1/2/2025: New Year’s Day Chaos

PLUS: Arresting a President; “It Ends With Us” Lawsuits; and Christmas with the Waleses

Today is Thursday, January 2, 2025.

It is the 2nd day of the year.

363 days remain.

Photo by David von Diemar on Unsplash

WHAT’S ON TAP

Updates on the New Year's Day chaos across the country in HIT LIST.

GAL GADOT reflects on 2024 and ROSIE O’DONNELL’s daughter is back behind bars. More in SHOWBIZ.

JAY LENO addresses his facial bruises and NIKKI GLASER postpones surgery for a hosting gig. Details in CASTING CALL.

MEGHAN MARKLE returns to Instagram in ROYALS.

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Two tragic events kicked off the new year. Here’s what we know.

IN NEW ORLEANS: Police shot and killed an American military veteran after he drove a pickup truck onto Bourbon Street early Wednesday morning, killing at least 15 people.

– The suspect is 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar. The truck is linked to vehicle rental company Turo.

– The FBI is investigating the attack as terrorism. The suspect had an ISIS flag on the truck, and in brief Wednesday evening statements, President JOE BIDEN seemed to confirm the suspect’s connection to the terrorist organization. Investigators also found two undetonated explosive devices near the scene of the attack, all of which were safely disarmed. So far, there are conflicting reports whether these devices are connected to the truck attack, but regardless, FBI officials have said they do not believe the driver acted alone. Security footage does show suspects placing the devices in some cases.

– On Wednesday afternoon, reports emerged about FBI activity in the Houston area. Bureau officials confirmed the activity is linked to the New Orleans attack but have not shared further details.

– First responders in New Orleans arrived to a fire at an AirBNB rental believed to have been used by the suspect Wednesday morning.

– Organizers of the Sugar Bowl postponed the game from Wednesday to this afternoon out of an abundance of caution.

– Despite the suspect’s ties to ISIS, demonstrators took to the streets in New York City on Wednesday evening, reportedly calling for a “global intifada.”

IN LAS VEGAS: An unidentified driver parked a TESLA Cybertruck in front of the Trump Hotel on Wednesday morning, before the vehicle exploded a few seconds later, killing the person in the vehicle and injuring seven others.

Like the truck used in New Orleans, the Cybertruck was rented through the Turo app. An FBI rep said during a Wednesday press conference that the explosive materials included fireworks, gas tanks, and camping fuel that the driver manually triggered to detonate.

On X, ELON MUSK posted that Tesla confirmed the vehicle data proves the explosion “was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself.” In a previous post, he noted, “We’ve never seen anything like this.”

ON A LIGHTER NOTE IN ELONWORLD: There’s no doubt that Musk has the ear of almost-President DONALD TRUMP, but even after spending $250 MILLION to get him elected, Musk is still paying for convenient access.

The New York Times reports that Musk is staying at a cottage on the Mar-a-Lago property that rents for $2,000 a night. Insiders say Musk has been ever-present in Florida in recent weeks, spending hours behind closed doors with Trump and even sitting in on calls with other world leaders. [via New York Times]

WORTH NOTING: Musk is also getting involved in foreign elections, most recently vocally backing the AfD party in Germany, which has positions similar to Trump on immigration and deporting illegal immigrants. Tesla also has a massive factory in Berlin.

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GAL GADOT reflected on the past year with an emotional social media post about a health scare she suffered while 8 months pregnant.

In February, while secretly pregnant with her fourth child, the actress says doctors discovered a massive blood clot in her brain.

“We rushed to the hospital, and within hours, I underwent emergency surgery. My daughter, Ori, was born during that moment of uncertainty and fear,” she writes in part, alongside a photo of her holding the newborn.

Today, Gadot says she is “fully healed and filled with gratitude.” [via @GalGadot]

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Remember when JENNIFER LOPEZ was going to marry ALEX RODRIGUEZ?

According to her then-wedding planner, Marcy Blum, the singer/actress was shocked to find out that hiring BRUNO MARS to perform at their reception would cost a cool $5 million -- and that’s only for an hour-long set.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Blum says JLo quipped.

In the end, the couple called off the nuptials anyway.

WORTH NOTING: Mars did not perform at JLo’s 2022 wedding to BEN AFFLECK, either. [via EW]

RUMOR IS: PAT SAJAK wants his “Wheel of Fortune” hosting gig back.

Insiders tell RadarOnline that after the “amazing show of support “ he got while hosting “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” Sajak wants to un-retire.

“Even if it’s not now, but in a couple of years, he’d do it,” a source said.

The scenario is unlikely as RYAN SEACREST signed a multiyear deal to host the game show just last year. [via RadarOnline]

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Comedian NIKKI GLASER says she rescheduled some “really invasive [plastic] surgery” to host the Golden Globes.

When asked about whether she’d be up for hosting, Glaser said she revealed her previously scheduled surgery, to which her agent asked, “Is there any way you could push it ‘til maybe the second week of January?”

The 2025 Golden Globes airs Sunday, January 5 on CBS.

ELSEWHERE: Glaser’s 2024 HBO special “Someday You’ll Die” received a Golden Globe nomination for “Best Performance In Stand-Up Comedy on Television.” [via CBS]

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UP NEXT: Chaos in South Korea as a court issues an arrest warrant for its sitting president, FORD grapples with a social media snafu, MEGHAN MARKLE returns to Instagram, and the 60 best actors of the 21st century.

PLUS: By the Numbers, This Day in History, Birthdays, and more.