American Actor, Shia LaBeouf was originally supposed to star in the film ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ released this September. Due to apparent “scheduling conflicts”, the star had to leave the film directed by Olivia Wilde and was replaced by Harry Styles. However, word spread later that he was in fact fired from the set due to unexpected behavior. What actually happened and what do the stars have to say? As always, we got you covered on ent.place!
About Don’t Worry Darling
Directed by Olivia Wilde, Don’t Worry Darling is an American psychological thriller movie. The movie is from a screenplay by Katie Silberman, based on a story by Carey Van Dyke, Shane Van Dyke and Silberman. With an estimated budget of $20 million, the movie was released in September. Set in the 1950s, the movie depicts the story of a housewife, Alice and her husband, Jack. They are living a rather beautiful life in the company town of Victory, California. However, over time, Alice grows concern about Jack’s work on the secret “Victory Project” to the point where her investigation starts causing tensions within the entire community.
You can watch the trailer of Don’t Worry Darling here:
Cast
- Olivia Wilde as Bunny
- Florence Pugh as Alice Chambers
- Chris Pine as Frank
- Harry Styles as Jack Chambers
- Kate Berlant as Peg
Shia LaBeouf Got Fired?
Right from the start, Olivia Wilde wanted to cast a young couple for the roles of Alice and Jack Chambers, the lead couple of the film. The first names that came to her mind were actress Florence Pugh and international pop star (and now film star) Harry Styles. However, Harry was busy touring and throwing concerts at that time, so Olivia needed someone else to step in.
So, she decided to go for LaBeouf instead. However, during the early production days of 2020, she quickly realized that he needed to be let go. By September, LaBeouf had been replaced by Harry Styles as the film’s male lead. Deadline reported that Shia had to depart the project due to a scheduling conflict. However, Variety quickly reported that he was in fact fired from the project due to his poor behavior. While shooting for the film did not start by the time the actor “left” the project, tension rose between the actor and the stars and crew of the film, including Olivia Wilde.
A source close to Variety stated that Wilde:
“is known to build collaborative sets with a zero asshole policy.”
Lawsuit against Shia
The alleged firing of Shia took place three months before he faced a lawsuit from his former partner, musician FKA Twigs. Despite the relationship lasting less than a year, Shia was alleged to physically, mentally and emotionally abuse Twigs multiple times throughout the relationship.
At the core of the lawsuit was a very particular incident that took place a few days after Valentine’s Day in 2019. Shia LaBeouf was recklessly driving at Los Angeles with FKA Twigs in the passenger seat. He removed his seatbelt and threatened the musical star that he’ll crash until and unless she confessed her love for him. The star begged to be let out of the car. She took out her bags from the trunk when Shia finally pulled over at a gas station. But the actor followed her, assaulting by throwing her against the car and screaming at her. LaBeouf then forced her to get back in the car. The couple was returning from a trip at the desert, where Mr. LaBeouf raged at her. He even woke her up in the middle of the night choking her.
“What I went through with Shia was the worst thing I’ve ever been through in the whole of my life,” FKA Twigs said. “I don’t think people would ever think that it would happen to me. But I think that’s the thing. It can happen to anybody.”
Shia’s Response to Olivia
Shia LaBeouf responded to being fired by saying that he quit and no firing took place. LaBeouf wrote an email to the the director, Olivia addressing her “narrative” of events. LaBeouf shared a letter along with text message exchanges and a personal video sent from Wilde to LaBeouf during production days in 2020, with IndieWire. In the end, he claimed that he quit the movie on his own due to inadequate rehearsal time.
An excerpt from the email reads as follows:
Firing me never took place, Olivia. And while I fully understand the attractiveness of pushing that story because of the current social landscape, the social currency that brings. It is not the truth. So I am humbly asking, as a person with an eye toward making things right, that you correct the narrative as best you can. I hope none of this negativly effects you, and that your film is successful in all the ways you want it to be.
Every Blessing To You,
Shia
Safety First?
As the director of the film, Olivia Wilde cared about the safety of her cast. Her concern grew once Olivia’s allegations against Shia came to light. “For our film, what we really needed was an energy that was incredibly supportive. Particularly with a movie like this, I knew that I was going to be asking Florence to be in very vulnerable situations, and my priority was making her feel safe and making her feel supported.”
Wilde went on to state:
“I believe that creating a safe, trusting environment is the best way to get people to do their best work. Ultimately, my responsibility is to the production and to the cast to protect them. That was my job.”
Wilde also wished the best of luck for LaBeouf wishing him health and evolution because she believes in restorative justice.
Amongst all this, Shia LaBeouf has been added to the star-studded cast of Francis Ford Coppola’s new movie, Megalopolis. The cast of the $100 million movie includes the likes of Adam Driver, Forest Whitaker, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, and Aubrey Plaza.
