Shia LaBeouf has experienced more ups and downs than most celebrities in the often chaotic and unpredictable world of Hollywood. His major time in the entertainment industry has been spent on self-discovery. Now at 37, he has achieved fame in fields other than acting.
LaBeouf’s career has developed in a very unusual way, beginning with his breakthrough performance in the well-liked Disney series Even Stevens and then his involvement in a number of legal disputes and controversies.
He has encountered a variety of difficulties and struggles as a result of his turbulent journey in the spotlight. LaBeouf has chosen to accept his troubled past and believes it is a blessing for a reason because he has learned priceless life lessons as a result of these experiences.
What Made Shia LaBeouf Think His Troubled Past Is a Blessing?
The last few years have been difficult for Shia LaBeouf‘s career. Before the press tour for his movie, Borg vs McEnroe, he finally disclosed his past in an enlightening 2018 Esquire interview:
“I’m a buffoon. My public outbursts are failures. They’re not strategic. They’re a struggling motherf**ker showing his a*s in front of the world.”
The actor bluntly told Esquire that it is finally time to
“Take ownership of my s*it and clean up my side of the street a bit before I can go out there and work again, so I’m trying to stay creative and learn from my mistakes. I’ve been falling forward for a long time. Most of my life. The truth is, in my desperation, I lost the plot. I know this is uncomfortable for you to bring up, bro. I get it. Just get to it.”
The actor believed for a very long time that life was secondary to art as LaBeouf told Esquire:
“And then you realize you can’t have this art thing without the life thing. I’m just trying to deal with my life right now, ’cause I don’t have f–k-all to offer the world until I do.”
Meantime, LaBeouf admitted to Variety that his past had paved the way for his present career:
“I don’t think I’d be working with the directors I’ve been working with if I had not f–ked up a bit. They wanted a f–king fireball. They wanted a loose cannon. I’m learning how to distill my ‘crazy’ into something manageable, that I can shape and deliver on the day. I was an open wound bleeding on everything.”
Shia LaBeouf On His Hollywood Career
Shia LaBeouf has consistently tested himself and his audiences throughout his career by pushing the envelope.
He believed that his past mistakes had given him the capacity to access deeper emotions and establish genuine, raw connections with the characters he played. LaBeouf did, however, acknowledge to Variety that Hollywood is no longer interested in casting him in significant blockbusters. According to the actor, director, David Ayer approached him for Suicide Squad after Fury. LaBeouf alleged:
“The character was different initially. Then Will [Smith] came in, and the script changed a bit. That character and Tom [Hardy’s] character [later played by Joel Kinnaman] got written down to build Will up.”
The studio reportedly objected to LaBeouf’s casting, as the actor informed Variety:
“I don’t think Warner Bros. wanted me. I went in to meet, and they were like, ‘Nah, you’re crazy. You’re a good actor, but not this one.’ It was a big investment for them.”
He was not sure if he wanted to work on blockbusters again, but he would be open to collaborating with Transformers director (Michael Bay) once more (via Variety):
“Mike is an artist. People don’t realize how dope that dude is. He’s got to get a little ballsier with his moves — he’s trying to toe the line and be James Cameron, but James Camerons are dying. I don’t know what he’s chasing, but that version of director is dead. If Mike is to sustain, he’s got to get f–king weird.”
In his final remarks, LaBeouf said that his recent journey gave him the chance to experience the human connection he has been seeking:
“You float with people. You’ve got to stay malleable.”
His last film appearance was in Abel Ferrara’s 2022 Italian-German biographical film Padre Pio, which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video. LaBeouf became a Catholic during its filming as a result of his spiritual encounters.
He will next be seen in Francis Ford Coppola’s upcoming epic science fiction drama film Megalopolis.
