Tragic Details About Shia LaBeouf
This article includes references to addiction, child abuse, sexual assault, mental health issues, hate speech, domestic violence, and suicide.
Thanks to Disney Channel, actor Shia LaBeouf became a household name before he'd celebrated his 15th birthday. His role as Louis Stevens in the comedy "Even Stevens," from 2000 to 2003, shot him to fame. He left the show with a Daytime Emmy Award win and quickly graduated to big screen roles, appearing in "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" in 2003 and "I, Robot" in 2004.
For a while, it seemed as though Hollywood's golden boy couldn't put a foot wrong, and he landed another life-changing role in 2007. LaBeouf took center stage as Sam Witwicky in "Transformers," a role he would reprise twice more, but not before he starred opposite Harrison Ford as his son in the "Indiana Jones" sequel, "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" in 2008. However, by the mid-2010s, LaBeouf's golden reputation started to dull. He turned against his frequent collaborators like Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg, saying he wasn't creatively fulfilled by his work, all while racking up countless arrests and some serious legal charges, leading to something of a fall from grace.
No one's arguing that LaBeouf hasn't made a lot of bad choices in life — least of all him — but he's also experienced a lot of tragedy in his life that wasn't of his own making. Much of this stemmed from his troubled and often volatile childhood, the aftereffects of which followed him well into adulthood. So, let's take a closer look at the tragedies that have befallen Shia LaBeouf over the years.
Shia LaBeouf's parents divorced when he was a child
Shia LaBeouf didn't have the easiest upbringing. The "Disturbia" star, who was born in June 1986 to parents Shayna Saide and Jeffrey Craig LaBeouf, often talked about growing up poor. During his early childhood, his parents worked at carnivals and dressed up as clowns to make money. Shia was also put to work at a young age. "I come from five generations of performers. I was acting when I came out of the womb," LaBeouf recalled to the Orange County Register. When he was 3 years old, he began joining Jeffrey and Shayna in dressing up like a clown, helping them to sell hot dogs in Echo Park, Los Angeles, to make ends meet.
However, this didn't go on for long as his parents fought a lot and divorced by the time he was 5 years old. The actor cited their financial woes as being a major factor in his parents' separation. "Finance drove my family apart because they were co-owners in a fashion company that fell apart. And my mother blamed my dad for it, you know, blamed him for wrecking it all. My mom and my dad, and vice versa — it's back and forth," LaBeouf told Parade. "It may not be the sole reason for the split, but it is the superficial reason. It's the surface reason that you can point at and go, 'That's the reason,'" he added.
LaBeouf had a difficult relationship with his dad
Following his parents' split, Shia LaBeouf resided in the Tujunga area of LA with his mom. However, he did maintain a relationship with his dad, Jeffrey Craig LaBeouf, who was not only a Vietnam War veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder but also a drug dealer as well as a heroin and alcohol addict. In 2007, the actor shared details of his childhood with the Orange County Register, which reported that he "was subjected to mental and verbal abuse" from his father. Shia also told the outlet that his dad also physically threatened him with a gun while having a Vietnam War PTSD flashback. The "Transformers" star also recalled watching him struggle with his addiction. And, of course, this affected how he grew up. "You become the parent in the relationship," he told the outlet.
Despite this, Shia began living with his dad in a motel a few years later because it was closer to the set of "Even Stevens." However, looking back on his relationship with his father, Shia determined: "The only thing my father gave me that was of any value to me is pain," per Interview Magazine. He reasoned that their fractured relationship was the cause of a lot of his troubling behavior later in life. "I was trying to earn my father," he admitted to The Hollywood Reporter. But sadly, their relationship remained strained, and they went years without speaking.
He overheard his mom being sexually assaulted
Prior to moving in with his dad, Shia LaBeouf lived with his mom, Shayna Saide LaBeouf, who worked hard to provide for him by selling fabric and jewelry. Tragically, when he was 9 years old, his mom was raped in their apartment, and he overheard. Shia opened up about the aftermath of the horrific incident to Esquire. "I froze. The man ran out, and my mom ran after him. Dave [a neighbor] came running over. I remember he had a crossbow," he recalled. Sadly, the rapist was never caught.
Shia also explained that while in rehab in 2017, he was diagnosed with PTSD stemming from the incident as it continued to affect him when he got older and that he believes it was the reason for his first major arrest. "The first time I got arrested with a real charge, it stemmed from the same s***. Some guy bumped into my mother's car with his car in a parking lot, and my head went right to 'You need to avenge your mother!' So I went after the dude with a knife," he explained. Although he didn't use the knife, LaBeouf has always felt protective of his mom and told the outlet he struggled to come to terms with the fact there was nothing he could have done to prevent her from being attacked when he was young. The actor remained close to his mom until she died in 2022.
He thought making money as a kid would solve his problems
Performing came naturally to Shia LaBeouf, and after he moved on from dressing up like a clown, he found himself landing gigs in comedy clubs. He was only 10 years old at the time, but his dirty brand of comedy did well, and eventually, he was given the opportunity to perform skits on "The Tonight Show."
Around the same time, LaBeouf met a child actor who opened up his eyes about the possibility of making performing his full-time career. Not only was he attracted to the idea of having less schooling, but he saw it as a lucrative opportunity to make money and fix his family. "In a very simple way, to me, having money meant having a family. The more money I had, the more I could have my family around. That's just how I equated it. My dad wasn't around for a lot of my life because he was chasing cash. And my mother wasn't around because she was chasing cash," LaBeouf explained to The Hollywood Reporter.
After he booked the role of Louis Stevens in "Even Stevens," LaBeouf was able to shoulder more of the financial burden, which led him to believe his plan would work. "They loved each other deeply, and all of their fighting came from money, and so I just thought, 'Well, if we had money, there'd be no fighting and I'd have a family,'" he recalled. But sadly, there were obviously other factors at play, and they never got back together.
Shia LaBeouf had to have 'extensive hand surgery' after a car accident
After "Even Stevens" concluded in 2003, Shia LaBeouf turned his attention to the big screen, and by the mid-to-late 2000s, he was booked for back-to-back films. The success of "Transformers" firmly solidified his status as an A-Lister, leading to LaBeouf taking on the role of Mutt Williams in 2008's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." He then filmed the action-thriller "Eagle Eye" alongside Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, and Anthony Mackie before returning to play Sam Witwicky in "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
However, what people might not know is that just weeks into filming the "Transformers" sequel, LaBeouf was involved in a car accident in Hollywood and left seriously injured. The actor was making a left turn at a busy crossroad in LA and flipped his truck when he collided with another vehicle that ran a red light. His hand was crushed in the accident, and he was rushed to hospital for "extensive hand surgery," per MTV. LaBeouf was also arrested at the scene for driving under the influence and later charged with a misdemeanor.
Filming was disrupted because of the accident, but LaBeouf returned to work quickly. However, he was still seriously injured and had to get through production with broken fingers. "We propped [my hand] together so I could get through Transformers and then I'll go have another surgery and be back to 100 percent," he told Access Hollywood (via Today), adding that he felt lucky the accident hadn't been worse.
He needed 20 stitches after a stunt on American Honey went wrong
In 2015, Shia LaBeouf experienced another serious injury after an accident on the set of Andrea Arnold's road drama "American Honey." The movie, which was released in 2016, saw LaBeouf share the screen with "Daisy Jones and the Six" star Riley Keough and "The Crowded Room" alum Sasha Lane.
"American Honey" was well received by critics, with a reviewer from One Room With a View even calling it LaBeouf's best performance to date. However, filming the movie didn't exactly go smoothly, as one scene required LaBeouf to perform a stunt where he put his head through a plate-glass window. Something went awry with the stunt, and LaBeouf was seriously injured with cuts down the left side of his head and face and along his right index finger. He was taken to hospital for treatment, where he received 20 stitches and 13 staples to his head and hand. While serious, thankfully, this injury wasn't as severe as his crushed hand, and LaBeouf was able to return to work a couple of days later.
Getting arrested while filming in 2017 caused him 'deep shame'
Shia LaBeouf was excited to follow up the success of "American Honey" with the comedy-drama "The Peanut Butter Falcon," which he filmed in July 2017 in Savannah, Georgia. The movie follows the unlikely friendship between LaBeouf and Zack Gottsagen's characters, Tyler and Zak, as they travel down the East Coast to Florida. The movie was an emotional journey for LaBeouf, and he put it all at risk when he was arrested in the middle of filming. Out alone in the middle of the night, the actor asked a stranger for a cigarette, and the situation quickly escalated, culminating in LaBeouf's now-famous racist rant, which was directed toward a black police officer.
LaBeouf was arrested for disorderly conduct and public intoxication before being bailed out the next morning. Recalling how he felt when he returned to set after the arrest during an interview with The Guardian, he said: "I can't look anyone in the eye. And I can't come to terms with it. And no one's talking to me and I'm talking to no one, and I know my life has exploded again. And I am in deep shame."
As a consequence of the arrest, LaBeouf was ordered to spend 10 weeks in rehab when filming ended. He also publicly apologized for his remarks. "The severity of my behavior is not lost on me," he wrote in a statement (via X). "I have been struggling with addiction publicly for far too long and am actively taking steps to secure my sobriety," he explained.
But it wasn't his first time getting arrested
We've already mentioned a couple of Shia LaBeouf's arrests, including the time he tried to attack a man with a knife in defense of his mom, which resulted in a two-day jail stint. "While I was there, I at least understood that being in jail is not the move. It sucks," LaBeouf wrote in an essay titled "Error Breeds Sense," which was published in the book, "Prison Ramen" (via Yahoo!).
While LaBeouf often refers to the incident as his first "serious" offense, it was certainly not the first time he donned a pair of handcuffs. LaBeouf was first arrested when he was just 9 years old for attempting to steal a pair of Nike trainers. Two years later, he was arrested for trying to take a video game from Kmart. On both occasions, LaBeouf was detained for about six hours, but no charges were filed.
However, LaBeouf spent another night in jail in 2007. He later told Esquire that he was struggling with his increasing fame after the release of "Transformers" and felt like he was "living in a gilded cage." He explained: "No one gives a f*** about your problems. Everybody's like, 'Hey, man, you're riding the wave!'" and so [I] was arrested for trespassing. LaBeouf was also intoxicated at the time. Incidents like this continued, as the actor was later arrested for illegal smoking and drunk jaywalking.
Filming Honey Boy was an emotional experience for Shia LaBeouf
Shia LaBeouf started writing "Honey Boy" after he entered rehab following his 2017 arrest. He was also having therapy sessions for PTSD and was asked by his therapist to write down the most impactful moments of his life. Shortly after, he started turning his writing into a script and sent this to a filmmaker friend, Alma Har'el, who became the director of 2019's "Honey Boy."
The movie was heralded as a critical triumph, but it took years of work behind the scenes and was an emotional experience for LaBeouf. He visited his father, Jeffrey Craig LaBeouf, in Costa Rica (he fled there to avoid further prosecution for sex offenses in the U.S.), whom he'd not seen for seven years, to get his permission for the movie. The actor recalled his dad's reaction to the movie, which is named after Jeffrey's childhood nickname for Shia, telling The Hollywood Reporter that he agreed but "he didn't believe that I could pull it off." Shia felt that as he played the role of his father in the movie, he learned to empathize with him, implying that it led to something of a reconciliation. "He's calmed. And I've calmed," he said.
However, he also told the outlet, "Everything that's in the film happened," but later admitted that he had exaggerated many elements of it, including the physical abuse the main character experienced at the hands of his father. Surprisingly, Jeffrey wasn't bothered by the inaccurate portrayal and proclaimed to GEN, "I'm proud of my son. He's my honey boy."
Shia LaBeouf contemplated suicide after legal allegations made against him went public
In 2020, singer Tahliah Debrett Barnett, better known by her stage name FKA Twigs, sued her ex-boyfriend Shia LaBeouf for sexual battery, assault, and emotional distress. The pair started dating after meeting on the set of "Honey Boy." The lawsuit alleged that LaBeouf had "abused FKA Twigs physically, emotionally and mentally many times in a relationship that lasted just short of a year," per The New York Times. This included violent outbursts, attempted strangulation, and knowingly giving her a sexually transmitted disease. LaBeouf initially denied the allegations. However, he then admitted, "I have no excuses for my alcoholism or aggression, only rationalizations. I have been abusive to myself and everyone around me for years. I have a history of hurting the people closest to me. I'm ashamed of that history and am sorry to those I hurt."
LaBeouf later recalled that as two more women, including artist Sia, came forward with further allegations against him, his mental health deteriorated. While speaking on the podcast "Real Ones with Jon Bernthal" (via Variety), LaBeouf admitted he was close to committing suicide. He said: "I went and loaded up a gun and sat on my table," he said. "I was gonna kill myself." LaBeouf, who has now admitted "I hurt that woman [FKA Twigs]," added that he is now glad she came forward with the allegations and claims to be making amends for his actions.
He has been in and out of rehab
Shia LaBeouf had struggled with addiction for most of his life, getting his first taste for alcohol and drugs from his father when he was just 10 years old. His addiction has been the cornerstone of his destructive behavior, leading to many of his arrests over the years.
LaBeouf first sought treatment for his addiction in 2014 after he was arrested at a Broadway show. Unfortunately, he was arrested for public intoxication again the following year and, as we mentioned above, was ordered to attend rehab again in 2017 following his arrest in Savannah. The Guardian reported that he'd remained sober for two years after that, but LaBeouf admitted he'd relapsed during his relationship with FKA Twigs. After she came forward with allegations against him, LaBeouf publicly claimed that he was working toward his sobriety and was continuing therapy for his PTSD. It was during this stint in rehab that he reunited with his now-wife Mia Goth, who was the only person who supported him. The couple now have a daughter named Isabel, who was born at the beginning of 2022.
Later that same year, LaBeouf wrote to director Olivia Wilde to make amends two years after she allegedly fired him from "Don't Worry Darling." "I write to you now with 627 days of sobriety and a moral compass that never existed before my great humbling that was the last year and a quarter of my life," he wrote, per Variety.
If you or anyone you know needs help with substance abuse, mental health, child abuse, sexual abuse, hate speech, domestic violence, or is in a crisis, contact the relevant resources below:
- The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
- The Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
- The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.
- The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
- The VictimConnect Hotline by phone at 1-855-4-VICTIM or by chat for more information or assistance in locating services to help. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.
- The National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
- Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.