Shia LaBeouf denies director Olivia Wilde's claim that he was fired from the production of Don't Worry Darling for being a problem on set. Wilde made her directorial debut in 2019 with the coming-of-age comedy Booksmart and for her second film, she has decided to go in a completely different direction with Don't Worry Darling, a psychological thriller. The film reunites her with Booksmart writer Katie Silberman, who wrote the screenplay based on a story by her and Carey and Shane Van Dyke.
Florence Pugh and Harry Styles lead the Don't Worry Darling cast as Alice and Jack Chambers, a young and happy couple living in the seemingly perfect company town of Victory during the 1950s, which all begins to unravel when the devoted housewife begins to question the nature of her husband's work and their utopian life. The film's supporting cast includes Wilde, Gemma Chan, KiKi Layne, Nick Kroll, and Chris Pine. LaBeouf was originally cast in the role of Jack, though he was eventually replaced by Styles. Days ago, Wilde broke her silence on the matter and claimed that LaBeouf was fired from the film due to his "combative energy," which was harmful to the production.
Now, in an email sent to Screen Rant and other outlets, LaBeouf is hitting back at claims he was fired from Don't Worry Darling. The actor asserts he was not fired from the film, but “quit the film due to lack of rehearsal time.” Both LaBeouf and Wilde's representatives declined a request for comment.
In addition to the emails in which he denies being fired, LaBeouf also sent screenshots of text messages allegedly exchanged with Wilde in August 2020 informing the director he would have to back out of Don’t Worry Darling. According to these texts, the two parties met in person to discuss his exit from the film, and later that night, Wilde sent LaBeouf an amicable message thanking him for his brief involvement and lamenting his departure. LaBeouf also included a video Wilde recorded and sent to him days after his departure in which the director says she is “not ready to give up on this yet” and alludes to tension between LaBeouf and Pugh. That these emails, texts, and video were apparently sent before production was aware of what LaBeouf's immersive method acting entailed, corroborating reports that LaBeouf’s style of acting did not mesh well with Wilde’s approach as a director.
In recent years, LaBeouf has been no stranger to controversy, including various arrests and run-ins with the law. Earlier in his career, LaBeouf was accused of plagiarizing his short film Howard Cantour.com, which he later apologized for. After starring with her in Honey Boy and dating for several years, FKA Twigs accused LaBeouf of sexual assault and battery, with a trial date soon approaching. The dispute between LaBeouf and Wilde will likely never end up in court, but as the story develops, so will a clearer picture of what transpired between the original star and the director during the early production of Don't Worry Darling.
