Following a claim from director and actress Olivia Wilde that she had to fire Shia LaBeouf from Don’t Worry Darling, the actor has come forward with his own side of things, alleging that he quit the film.
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LaBeouf’s claims dispute the notion that Wilde had to fire him from the film, with the actor noting that he was actually the one that chose to leave production due to lack of rehearsal time for himself and the other actors. The claim comes in the form of an email letter sent to Variety from LaBeouf himself, addressed to Wilde, with LaBeouf claiming to be more than 600 days sober and also noting that he’s speaking out because he doesn’t want his newborn daughter to eventually read things that he feels are not true.
“You and I both know the reasons for my exit,” reads part of the letter from LaBeouf. “I quit your film because your actors & I couldn’t find time to rehearse. I have included as a reminder the screenshots of our text exchange on that day, and my text to Tobey … 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 negatively effects you, and that your film is successful in all the ways you want it to be.”
Variety also notes that, according to the texts provided by Shia, LaBeouf and Wilde met in person on August 16, 2020, with Wilde texting him later that night. “Thanks for letting me in on your thought process,” the text reads. “I know that isn’t fun. Doesn’t feel good to say no to someone, and I respect your honesty. I’m honored you were willing to go there with me, for me to tell a story with you. I’m gutted because it could have been something special. I want to make clear how much it means to me that you trust me. That’s a gift I’ll take with me.”
The report also notes that the texts were sent before the production team on Don’t Worry Darling learned of Shia’s immersive acting method. However, LaBeouf claims he quit the film the following day, on August 17, 2020, and even included a video (below) that Wilde allegedly sent him a few days later in which she is seen saying that she is “not ready to give up on this yet” and even seems to hint at tension between LaBeouf and actress Florence Pugh, with Wilde noting that the tension would be a “wake-up call for Miss Flo.”
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“I feel like I’m not ready to give up on this yet, and I too am heartbroken and I want to figure this out,” Wilde says. “You know, I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss Flo, and I want to know if you’re open to giving this a shot with me, with us. If she really commits, if she really puts her mind and heart into it at this point and if you guys can make peace — and I respect your point of view, I respect hers — but if you guys can do it, what do you think? Is there hope? Will you let me know?”
here is the video of olivia telling shia she wants to work it out and that if “miss flo” could “commit” more than it could happen.
please ignore that hashtag on the video I didn’t put it there. pic.twitter.com/vAQPBqPRYE
— sophia (@hellopugh) August 26, 2022
