Friedle.
“Let’s put it this way: The memories we have of the fun set of Boy Meets World were not the memories [from the] set of Girl Meets World,” she continued. “It just wasn’t. And I went into it hoping it was going to be. I went into it expecting it to be. And it wasn’t. It was a rather tumultuous place. It was a place I felt very ostracized. I felt very criticized. I felt a lot of different things being on that set.”
Fishel added: “That was not the set of Danielle being carefree and running around shaking hands and kissing babies.”
Girl Meets World offered a fresh, girl-centric update on the original series, centering on the life of 12-year-old Riley Matthews (Rowan Blanchard), the daughter of Topanga and lifetime love Cory (Ben Savage).
Fishel discussed her feelings about Girls Meets World during a heated argument with Maitland Ward — who portrayed Rachel on seasons 6 and 7 of BMW — and appeared as a guest on Monday’s “Pod Meets World.” Ward, 48, had previously accused Fishel of holding a grudge against her for years since the first series ended in 2000.
The tense exchange kicked off when Fishel asked Ward, “Do you hate us?” Ward replied, “No, I do not hate you. I think that you hate me because you wouldn’t speak to me on Girl Meets World and that was hurtful.”
Ward’s claim seemingly took Fishel by surprise.
“I wouldn’t speak to you? I did talk to you,” she recalled to Ward, who claimed that Fishel “didn’t like the fact” that she was “getting a lot of attention at that time.”
“Boy Meets World” cast.YouTube
Fishel appeared to cast off Ward’s recollection as a misunderstanding, especially given how Fishel was feeling at the time.
She said that “absolutely, in every experience we have had on the show, where people have finally talked about things that have never been talked about in the 20 or 30 years since they’ve happened. Or 10 or 20 years since they’ve happened. When it then comes up, every single time there’s a reveal, which is like, ‘Oh, you know what? I made this a personal thing.’”
She told Ward, “I’m sorry that you thought it was about you.”
Ward also claimed during the episode there is a “divide” between those involved in the two shows because Fishel, along with Strong and Friedle, “hate Ben [Savage] and you guys hate [series creator] Michael [Jacobs].”
The hosts denied hating either, with Friedle — who played Savage’s brother, Eric — saying his onscreen sibling was “one of the most important people I’ve ever met in my life, and I can’t stand the fact that he won’t speak to us. And that’s what it is: He won’t speak to us.” Friedle alleged “in the middle of a conversation with Ben, he just bailed on me.”
Fishel, meanwhile, defended stories she has previously said on the podcast that involve Jacobs as her boss, claiming they are not “negative’ but simply stories about her past experience.
“The same way you wrote your book about your experiences doesn’t mean that they’re negative. They’re just experiences,” Fishel told Ward. “So you don’t listen to the podcast regularly, but your overall opinion of it is that we are negative about Michael and Ben and the show.”
Strong, for his part, added, “If I’m talking about Michael yelling at me, that’s my experience. I was yelled at. I watched him do things. I can describe that, that’s the truth.”
“You know, a lot of people are reaching out to me and they want me to get them an update,” the Real Housewife said through tears in the Wednesday, February 19 episode of iHeartRadio’s “Two Ts in a Pod” podcast, which Judge and Mellencamp cohost. Dolores Catania filled in for Mellencamp while she recovers from brain tumor surgery.
“And because nobody’s saying anything, people are coming up with their own stories and things like that,” Judge, 57, continued. “It’s not my place. What do you guys want me to do? Do you want me to take pictures from the hospital and post them? I’m not doing that.”
Judge said that “some people are getting mean with me, going, ‘Why won’t you give us an update?’ And I just said, ‘I’m so sorry. I know you’re concerned, but it’s not my place. It’s not my place.’ All I can do is pray on her and love her like all of her friends are doing. And that’s it.”
Judge said that Mellencamp’s “family, her friends, myself, everybody — we’re just trying to put one foot in front of the other right now.”
She did share that she spoke with Mellencamp, 43, “before her surgery and she really wants this podcast to continue. It’s her pride and joy, and she’s so good at it, and she wants the momentum to keep going. And she just wants everybody to know that when she can get back, she’ll be back.”
Tamra Judge and Teddi Mellencamp(Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for iHeartRadio)
Judge cried while recalling that recent conversation, in which she told Mellencamp: “No one will ever take your place.”
“For the last several weeks I’ve been dealing with severe debilitating headaches,” she said via Instagram at the time. “Yesterday the pain was unbearable and required hospitalization.”
Mellencamp explained that a CT scan and MRI detected the tumors, which doctors “believe have been growing for at least 6 months.” She noted last Wednesday that two of those tumors would be taken out in surgery that day, while the other “small tumors will be dealt with via radiation at a later date.”
Judge said on “Two Ts in a Pod” that she’s in a group text with other women and coordinating visitation schedules “because we don’t ever want her to be alone.” She noted that she’d spent eight hours visiting with Mellencamp, whose “sense of humor is poking through.”
Judge said of her friend, “I just don’t even know what I would do without her.”
She also thanked her former Real Housewives of Orange County costar Vicki Gunvalson for sending well wishes to Mellencamp despite “all the bad blood between her and Teddi. I heard that she did go on her podcast and say, like, ‘Teddi doesn’t deserve this,’ and she’s praying for her and all the things that went down between them [don’t] matter when it comes to cancer and things — like, it doesn’t. We appreciate that. We really do.”
Kadance Fredericksen, a Miss Florida Teen USA contestant, died in a car crash just “three minutes from home,” says her mother, Lisa Fredericksen.
Lisa, 48, spoke with Peoplefor a story published on Wednesday, February 19, two days after Kadance’s death at the age of 18. The teen was driving in Santa Rosa County on Monday, February 17, when her car went over the center line and crashed head-on into a tractor-trailer. Kadance was pronounced dead at the scene.
“She was literally three minutes from home,” Lisa told the outlet, adding, “I have no idea what happened.”
Neither did the Florida Highway Patrol when they filed their report on Monday’s crash, stating that Kadance’s vehicle had crossed into the opposite lane “for reasons unknown.” An investigation into the tragedy continues.
Lisa adopted Kadance seven years ago; her daughter had been abused earlier in her childhood. In 2024, Kadance was a finalist for the Miss Florida Teen USA title and was also crowned Miss Okaloosa County Teen USA.
“She came home one day and she said, ‘Mama, can I do a beauty pageant?’ “And I said, ‘Well, yeah, but if you do a beauty pageant, you have to talk in front of people,’ because she still didn’t talk a whole lot,” Lisa said in her People interview, adding, “And she did it. She bought the ugliest dress she could find because she just wanted to be like a princess. She didn’t win a thing. But she was hooked.”
Kadance had raised more than $25,000 for the Ronald McDonald House since volunteering at the charity starting in 2017. That year, she founded Kada’s Promise, which provides teddy bears and blankets to kids in foster care, homeless shelters, abuse shelters and hospitals.
“During many dark times in my early childhood, the only thing that I could call my own or that made me feel safe was a single teddy bear that I received as a gift,” Kadance explained in a message on the organization’s website. “I carried him with me from house to house, couch to couch and clutched him tightly in the scariest times. It is from these memories that Kada’s Promise was born.”
According to Lisa, Kadance was the “most kindhearted” person and “only wanted everybody to be happy.” Her goal was to become a veterinarian. The day before she died, she had been awarded a full-ride scholarship at Mississippi State University, one of nine colleges that had accepted her as a student.
“Our pageant community has lost a beautiful soul — one who was a true light in this world,” Kadance’s Miss Florida and Teen Florida USA Family said in a statement Tuesday.
“She was ambitious, driven, kind, and a leader among her pageant sisters,” they continued. “Our thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends, and all who are mourning this devastating loss. May we honor her memory by carrying forward the light she so effortlessly shared with the world and our Florida pageant community.”
A$AP Rocky and Rihanna outside a Los Angeles courthouse on February 18.(Photo by DUTCH/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
ASAP Rocky and Rihannahave allegedly made a big promise to lawyer Joe Tacopina after the rapper was found not guilty following a 2021 shooting incident.
Tacopina, who represented Rocky in court, claimed that the couple promised to name their next baby after him during an interview with Extra published Wednesday, February 19.
“They grabbed me and they said, ‘Listen, our next baby A$AP Joe,’” Tacopina told the outlet. “I said, ‘I’m gonna hold you to that!’”
The lawyer added that Rocky “told me he loved me and we’re family.”
The Los Angeles court’s verdict was delivered on Tuesday, February 18, after which the rapper could be seen leaping into Rihanna’s arms. (The power couple, both 36, began dating in the summer of 2020 and share two young sons together, RZA, 2, and Riot, 18 months.)
“He didn’t know if he was going to go home and see his two babies that night or start a decade-long prison sentence literally that day,” Tacopina told Extra. “He grabbed me and he said, ‘Joe, I want you to know, I know how hard you fought here. I know everything you’ve done, and I just appreciate you so much.’”
He continued: “It’s obviously a very serious moment for him, and he has the wherewithal and the thought to think, ‘Let me thank this guy.’ It was special that he did that.”
Rocky had been charged with two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic weapon. Tacopina got worried when the first count was read and Rocky immediately ran toward Rihanna.
“I told my partner, ‘Get him back here, we have another count,’” he said. “I’m thinking, ‘My God, if the second count doesn’t go well, this is gonna be embarrassing.’ But of course it did, and I was confident it was going to.’”
Rihanna took to social media on Tuesday to break her silence on Rocky’s verdict, writing via her Instagram Story, “The glory belongs to God and God alone! Thankful, humbled by his mercy!” The “We Found Love” singer added a prayer hands emoji to the post.
While she didn’t testify during the trial, she showed her support by appearing in the courtroom on multiple occasions. Prior to her Instagram Story, Rihanna had not publicly commented on the trial or Rocky’s stance.
Five witnesses had testified for the prosecution over eight days about the case in which Rocky was accused of firing four or five shots at childhood friend-turned-enemy ASAP Relli (born Terell Ephron) on a Hollywood street in 2021. Relli took the stand during the trial, testifying that his knuckles were grazed during the confrontation, but he was otherwise not hurt.
