Dina's Dirt at 6:40
Britney Spears' former friend and manager, Sam Lutfi, has released some voicemail messages allegedly from Britney, proving that she's been fighting to end her conservatorship for years. Sam posted clips on Instagram, which Sam says are from 2009, Britney can be heard saying, "I want out of this conservatorship. I've been blackmailed by visitation with my babies by the conservatorship. I'm confined, restrained, and stripped of my civil rights." In another message, she said, "My father has threatened me several times, that you know, he'll take my children away." Read more of the messages at okmagazine.com. Sam commented on all of Britney's messages, "There was never anyone on the inside that would help. These calls are to my phone, these calls cost me a ton of money in court, tarnished my name further but also tore my soul apart, I had no idea where to turn, no one was listening no one seemed to care." It's worth noting, Britney's family blamed Sam for her breakdown, and he had been accused of controlling her and intentionally keeping her drugged up and confused. Britney was actually granted a restraining order against Sam back in 2008 when her conservatorship began, but people wonder, was it her or her father who wanted it?
Jean-Claude Van Damme was involved in a jewelry heist, but he didn't know it. A well-dressed man reportedly held up a high-end jewelry store in Paris earlier this week, according to TMZ. Police say he pulled a knife during the robbery, and took off with anywhere between $2.4 million and $3.5 million in jewels. His getaway vehicle? A green, electric scooter. While all this is happening, Jean-Claude had just come out of a nearby optometrist's office. Anyone that could have been a potential witness or even stop the guy was too distracted by the famous actor. Surveillance cameras did end up helping with the investigation, and TMZ confirmed they arrested two suspects in connection with the heist, recovering a large amount of the stolen jewelry.
New "Real Housewives of Orange County" star Dr. Jen Armstrong is being sued for messing up fillers on one of her patient's faces and causing her to become disfigured. The woman says that after multiple attempts to fix the fillers in her face, Dr. Armstrong promised everything would be fine. It wasn't, and she had to go to another doctor to fix the damage. Since Dr. Armstrong didn't fix the damage caused or refund the woman her money, the woman is suing. Read more with radaronline.com.
A piece of cake from Princess Diana and Prince Charles' wedding from July 29, 1981 is going up for sale on August 11, with the winning bid is expected to be around $700. The slice, which has been wrapped in plastic and stored in a tin (presumably in a freezer?) features a decorative royal coat of arms (see it at tmz.com). According to TMZ, the slice of wedding cake was given by the Queen Mother (Queen Elizabeth's mom) to Moyra Smith, whose family sold the cake in 2008 to a collector. The piece comes with a royal wedding breakfast program, details on the ceremony, and an order of service for the wedding. Forty-year-old wedding cake? Yeah, I'd take my chances.
Dina's Dirt at 7:40
Shakira is facing potential jail time after a judge ruled the singer should go to trial for tax evasion in Spain. According to Radar, after a three-year investigation, Judge Marco Juberías said he found "sufficient evidence of criminality" to move forward with the trial. In 2019, Shakira was charged with failing to pay $16.4 million in taxes to Spain between 2012 and 2014, despite living in the country most of that time. Her PR firm says, "Shakira has always fulfilled her tax duties in all those countries in which she has worked, including in the period between 2011 and 2014. There is currently no debt." Is jail a real possibility? Yes, but Associated Press points out that a judge can waive jail time for first-time offenders if their sentence is under two years.
George Clooney and his family were among those caught in the devastating floods and mudslides that hit northern Italy earlier this week. He, Amal, and their four-year-old twins were vacationing at their Lake Como holiday home in Laglio. More than 60 people had to be rescued after trees and rocks washed down a nearby mountainside. They swept past the George's 18th century Villa Oleadra, but no one was hurt and there was no property damage. According to The Sun, George said, "It's so much worse than anybody thinks…They think it could be years and millions of dollars before they fix it up."
Britney Spears' new attorney, Mathew Rosengart, reportedly wants to hire a new conservator to investigate her finances because he and Britney suspect that "money is missing." According to Radar, a source said, "She has made millions that her attorney believes are unaccounted for, and Britney doesn't know where it went. The opposing counsels' team hasn't answered many questions about it either." The source added, "If her money was stolen or used in an unlawful manner, Jason [the new conservator] will look into the person or persons responsible and where the money went. The conservator cannot use the conservatee's bank account like an ATM." According to the documents, Britney's net worth is approximately $57 million, which is much lower than other artists who have been on less tours and sold fewer albums.
The first female "Doctor Who," Jodie Whittaker, who has played the 13th doctor since 2017, is leaving the show. She'll exit after her third season, appearing in a six-part event and three specials.
Lizzo gave fans a hint about her next record. Responding to a question about a new album coming, she joked that she wasn't making one, while showing herself in the studio with none other than music producer Mark Ronson. Lizzo also took to TikTok to respond to a fake claim that she once killed someone when she stage dived. "That rumor ... it's a lie," she said. "first of all, I've never stage dived in my life. And b****, kill somebody!? You all really gonna put that on my mother*****g name? Like, I know I'm big, but b****, I'm not that f*****g big." She proved her point by a running and leaping onto her bed. And in case you were wondering, she stuck the landing (sorry, I'm in Olympics mode).
Dina's Dirt at 8:40
Disney better watch its mouse tail – Scarlett Johansson is coming after them for cutting into her earnings. Remember when I told you that theaters were upset that Disney released "Black Widow" on their streaming service on July 9th, the same day the movie came out in theaters? Theater ticket sales have gone down sharply since the film was released nearly three weeks ago, and if it continues to decline, "Black Widow" could be one of the lowest-grossing Marvel movies in history. It doesn't make sense considering the film made $318 million worldwide at the box office and set a new pandemic record with in-theater ticket sales and Disney+ streams opening weekend. According to a lawsuit filed by Scarlett's team, Disney breached Scarlett's contract by not debuting the film exclusively in theaters, considering much of her compensation was tied to the box office performance of "Black Widow," according to Variety. WSJ estimates it cost her $50 million in lost bonuses that were based off theater performance. On top of that, the lawsuit says that Scarlett's people spoke to Disney when there were whispers of a dual release and said that if they planned a non-traditional release, that they'd have to bring it up to Scarlett. They say they have emails between Scarlett and Disney talking about a guarantee of "Black Widow" only being released in theaters on opening day. Meanwhile, Disney has responded, saying the lawsuit has no legs and that she's already gotten $20-million for the movie. Read more with dlisted.com.
Jodi Montgomery, who oversees Britney Spears' personal care, has filed documents stating she supports Britney in her efforts to remove her father as her conservator. According to legal documents obtained by TMZ, Britney's doctors and therapists are also supporting her and have stated that it would be in her best interest if her father is removed entirely from the conservatorship. Britney has even said she's ready to get back to work if the CPA she wants to replace her dad is the one to pursue her entertainment deals. The judge has yet to rule. Read more with Radar.
"Beverly Hills, 90210" actress Tori Spelling is back in the hospital. She shared a pic on her Instagram Story in a medical room with IVs connected to her. She captioned the post, which she has since deleted, "sinus surgery part 2..." Is that code for nose job?
Blake Shelton shared details about his wedding to Gwen Stefani – or Gwen Stefani Shelton, as he is calling her. For his bride, Blake wrote a song, which he performed on their wedding day. He said, "I started trying to write a song because that's kind of the opposite of what she would have expected me to do, because I'm to the point where I just don't write that many songs anymore. It's just like pulling teeth for me and something she's always on my case about — she just beats me up about it constantly, about [how] I should write." Granted, he had a little help from a fellow songwriter, but it was mostly him. He's now deciding whether or not to release it to the public, saying, "I think it's something I want to share because I'm really proud of it. To me, a marriage, a ceremony, you're not keeping it private when you get married to somebody — you're announcing to the world, 'Hey, this is my wife, just so everybody knows.' That's why we wear these rings. And I feel that way about the song. It's like, for me, something that I want people to hear and know because I'm proud to be married to Gwen and so proud of that song." Aww! Read more with OK! In the meantime, he has a message for those who were upset about not getting invited to the wedding or even finding out about it until after the fact (yes, you, Adam Levine); "Get over it!"
