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Damon Dash is duping the general public about an upcoming movie he claims to have ties to when he really had nothing to do with it at all ... according to a new lawsuit.

The legendary hip-hop mogul is being sued by director Josh Webber and Muddy Water Pictures for allegedly trying to advertise and shop a movie he was once a part of -- but later dropped from -- and pushing it as his own flick ... causing confusion in the marketplace.

In the doc, obtained by TMZ, Josh and MWP say Dame has been sending promotional material to outlets like BET for a movie he's been calling "The List" ... which Josh and MWP say has actually been renamed "Dear Frank" since Dame's departure.

Here's the deal ... Josh and MWP claim Dame was tied to the project back in 2016 and was supposed to direct. Unfortunately, they say Dame proved to not be up to the task ... as they allege he was often high on set while they shot at his Sherman Oaks property.

Josh and MWP say they officially dropped Dame in 2018, since no official contract was ever signed between the parties ... and they went on to make the film, which is due out in February and stars Claudia Jordan. But now, Josh and MWP say Dame has been trying to push himself as part of the project ... even though he isn't.

They're suing Dame for defamation and copyright infringement -- and are asking a judge to declare once and for all that they, in fact, own the rights to "Dear Frank." Josh and MWP also want damages.

Chick-fil-A is punting on the opportunity to score LOTS of potential cash by refusing to open up one very important location for Super Bowl Sunday.

Sources connected to the fast-food chain tell us the Chick-fil-A stand inside Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium -- where Super Bowl LIII will be played in a couple weeks -- will, in fact, remain closed on Feb. 3 ... just like every other Sunday before it.

We're told that although the MBS location won't be open, Chick-fil-A is still one of the corporate sponsors for the Atlanta Super Bowl Host Committee ... and our sources say CfA is happy to be there in spirit and through its donation to JFK Park.

Much to the chagrin of foodies everywhere, Chick-fil-A notoriously closes up shop on Sundays to give employees a much-needed day off to be with family or go to church.

That's why folks were thrown for a loop back in 2017 when a location sprung up inside MBS, where the Falcons play on Sundays. The operator has said there's tons of other events happening at MBS throughout the year -- enough so, apparently, to make it worth their while.

Just to give you a sense of how much of a cash cow Chick-fil-A is ignoring for this upcoming game -- it could be in the ballpark of half a mil, more or less. Probably more, though.

This guy says they've sold as many as 5,000 sandwiches in one night. Considering Super Bowl stadiums have hit 100,000-plus attendees in recent years ... that's a potential $409,000 Chick-fil-A is losing out on if everyone bought just one of their basic sandwiches.

Cardi B wants to return to the way things were ... before her split with Offset.

The rapper shared a screenshot Tuesday morning of a FaceTime chat with her husband -- who she split with in December -- and their daughter, Kulture. She captioned it ... "I wanna go home."

As you know, Offset's been very public about his desire to reconcile with Cardi, but she hasn't been as forthcoming ... other than announcing how much she misses his penis. It seems she's longing for some family time with him now, though.

Of course, the couple have been together since their split -- including a jet ski-riding vacation in Puerto Rico -- and we broke the story ... they were working on fixing their marriage in 2019, with Offset vowing to change his ways and be faithful and honest with her.

Still, Cardi hadn't given any clear indicators she was fully on board with the plan ... until now.

A local Brit tried his darndest to hawk debris left behind from Prince Philip's car crash last week -- and got pretty close to the finish line before eBay pulled the plug.

An eBay user known as morbius777 put the listing up sometime over the weekend and advertised it as "Prince Philip Car Crash Parts." The items for auction included three plastic parts from the car wreck, and what looks like a bunch of broken glass that the user apparently picked up off the side of the road, where Philip crashed on Thursday.

morbius777 also claimed that some of the debris "may even have Phil's DNA on it, if you wanted to clone him or something." Prior to eBay yanking the listing on Tuesday, bids had gone as high as £65,900 ... which is a little more than $85,000 with 5 days left.

The user claimed in his post description that the proceeds would've gone to cancer research efforts in the U.K., but eBay wasn't having it. They pulled the post, citing a policy of theirs that'd been violated.

An eBay spokesperson reportedly said, "This listing has been removed in line with our policy relating to the sale of any item that seeks to profit from human suffering or tragedy."

As we reported ... police are investigating the crash and will take any "appropriate action" by the time they're finished. One of the people who was injured in the other car claims police have been ignoring her and that her injuries were seriously downplayed.

Seems Ben Simmons is getting more serious about Kendall Jenner -- because he sat his girlfriend with his MOTHER at the 76ers game on Monday!

Check out Kendall rubbing elbows with Julie Simmons at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia -- where Ben and the 76ers beat up on the Houston Rockets in a 121 to 93 victory.

Ben's stat line wasn't spectacular -- only 9 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds. And, he only hit 3 of 12 shots, which is bad for him (he usually shoots well over 50%).

But, who cares about individual stats when your team wins, right?

Plus, the most important question ... did Kendall and Mom get along?! Pretty well actually. The two were seen smiling and chatting. Good times.

It's not the first time they've kicked it together -- Kendall and Julie hung out at a game back in November 2018 and got along great then too.

Ben and Kendall have been dating on and off since May 2018. The next big question ... when does Julie get to come to L.A. to meet the rest of the Kardashians??

Alexis Skyy will NOT meet Blac Chyna and Rob Kardashian's baby girl -- EVER -- 'cause there's a rule in place to prevent that.

Sources close to Chyna tell TMZ that she and Rob have an agreement to not introduce any significant others to their daughter, Dream, within the first 6 months of dating. This is an increasingly common restriction in custody cases, and for good reason. It's not good for a child to develop attachments to people who come and go ... especially after their parents break up.

The operative word in this case is ... relationship. Our sources say, Chyna believes Alexis and Rob are not actually into each other and are only publicly flirting to get under BC's skin. She's convinced that whatever is going on between Rob and Alexis ... it will NEVER last 6 months.

As one source told us, Chyna thinks Alexis is hanging with Rob 'cause she's clout chasing. FWIW, Alexis went on a follow frenzy shortly after Rob called her his WCW, and shortly after her and Blac Chyna's scuffle last weekend ... following just about all of Rob's sisters.

As we've told you ... Chyna confronted Alexis at a house party last week to call her out about past interactions Alexis had with Rob, that Chyna found inappropriate ... especially since BC and Rob were still together at the time.

We're told Chyna knows Rob and Alexis have fooled around in the past, but she doesn't think anything meaningful transpired between them since then.

Cristiano Ronaldo was ordered to pay a $21 MILLION fine as punishment in his tax fraud case -- but the good news for the soccer superstar, he won't have to serve a 23-month prison sentence.

And, for a guy who reportedly earns around $90 MILLION per year, that's a pretty good deal for him!

The 33-year-old appeared in court in Spain on Tuesday morning smiling and holding hands with his girlfriend, Georgina Rodriguez ... almost like he knew it was not a big deal.

And, the reason? CR7 had previously agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors ... so Tuesday's court date was just a formality to make it official.

CR7 had been accused of hiding around $16.7 MILLION income he made from his image rights in Spain between 2011 and 2014.

He was facing a 23-month prison sentence -- but hammered out a deal to pay the fine and move on with his life.

It also helps that in Spain, a 1st-time offender sentenced to less than 24 months in prison can serve probation instead of being locked up.

The fine is really no big deal for a guy like Ronaldo -- Forbes reports he pulls in around $93 mil from pro soccer and endorsement deals.

Of course, Ronaldo has other legal issues -- he's being sued in the United States by a woman who claims he raped her in a Las Vegas hotel room in 2009.

Ronaldo has denied wrongdoing. Cops are still investigating.

Dog the Bounty Hunter and his wife, Beth Chapman, aren't letting her cancer diagnosis keep them from making a living, or from being in front of the camera ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to the couple tell us Dog and Beth are committed to a recently inked deal with the TV network WGN America for a new reality series called "Dog's Most Wanted" -- where they'll track down some of the country's most dangerous fugitives.

And, by committed ... we mean they're moving forward with filming, even as Beth continues to receive chemotherapy for her throat cancer. In fact, we're told Beth will be front and center for the show ... and that her chemo will likely be a storyline.

Our sources say, if they do choose to focus on Beth's cancer, it will capture her diagnosis and chronicle her journey. Production starts within a month.

TMZ broke the stories ... Beth started undergoing chemo in early January after doctors discovered her cancer had returned during emergency throat surgery in November.

She, Dog and the rest of their family have been laying low in Colorado when she's not in L.A. for treatment.

Nick Cannon says he's got beef with Travis Scott performing at SB LIII 'cause the dude hasn't proven he truly cares about black culture ... and Kylie Jenner is one big example.

The 'Wild 'N Out' host was chopping it up with Raquel Harper for a new episode of BET's "Raq Rants," where he explained why he's troubled that Travis was booked to play the Super Bowl halftime show. On the other hand, Outkast's Big Boi getting the gig doesn't bother Nick a bit.

Nick -- who supports Colin Kaepernick -- says BB has proven over the course of his career that he's for the culture ... so, Nick's good with him appearing in his native Atlanta to balance Maroon 5. But, according to Nick, Travis hasn't passed that litmus test.

Check out Nick's rationale on why Trav -- in his eyes, anyway -- doesn't seem to be for black people and black causes ... and what he needs to do to get there. Spoiler ... knocking up Kylie definitely didn't help his cause.

Ja Rule needs to put his money where his mouth his, and cough up a ton of cash to help clean up some of the mess he created with the infamously doomed Fyre Festival ... so says a restaurant owner in the Bahamas who paid out of her own pocket to feed workers and stranded concertgoers.

Maryann Rolle, the woman who claims she shelled out over $50,000 from her own savings to feed festival workers and fans stranded on Great Exuma, tells us Ja Rule should pay her $100k if the rapper is truly sorry for his role in the disastrous festival.

Maryann went viral after she appeared in Netflix's Fyre Fest documentary, after saying she burned through her savings and was never paid for her services. She started a GoFundMe to recoup some of the funds, and more than $150,000 poured in after people learned just how badly she was stiffed by Ja Rule and Billy McFarland.

Maryann tells us she still needs money to pay her employees and her bills ... so, she wants Ja Rule to throw her six figures for all of the trouble.

Nyjah Huston jumped a guy at a house party and beat the man's face so viciously he needed surgery to fix a broken nose ... this according to a new lawsuit.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Ryan Sheehy claims he was at a February 12, 2017 house party in Los Angeles when Nyjah jumped him and started beating the hell outta his face.

In the docs, Ryan claims the pro skateboarder's attack left him with a broken nose, which required reconstructive surgery, and a cut above his left eye, which required stitches and left a noticeable disfigurement. As a result of the injuries, Ryan claims he suffered immense pain and was forced to miss work.

We broke the story ... the L.A. County D.A. charged Nyjah with felony battery after the alleged fight.

Ryan is going after Nyjah for damages.

Tupac's sexual fantasies are now another man's treasure because the rapper's hand-drawn love letter to his girlfriend just sold for more than $21k at auction.

Tupac's rare prison drawing to his GF received plenty of attention -- and not just because it depicts Tupac and Desiree Smith getting it on doggy style -- earning 10 bids during the Steiner auction.

We're told the erotic artwork sold for $21,155.75 ... and the winning bid belongs to a very wealthy man in his 60s. Talk about disposable income!

As we reported ... Tupac's NSFW art also included the hand-decorated envelope and love letter he sent to his girl in 1995, when the rapper was incarcerated at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, NY.

How did Ezekiel Elliott and the Cowboys get over a devastating playoff loss to the Rams??

VEGAS, BABY!!!

Zeke and a bunch of his teammates took off for Sin City late last week ... and TMZ Sports has learned they hit the craps table almost immediately.

We're told the All-Pro RB, Sean Lee, Connor Williams and other Dallas stars hit up Aria's casino on Friday and gambled away the pain from their playoff loss for most of the day.

We're told the guys got a private table -- and it seemed the casino allowed them to bet whatever they wanted ... but Zeke was throwing down around $500 (and sometimes WAY more) per roll.

Don't worry, won't affect Elliott's bank account too much -- he's currently toward the end of his rookie $24 million contract and will make HUGE money when he renegotiates with the Cowboys.

To put it into perspective, the NFL's highest-paid running back is Todd Gurley who recently signed a 4-year, $60 MILLION extension with the Rams ... with $45 million in guaranteed money.

Zeke will make similar money ... which means his $500 per roll is chump change for him.

As for Elliott's luck at the tables, we're told neither the RB nor the rest of his teammates came up big winners on the day.

Hey, there's always next year -- right???

Blac Chyna just got another visit from LAPD, hours after officers were called to her home after someone falsely claimed Chyna was drunk and endangering Dream Kardashian.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... this time around, cops showed up to diffuse a potentially explosive situation involving Chyna and her former makeup artist. They were tight until this weekend, when the 2 had a nuclear argument at Chyna's home. The makeup artist left without taking her stuff, and today cops went with her to retrieve the mascara, eyeliner and other stuff.

TMZ broke the story ... cops raced to Chyna's home Sunday night after an anonymous caller claimed she was drunk and neglecting Dream ... and this went down shortly after the makeup artist left.

Officers determined no one was drunk at the home and Dream was being properly cared for ... there was also a nanny there for extra support.

"Teen Mom 2" star Jeremy Calvert says a video appearing to show him pissing on a homeless person was just a piss-poor attempt at humor ... because he claims there was not any pee or homeless person involved.

Jeremy, Leah Messer's ex-husband, tells TMZ ... he is just pretending to pee in the vid ... over a pile of trash that happened to look like a person lying on the ground, and it was all one big joke.

The video, which was shot in San Diego, caused a furor Monday on social media ... and you can see Jeremy was having a great time yukking it up in front of the camera.

But, Jeremy says all the pissing and moaning over the video is unwarranted ... 'cause the whole thing was fake.

In case you don't remember, Jeremy and Leah were hitched from 2012 to 2015 and they have a 5-year-old daughter together.