As Vince touched on earlier, Shia LaBeouf sat down for an interview with The Hollywood Reporter where he talked about a wide range of showbizzy-style things, including his fractured relationship with Steven Spielberg due to his harsh quotes about the last Indiana Jones film (“It brought me freedom, but it also killed my spirits because this was a dude I looked up to like a sensei”), his feelings about his new film Lawless (“I fought for Lawless. I didn’t jump onto anyone else’s coattail and ride their wave”), and working with director Lars von Trier on an upcoming film (“[He]’s dangerous. He scares me. And I’m only going to work now when I’m terrified”). But the quotes that are getting the most play in the news are the ones he made about working in the studio system, for reasons I think you’ll pick up on very quickly.
“There’s no room for being a visionary in the studio system. It literally cannot exist,” he says. “You give Terrence Malick a movie like Transformers, and he’s f–ed. There’s no way for him to exist in that world.” […]
“These [Voltage Pictures] dudes are a miracle. They give you the money, and they trust you — [unlike the studios, which] give you the money, then get on a plane and come to the set and stick a finger up your ass and chase you around for five months.”
So, um … yeah. Fingers. Butts. NEWS.
In case you were wondering, that long steady beep you all are probably hearing off in the distance right now is Shia LaBeouf’s manager, agent, and PR team flatlining in hospitals all over Los Angeles. But whatever. Good. As much as Shia LaBeouf’s shtick can be a little grating sometimes, at least he opens his mouth and lets actual thoughts come out instead of regurgitating workshopped buzz words in every interview. I’d much rather have a slightly-bonkers 26-year-old millionaire compare being a movie star to having his rectum violated than have some haircut explain how working with Reese Witherspoon on his new film was “a dream come true. Really, just a delight.” Not that I think they’re always lying or anything, but, I mean, it sure is nice to have a quote like “[they] get on a plane and come to the set and stick a finger up your ass and chase you around for five months” pop up when you’re scrolling through your RSS feed and looking for something to post about.
So I guess what I’m really saying is thanks, homeboy. Good lookin’ out.
Photo credit: cinemafestival/Shutterstock