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After nearly 10 grueling months behind bars in Russia, Brittney Griner is finally heading back home.

U.S. officials said Thursday they've struck a deal with the foreign country ... agreeing to a prisoner swap to free the WNBA star.

It's a 1-for-1 trade ... with the U.S. slated to send over Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout -- AKA the "Merchant of Death" -- in the swap.

President Joe Biden revealed Thursday morning that he personally spoke with Griner after executing the trade, adding, "She is safe. She is on a plane. She is on her way home."

Griner has been detained in Russia since February -- after she was accused of bringing hashish oil in her luggage to a Moscow airport. In August, she was sentenced to nine years in prison. An appeal of that ruling was denied in October.

Last month, the 32-year-old had been moved to a prison in Mordovia ... where experts said she was facing homophobia, racism and 16-hour work days.

At the time, reps for Griner said she was "trying to stay strong."

At a news conference Thursday morning, with Griner's wife, Cherelle, at his side, Biden told the nation, "I'm glad to be able to say that Brittney is in good spirits. She's relieved to be finally heading home."

Cherelle added, with a big smile on her face, "Today my family is whole."

As for Paul Whelan, another American who the U.S. has classified as wrongfully detained in Russia, Biden confirmed Thursday they are still actively negotiating for his release.

"We are not giving up," he said. "We will never give up."

Pete Davidson is back on Instagram, but there's a catch ... it's a joint page with Eli Manning!!

Yes, the former Giants star quarterback and comedian joined forces to launch the IG page together ... debuting the account Wednesday night with an IG video in Davidson's apartment.

"Hello Instagram," Davidson said on his Giants-themed bed, "I have decided to come back, but only with the GOAT."

"Stay tuned for more photos on the gram!"

The duo shared a video and a couple of photos, including a pic of Davidson's small helmet tattoo. Eli captioned the post, "confirmed ... Pete's a Giants fan."

The guys also worked on one-handed catches (a la Eli to Odell Beckham Jr. vs. the Dallas Cowboys) ... and Davidson has hands!

Fans loved the idea of the joint account ... they flooded their comments with support, with one saying, "lmfao the link up I never knew I needed 🐐".

FYI, Pete -- who's been MIA from IG since 2018 (he occasionally returns before deactivating again)  -- and Eli already have over 17k followers, as of Thursday morning.

Kyrie Irving gave the middle finger to Nike with a message on his signature shoes Wednesday night ... covering the swoosh logo and etching "I am Free Thank You God I am" on a patch of tape after his breakup with the sneaker giant.

Irving hit the court at Barclays Center for the first time since becoming a shoe-free agent on Monday ... and while he decided to keep wearing his own kicks, he made sure to distance himself from his former partner.

Irving rocked the Nike Kyrie 3 PE in the "Raygun" colorway for the matchup against the Charlotte Hornets ... but if you look closely, the side logo is covered with black tape.

Kyrie switched kicks mid-game -- which is not uncommon for NBA players -- and the second pair also had the Swoosh scribbled out with black marker.

You'll recall ... the brand suspended its relationship with Kyrie after he tweeted a link to a film containing antisemitic content ... saying there was no place for hate speech at Nike.

Irving, however, continued to don Nike sneakers during games ... though it's unclear if he was contractually obligated to or if the decision was a personal choice.

Right after news broke that the Kyrie era was over at Nike, the 30-year-old tweeted out a GIF that read, "There's nothing more priceless than being free."

ABC is diving deeper into Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes' relationship to make sure the 'GMA3' co-anchors haven't violated any company policies during their whirlwind romance.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... ABC's human resources and legal departments are working together to look into all aspects of the high-profile co-workers hooking up. The goal is to determine if Amy and T.J. did anything to breach their contracts -- such as using company resources, like vehicles or drivers, to meet romantically ... or pressuring staffers to keep the relationship on the DL.

We're told some people at the network were upset about ABC News' President Kim Godwin's comments on Monday morning's editorial call -- when she said the couple did not violate company policies -- because the network hadn't yet taken a closer look.

Our sources say the review started to heat up internally last Friday when news broke of an alleged affair T.J. had with a former 'GMA' producer years ago.

We're told Godwin worked through the weekend with other executives before deciding to pull Amy and T.J. from the anchor's desk.

As we reported, Amy and T.J. were taken off the air Monday after Godwin called the situation an "internal and external distraction."

That part is clearly true, but again, other execs feel she went too far in telling the team there were no company policy violations -- we're told it was just too soon to know.

Celine Dion is coping with a serious disorder that makes people unable to talk or walk -- and as a result, she's forced to postpone her European tour once again.

The singer was very emotional early Thursday morning as she revealed her diagnosis, telling fans about the extremely rare neurological disorder called stiff-person syndrome.

Celine says it's the reason she's been suffering spasms lately, and it's affected "every aspect of my daily life" -- and it's made it difficult for her to sing at her full ability.

Celine then breaks the tour news to fans ... before adding she's got a team of medical professionals working on getting her back into performance mode, but it hasn't been easy.

Stiff-person syndrome only affects about one in a million people, and it can cause frequent muscle spasms due to heightened sensitivity to things like touch, emotional distress or noise. It can leave some unable to walk or, in severe cases, speak.

Celine's concert was set to kick off February in the Czech Republic -- but it's now slated for March 2024, according to her site. A handful of other shows were canceled, too.

Tia Mowry and her estranged husband are coming back together ... at least for the holidays, 'cause they'll be spending them together as one happy family.

We caught up with the "Sister, Sister" star and asked about her holiday plans this year ... now that she's filed to divorce her estranged husband, Cory Hardrict.

Tia tells us, she and their 2 kids, Cree and Cairo, will absolutely be spending the holidays with Cory -- because, no matter what, they'll always be family.

We gotta say ... she was wearing a huge smile as she spilled the deetz.

TMZ broke the story ... Tia filed for divorce back in October ... pulling the plug on their 14-year marriage. Soon after, she made it clear she and Cory would remain friends.

It was the kinda thing lots of divorcing celebs say, but now it looks like Tia and Cory are walking the walk. As she told us, "Family is family" and that's super important to her.

The holiday plans might not be a complete shock -- the last time we saw Tia, it was evident there's still a ton of love between them. She said they were doing "amazing" with co-parenting and she had no complaints.

As for reconciliation ... back then she said she was "taking everything a day at a time."

Seth Rogen had no problem letting the jokes fly as he took part in a ceremony to honor women in showbiz ... taking a playful jab at Kim Kardashian for missing the occasion.

Seth took the stage Wednesday during The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment Breakfast -- and true to form, he cracked a few jokes about folks in the audience.

A source with direct knowledge tells us, "The wrong event date was given to Kim’s team several weeks ago. The error was realized only on Monday and unfortunately, her schedule could not be moved around at the last minute due to a prior work commitment. She was incredibly disappointed to not be able to attend since she never cancels."

He joked, "Are we going to talk about how Kim Kardashian didn’t show up?" He continued, "I have seen every episode of ‘Keeping Up With the Kardashians’ I know she doesn’t have anything more important to do than this."

He made it clear it was all fun and games ... telling folks she was probably going through a lot and had good reason to skip.

Chelsea Handler also joked about the 'SKIMS' founder missing the event ... saying the extra security at the event wasn’t for Kim cause she didn’t show up.

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is under investigation for possible ethics violations ... and there's speculation it's all about her infamous Met Gala appearance in 2021.

The U.S. House Committee On Ethics formally announced the probe Wednesday, saying the matter was brought to them in June and their findings will be disclosed sometime next year. The Committee didn't release specifics about what prompted the investigation.

AOC's rep says, "The Congresswoman has always taken ethics incredibly seriously, refusing any donations from lobbyists, corporations, or other special interests. We are confident that this matter will be dismissed."

Now, going back to last year ... conservative groups had filed 2 ethics complaints against AOC after she attended the Met Gala, claiming her gown was an "impermissible gift" and Instagram had purchased special access for her.

You may recall, the New York Democrat famously wore a white dress emblazoned with the phrase, "Tax The Rich."

If she received free tickets it could be a violation of House rules, so that's why some people think that's what the Committee is digging into now.

Chris Kattan is hospitalized after a scary health situation forced him into emergency surgery ... and as a result, he'll miss some upcoming dates in his comedy tour.

Sources connected to Chris tell TMZ he recently came down with Streptococcus Pneumoniae, an extreme case of pneumonia, and on Sunday was rushed to the hospital. From there, he needed emergency surgery, but thankfully the operation was successful.

We're told as long as things continue to go well, Chris will be released from the hospital Friday, and can hopefully return to work sometime in the near future.

Unfortunately, Chris had a show lined up for this Friday in Valparaiso, IN ... which we're told will have to be rescheduled, along with some other upcoming tour dates.

As you know, Chris stayed out of the limelight for a while, but is back to doing standup.

Of course, he had an 8-year run on "SNL" where he was featured in some iconic sketches, playing Mango or boppin' his head with Will Ferrell during "A Night at the Roxbury."

BTW -- we got Chris at LAX earlier this year telling us how he was champing at the bit to revive the 1990s cult classic comedy -- he said he'd wanted a "Roxbury" sequel for years, and had ideas about how to bring it into the 21st century.

Bobby Wagner's miserable 2022 season just got at least somewhat brighter ... TMZ Sports has learned he won't face criminal charges for tackling a field invader earlier this year.

A spokesperson for the Santa Clara Police Department tells us ... after investigating the Oct. 3 "Monday Night Football" incident, police "did not file charges with the Santa Clara County District Attorneys Office."

Cops had initially launched the probe on Oct. 4 ... after Alexander Taylor claimed he was assaulted by Wagner after running onto the field during the L.A. vs 49ers game at Levi's Stadium.

According to a police report, Taylor said he suffered a headache, a concussion and a burn on his inner right bicep following the altercation with Wagner.

The Rams and their star linebacker never seemed overtly concerned over the report ... with Wagner saying he took down the man because "you never know what that person got in they pocket, in they hands, whatever."

Head coach Sean McVay added, "We all know where Bobby's intentions were, and I support Bobby Wagner."

American actor Ben Weber was 26 years old when he was first cast as Skipper Johnston -- the nerdy website wiz and Miranda's on-and-off-again boyfriend -- in HBO's sitcom "Sex And The City" back in 1998.

Ben shared the screen with Sarah Jessica Parker as the sex newspaper columnist, Carrie, Cynthia Nixon as the attorney and Skipper's love interest, Miranda, Kim Cattrall as the sex-positive public relations specialist, Samantha, Kristin Davis as the conservative art gallerist, Charlotte and Chris Noth as the wealthy financial analyst and Carrie's boyfriend, Mr. Big.

Ben was a part of the 'SATC' cast for two seasons.

Cops in Idaho want to speak with whoever was driving or a passenger in a white Hyundai Elantra that may have been in the neighborhood on the night 4 college students were killed.

Moscow PD says they've received tips about a vehicle that matches this description -- the model year being between 2011 and 2013 -- near the crime scene in the early morning hours of November 13. They have not released a license plate number.

Investigators are also unsure how many people may have been inside the car, but in any case, they say they're seeking them out -- as they feel they might have more info.

Cops are not saying whether they suspect the occupant(s) of the vehicle is directly involved in the murders -- but it feels like a solid lead after weeks of dead ends, with no one in custody.

As we reported ... frustrations have mounted in the community after many conflicting and retracted statements from law enforcement. At first, it was labeled a targeted attack against the victims, then saying it was maybe just the house was targeted ... later correcting that too and saying they just didn't know.

Cops have also ruled out an alleged stalker of one of the victims as a possible lead -- and don't seem to have moved much further beyond square one in terms of answers.

A Deion Sanders mural at Jackson State University was defaced -- but not by the student seen in a viral video circulating online ... TMZ Sports has learned.

A rep for JSU tells us the mural depicting Coach Prime in a Jackson State hoodie and hat was recently messed with, though it's unclear when it exactly happened -- and the culprit remains unknown.

The school rep says the student seen wiping Deion's mural, which initially went up for football season/Homecoming around October, was trying to clean it up ... and received permission from the university to do so.

We're told it's unclear if police are investigating the mural's initial defacement.

The video of the student wiping the Sanders tribute made rounds on social media this week ... in the aftermath of the coach announcing over the weekend that he was leaving JSU for Colorado.

"Fixer Upper" stars Joanna and Chip Gaines are being taken to court by their former literary agent who claims the couple tried to back out of paying a set fee for their massive book deal after signing with someone else.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Joanna and Chip were repped by Vigliano Associates when they inked a massive $12.5 million deal back in 2017 to crank out 5 books for HarperCollins.

Vigliano says it was set to get a 7.5% cut of any payments to the couple and claims everything went fine for the first 2 books ... but Vigliano says the couple then "concocted a scheme" to back out payments for the last 3 books by trying to amend the deal.

The docs say the couple tried to eliminate one of the books and, as for the other two, Vigliano says they tried to swap out Joanna and make Chip the author for one of the remaining books.

Vigliano claims the original deal only applied to Joanna-authored books, so the move essentially took the book deal from 5 books down to 3 ... and, as a result, meant much less pay for Vigliano.

What's worse, the docs claim Joanna inked a deal with a different agent instead ... and now Vigliano says the money made from her new book, "The Stories We Tell: Every Piece of Your Story Matters," should be going to its company instead -- and now Vigliano is looking for at least $1 million in damages over it.

Elon Musk has reportedly been turning Twitter's office space into sleeping spaces for employees putting in extra time -- and he's pissed the city of S.F. is looking into whether or not the new setup violates any codes.

Twitter's CEO fired back to a report Tuesday that said S.F.'s department of building inspection would be launching an investigation into claims that parts of the company's HQ were retrofitted to include makeshift bedrooms.

Forbes reported mattresses were set up in some Twitter office rooms, with other homey modifications. Recent reports also suggested a handful of employees were spending the night due to the intense nature of the job and long hours under Musk's new regime.

Well, Elon didn't take too kindly to the idea of San Fran cracking down -- responding to a tweet about the news by writing … "So city of SF attacks companies providing beds for tired employees instead of making sure kids are safe from fentanyl. Where are your priorities @LondonBreed!?" London Breed is S.F.'s mayor.

He also attached an article about a toddler who OD'd after coming across fentanyl on a playground. Luckily, the kid survived.

One thing Elon's tweet didn't address though ... whether or not the employee bedrooms exist.

Popular Streamer IShowSpeed is coming under fire for a gross racist exchange he had with a Chinese fan at The World Cup ... with people urging he do better.

IShowSpeed -- who has 14M subscribers on YouTube and nearly 6M followers on Instagram -- is in Qatar for the massive soccer tournament, and has live streamed a lot of his time in the stands.

The controversial clip shows the streamer call attention to an Asian fan in an Argentina jersey. Speed asks why he's wearing the gear -- seemingly pointing out he doesn't look Argentinian.

From there, he shouts, "Konnichiwa!" -- a formal word for "hello" in Japanese -- several times at the fan. The fan tries to explain he's not Japanese, but Chinese ... and then ISS begins rambling off nonsense with an accent.

Naturally, and rightfully so, Speed's fans have littered the comment section on his social media pages denouncing the exchange. One wrote, "Stop spewing macro-aggressions and racism towards Asian people and use your platform for something positive."

Another said, "You failed Asian Americans and Asians everywhere. We all make mistakes. But grow up. Do better. Be a better example for the youth." While another simply wrote, "ishowracism should be your new name from now on."

The 17-year-old attempted to offer up an explanation as to what he was thinking, but it didn't really help his cause. He says he thought the man was Japanese -- though he doesn't explain why -- and that his adrenaline was pumping during the video.