Last night we wrote about Shia LaBeouf’s Twitter apology for plagiarizing Daniel Clowes’ 2007 comic Justin M. Damiano. Our favorite part of the apology was when he said “I f–ked up” and Jake Fogelnest responded, “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull?” That’s a burn.
But here’s where this already ridiculous story enters “Performance art, or just a buffoon?” territory. (Since Shia LaBeouf was a child actor, we’re guessing “just a buffoon.”) He plagiarized his apology.
Just like the Alec Baldwin apology was plagiarized, he did it again. Dead. I am now dead. Lay my body next to the millions of teenage girls on Tumblr who “literally can’t right now”.
This guy is a human matryoshka doll of bullsh-t.
Here was LaBeouf’s tweeted apology:
Copying isn’t particularly creative work. Being inspired by someone else’s idea to produce something new and different IS creative work. In my excitement and naiveté as an amateur filmmaker, I got lost in the creative process and neglected to follow proper accreditation. I’m embarrassed that I failed to credit @danielclowes for his original graphic novella Justin M. Damiano, which served as my inspiration. I was truly moved by his piece of work and I knew that it would make a poignant and relevant short. I apologize to all who assumed I wrote it. I deeply regret the manner in which these events have unfolded and want @danielclowes to know that I have a great respect for his work.
I f-cked up. [emphasis ours]
As Bleeding Cool points out, here is a relevant quote from Yahoo Answers (and this is the first time anyone has referred to a Yahoo Answers quote as “relevant”). When someone asked, “Why did Picasso say ‘good artists copy but great artists steal’?” member Lili answered four years ago, “Merely copying isn’t particularly creative work, though it’s useful as training and practice. Being inspired by someone else’s idea to produce something new and different IS creative work, and it may even revolutionalize the ‘stolen’ concept.” [emphasis ours]
You know, we’ve heard somewhere that merely copying isn’t particularly creative work. Shia LaBeouf should take that advice.
He knows Google exists, right? He knows we can check these things? And who the hell plagiarizes Yahoo Answers? How is he going to keep people from finding his uncredited sources? Oh, right. MAGIC.