Olivia Wilde opens up about firing Shia LaBeouf from Don’t Worry Darling
Wilde says LaBeouf's methods were not "conducive to the ethos" of her production
Aux News Olivia Wilde
Before the role of Jack in Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling landed in the hands of Harry Styles, Shia LaBeouf originally booked the lead part opposite Florence Pugh. However, right before production started, LaBeouf departed the project, with Warner Bros. Pictures citing the regularly-used phrase: “Scheduling conflicts.” Now, in a new interview with Variety, director Wilde offers a new perspective on the actor’s exit.
“I say this as someone who is such an admirer of his work,” Wilde begins. “His process was not conducive to the ethos that I demand in my productions. He has a process that, in some ways, seems to require a combative energy, and I don’t personally believe that is conducive to the best performances. 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.”
LaBeouf has been known for his “combative” and erratic behavior on and off film sets for years now, resulting in numerous arrests and public scandals. However, shortly after LaBeouf was fired from Don’t Worry Darling, FKA Twigs filed a lawsuit against her former partner for sexual battery, alleging “relentless abuse” while the two dated. The trial is set for April 2023.
“A lot came to light after this happened that really troubled me, in terms of his behavior,” Wilde says. “I find myself just really wishing him health and evolution because I believe in restorative justice. But 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.”
With LaBeouf out and a worldwide pandemic coming into full view, Styles soon found himself free of touring and able to take on the role originally intended for him.
“We found the perfect Jack, and luckily, it’s kind of magical that it ended up being our first choice,” Wilde concludes.
Don’t Worry Darling arrives in theaters on September 23.
261 Comments
“His process was not conducive”
You mean you didn’t want to fuck him?
That’s a pretty weird take, man.
thanks.
I mean, it’s definitely phrased badly — but when Wilde says something like: I believe that creating a safe, trusting environment is the best way to get people to do their best work.And she’s (rumored to be) carrying on an affair with one of her lead actors, while married to one of the best friends of her other lead actor’s boyfriend — that… isn’t 100% kosher either. Can see how that wasn’t a “safe, trusting environment” for everyone.I’m a big fan of adults can adult, and as long as you’re not hurting anyone I’m not going to judge you. And I 100% get what she means by LaBeouf, since we’ve all heard the same (rumored) stories about his work process. But she’s falling in roughly the same boat on this one…
Holy shit, I didn’t know any of this and I’m still figuring out who is who in your recap.
Well, she’s with Harry Styles now and Pugh just broke up with Zach Braff (who is BFF’s with Sudeikis) if that helps? :p
Okay, I forgot all about her being with Sudeikis. Google conveniently didn’t have it in their one-box.
It does, thank you!
Technically, she and Sudekis were not married. That said, she’s someone I always liked prior to now and while I don’t care who she’s banging, she seems to express herself…oddly and she doesn’t come across great.
Honestly for me the worst isn’t that she cheated on Sudekis, because as you note, they weren’t married. The awful part is she has two kids in this union. That’s what really crosses the line for me. I had a (former) best friend who had an affair despite being married with two kids, and it was just such an ugly thing to do, I couldn’t be friends with him any longer. When kids are involved…you just have to act better than that.
It also seems either naive or vicious to use her word to have that affair with someone uber famous without breaking up with your current partner and having that affair in front of the then girlfriend of your current partner’s best friend (supposedly the reason Florence Pugh isn’t thrilled with her). It just seemed like someone wanting to be publicly seen as cheating on her boyfriend. I don’t know how she thought it wouldn’t become known.
I’ve also heard that Wilde – who also acts in the film – enlarged her own role, almost to the point of being a co-star. This apparently angered Pugh, who saw it as a pretext to spend more time with Styles, to the detriment of the film.
Interesting.During Booksmart press, Olivia Wilde came across as very genuine and excited and warm. Something is just different with this story. Maybe it just is her personal life. She doesn’t owe me anything, but it’s making me way less excited for the movie, tbh. Probably also helping Jason Sedekis earn back points after the CinemaCon thing.
Even with Booksmart I’ve heard some disappointing rumors that suggests a lot of Wilde’s image is a calculated façade. The story I’ve heard is that Booksmart was all set to be directed by Susanna Fogel, who had been developing the project for years. But then very close to the start of production, Wilde took over. Fogel subsequently signed an NDA and was basically excluded from all publicity, and Booksmart for all intents and purposes became Wilde’s passion project.This isn’t to say Wilde didn’t do the work of actually directing the actors. For that she deserves credit. I believe she has real talent and promise in this capacity. But the point is, she’s attempted to construct an image based on falsehoods, that obscures some real ugliness in her zeal to climb the ladder. She effectively took away a project from another woman, and claimed credit for the crucial work done developing the story, and preparing the film. Booksmart was not so much a passion project, as it was she bought into ready-made, as part of a calculated effort to rebrand herself as a serious director. Wilde actually reminds me a lot of Elon Musk. Both come from great wealth (Wilde is heir to an estimated 20 million dollar fortune), both used their money and privilege to muscle their way into an enterprise started by others, and then moved those people out and took credit. As for Sudekis, I think he weathered the whole Cinemacon thing well because there is a love of sympathy for him as the cuckold. People really love Ted Lasso, and the autobiographical elements of that series gained him a lot of supporters. Plus, the messaging that was put out, that Wilde had been dodging process servers, was effective, as many knowledgable people have noted, in custody disputes, serving papers should be as simple as relaying them to one’s attorney. The fact that Wilde had to be served papers at all, indicates she and her legal reps weren’t making a good faith effort. That she was served in such a public way, suggests she had been going out of her way to avoid receiving them.
Sudekis also claimed that he wanted her to not be served at home because of the kids which helped.Admittedly, I haven’t followed her career that closely. Just disappointing to see things turning out this way. People break up. Often someone is legitimately a villain and it’s not always the one that it seems to be. I just don’t think this interview is helping her make fans in a business where that matters.
#BelieveAllWomen was the biggest joke ever.Do y’all know any women?
My take is that probably both Sudekis and Wilde have probably behaved somewhat badly once they decided to split. I work in the area of law and have friends who are divorce attorneys and they say no one acts more irrational than a person going through a divorce. Things that slightly annoyed them during the marriage suddenly become monstrous acts when they never would have framed it that way previouslyy. Divorce and custody proceedings can suddenly make this person you once loved villain of your story. (Obviously I am discussing marriages that don’t include abuse. Just your typical falling out of love type of divorce. Which can become even more toxic when only one person fell out of love).
It is weird that some people have a much easier time completely exploding a relationship, than having an uncomfortable conversation.
And I agree with her that people are far more concerned about why she’s not with her kids 24/7 than they would be with a man, but exploding the relationship with Jason Sudekis the way she did when they have children isn’t going to make her look good. Even if the breakup is really because he’s a terrible partner, public choices hurt you in this business.
Disclaimer: I like Olivia Wilde’s work much, much more than Sudekis’s, and know nothing about their relationshipBut for the record, in a monogomous relationship, cheating on your longtime boyfriend/girlfriend/co-parent is equally shitty to cheating on your spouse/co-parent. Marriage is religious and legal institution, not a requirement for emotional committment.
It’s the “I think I’m deeper/smarter than I actually am” vibe I get.
Yeah, and maybe that’s all it is. Half of her answers are making me go “you think this makes you look better, but it doesn’t.” Like pointing to the papers being served and saying that this shows why you wanted out of the relationship – okay, well, then be a grown up and end a relationship. Don’t try to have your cake and eat it too? And I would not have even been thinking that if she didn’t open the door to it.
Ultimately, it’s an employer employee relationship, and that’s an unbalanced power dynamic. Directors have the power to hire and fire, so for me it goes beyond consenting adults, because of the power abuse going on here.
Man, come on. Power dynamics aren’t a 1:1 blueprint. Styles is a staggeringly famous international pop star who’s raking in cash hand over fist. It’s not like we’re talking about some fledgling actor who’s taking time off from his weekend shift at Red Lobster.
Isn’t it just easier to be a lesbian? Dating a guy in a dress seems a bit thirsty for attention, no?
You are of course 100% correct about the power balance being an important factor in any workplace entanglements. Full stop. but…*There is a factor in play here that alters the landscape I’m thinking. Workplace connections are just complicated in general, and most often a really bad idea. To say connecting with a subordinate is tantamount to rape** might be a stretch. but if you consider that a subordinate might feel he or she has no choice or control if they want to keep their job, a logical person can see why the comparison isn’t ludicrous. So, 999,999 times out of 1,000,000 (add zeros and nines if those numbers are low in your opinion) i would agree with you, full stop. In a rare case like this, an exception could be argued.
She was the boss on that set. Had she set sights on a background actor looking for their big break, or just an actor not working much due to covid and needing the paycheck, totally different scenario. But even had Harry rejected her advances, he’s going to act again. If he never acts again, i think he’s got the cash to never need to work again. He’s probably even wealthier than she is. So in this fraction of a percentile case, i don’t think the power dynamic is really a relevant factor except in just the principle of it. (But, let’s be honest, it’s a principle for a reason)* i get the contradiction, it was intentional**I’m not saying you compared it to rape. If that’s what it looked like, it wasn’t my intent.
She’s in the same boat as someone who’s been accused of beating multiple women? Really?
How did he know she was a woman? He’s not a biologist!
They may have come off a little aggressive, but I believe it’s supposed to be a reference to her presumed affair with Harry Styles while she was still with Jason Sudeikis.
Beyond weird.
Incel, much?You’re an asshole.
Nah, happily married.Go in peace, and fuck yourself.
Yup, a true asshole.And you might be happy in your marriage but I guarantee you’re wife miserable because of you.
Nice example of shit you’re comfortable saying on the internet, but I guarantee you would never say to my (or anyone’s) face.And for the last time: both hands on the keyboard! Your mom doesn’t want to have to wash it again.
Nice example of shit you’re comfortable saying on the internet, but I guarantee you would never say to my (or anyone’s) face.The devastating irony.
Step to me any time. Ninja.
“Step to me”? What, you think youre in 8 Mile or something? Hahahhaaa.
Yeah, that was pretty old school.
Is 8 Mile honestly the most current thing you could use to mock-reference “cool”? *shudders*
Sad. I’d impart an insult to you, as well, but it seems you already have Life quite stacked against you a few decades too late.
who are you and what the fuck are you even talking about? Theres nothing wrong with that reference. Sorry if youre some gen z fucko who doesnt remember anything that didnt happen ten minutes ago. It’s “8 Mile”, not “Birth of a Nation”, its not ancient history.
“id impart an insult to you as well”-what was the insult that youd be responding to? (I mean besides me insulting you just now, in the other comment.) The guy i made the reference to thought it was just fine, he wasnt bothered at all, but it seems like you were, for what reason, i cant figure out.
isn’t it possible to be a performative dickweed and contribute something to the world? And I would tell you whatever I wanted, to your face, but I wouldn’t say anything about your wife because thats just unkind and needlessly cruelCome find me in the UK btw at LA15 8RB, or you can ring me at 07502 696194
I guess it’s possible.
That argument is always so stupid, and applies to everybody. Noone’s gonna go find a complete stranger they argued with on the internet and say anything to their face unless theyre fucking insane. Although Jay and Silent Bob did it once, that scene was funny.
That’s exactly the example I was going to cite.
Yeah, I’m really crushed by this violence-suggesting asshole.
I would say it to your face. You’re a misogynistic piece of shit, and any woman around you absolutely knows it.
Hate to tell you this, that’s not my face, you ignorant, illiterate, toxic, grooming, victim-blaming, racist, MAGA, incel, who clearly lives with his parents and has never been/will never be touched by the fairer sex fuckwit.
Touchee touchee.Oops, major typo – I meant touchy touchy. Bro.
Oh, I thought you were going for the mother of all username/comment synergies.
No one who is happily anything spends as much time shitposting as you do.
and you can’t get enough of it.
I know you want to score points off insulting that guy, but you might not be right. After awhile its amazing how many married people waste their time, and what they waste it on.
I’m sure you have a ton of insight into that
Bro, I guarantee that no one cares about you including your co-dependent spouse. Just shut up and sit down.
You…bro…cared enough to reply and insult my wife.
Again, nothing you or any of these performative jerkoffs would ever do in front of anyone because…bro…I guarantee you are a spineless little dickweed who gets off on yelling at strangers from the security of your parents’ basement.
Jesus, man. Why’s everyone giving you shit? Like, wtf? It’s like they ain’t seen wild, wild west and the awesomeness of a mechanical spider. Motherfuckers, you see that spider and shit just makes sense.
Some days you are the motherfucker, some days you’re the motherfuckee.
Still wild, right? I bet you done forgot what your original comment was. People replying and you’re just, “what’s happening here.”
I could live without them insulting my wife. Other than that, I don’t know them, they don’t know me. It’s much easier to performative outrage all over the internet than to walk in the world and maybe contribute something constructive.
It’s not everyone else’s fault you represent yourself so poorly that we feel sorry for your wife.
Yes, I’m sure you do.
contribute something constructive.
I know, right?
Insults from these people mean nothing.
you: “It’s much easier to performative outrage all over the internet than to walk in the world and maybe contribute something constructive.”also you: “bro…I guarantee you are a spineless little dickweed who gets off on yelling at strangers from the security of your parents’ basement”and “Go in peace, and fuck yourself”and “You mean you didn’t want to fuck him?”It’s weird that you don’t see that you’re exactly the kind of person you’re talking about. A troll who talks shit online. You must have lots of free time and like to waste it trying to piss off strangers on the internet. Sounds wild.
Not taking into consideration that he never once attacked anyone without first being attacked by you…checks notes…spineless little dickweeds.
It’s amusing that you don’t see yourself as being performative here.
At least it’s amusing, which is more than anyone could say for the majority of this feedback.
You are very special boy. Pats on the head to you! 🙂
We know you don’t actually have a wife – everything you accuse other people of is pretty obviously shit you’re sensitive about in your own life. I wish you healing and evolution.
To be fair, being married to you is the worst insult your wife can have lobbed at her, so none of us here can light her up as good as her legally-binding contract to associating with you has already…. bro.
So a volcel then
Now you’re just making stuff up.
I used to be an edgelord jerk, too. I grew up.
I bet you weren’t. And I bet you didn’t.
Oops, deleted your replies, please spend more time reposting them. Your opinions are VERY valuable. Thanks.
I used to be an edgelord jerk, too. I grew up Then I got laid.
For the last time, TKCS, putting a ring on your right hand’s ring finger doesn’t count as a marriage. We’ve been over this, man.
DOINK!
Your poor sister-wife. May whatever spaghetti monster you believe have mercy on her whatever you quantify as a soul.
There is a jumble of words here but they do not make sense, at least in that order.
I pity whoever married you. Their self-esteem must not be great.
I guess it was my bad for bringing up my wife, but this I don’t care for. You are insulting someone you do not know, who is not a party to this pitiful excuse for a discussion. “IRL”, insulting someone’s partner is grounds for slapping-of-the-face. But then, it’s probably a safe bet that the majority of people lining up to sound off not only have no partners, but that their entire interaction with the human race is limited to these threads where they’re safe from actual repercussions of being rude.
come on mate! Statistically, surely you realize your statements re: no partners, and entire interaction with the human race, are unlikely to be true, right? I mean look at Donald Trump!
I did once, it was like looking straight at the sun. Except the sun is beautiful and necessary for life on Earth.
Thank you for confirming my reply. You’re a jackass and anyone who stays married to you must not be happy.
And no one will ever marry you because you are ugly, unemployable, unlovable and sex on the couch in your mom’s basement is not the most appealing idea for anyone.
Are you going to call me or are you going to be a coward? Come find me. Im not joking 🙂
Nothing worse than hearing a keyboard misogynist is “Happily married”She has my sympathy.
That escalated rather quickly…
Well, I can see why Olivia Wilde might not have wanted to fuck Shia if he was acting like an abusive asshole during all the meetings and rehearsals and then claiming it was part of his process.
If you’re like me (and I know I am) you need someone to tell you that “FKA Twigs” is a person.
From what I’ve read it sounds like Shia needs someone to tell him that FKA Twigs is a person.
Yeah, because let’s believe someone as narcissistic as a person willfully referring to themselves as “FKA Twigs.” That makes sense. LOL!
The first part seems like an acronym for swear words, thus I thought it was maybe what they kids are saying when they get some sticks in their pot.
I can see why Olivia Wilde might not have wanted to fuck Shia Me too. Just in general.
Be both sexist and illogical in the same comment. Oh, you did already.
You’re not funny or interesting
The fuck is wrong with you?
Depends on who you ask
I think two things can be true at once: (1) that Wilde had an affair with Styles; (2) that Lebeouf engaged in troubling behavior on set that justified his firing.
Yes, being a man in the limp-wristed beta-male world we now inhabit is a the highest crime imaginable. Of course, she’s banging a guy who usually wears a dress. Makes total sense.
How are 28 other people as stupid as you to star this?
And just look how many people are as stupid as you to keep replying.
It’s a sad fact that there are more that would star this up.Y’know, if their illiteracy didn’t keep them from reading the comment, or keep them unemployed marring them from paying for internet to even see the comment.
Cinecraft posted a comparable comment and did not get called out for it for some reason. I think under the circumstances a “Laboof was a pain in the ass/oooh who’s this hot guy who wants to pretend he’s an actor now?” scenario is entirely plausible LOL.
Do you think “LaBoof” went with FAO Twigz just so he wouldn’t have the weirdest name in the relationship?
I wouldn’t put it past him, that magnificent bastard LOL
She fired him so she could hire someone she could fuck between takes.
You’re a little late to the party. That’s already been well established.
I’m going to start saying that to people I don’t want to fuck.“Sorry mom, your process is not conducive.”
Her ethos of having an affair with Harry Styles?
Seems like Shia and Olivia are both shitty people.
This is barely even tangentially Related but I thought I’d mention and someone can decide if it’s newsworthy butBill Lawrence said on the Fake Doctors, Real Friends podcast that Ted Lasso might not be a 3 seasons and some show anymore. That it’ll probably just happen as long as and whenever Sudekis wants to do it.
If one believes Sudekis could serve Wilde publicly as it happened, you can’t really believe in Ted Lasso anymore.
I would love more Ted Lasso BUT given the extremely high bar they have already set, I’d be much happier if they decided not to film any new seasons until they were all happy with the scripts. I’d hate to see it decline from over-saturation the way Orange is the New Black did.
I can see him being slightly hard to work with.
That she even considered him in the first place, then lost time and money replacing him, says a lot about her judgment
I honestly figured she’d just say “the allegations against him were too serious so we went in another direction.” This weird touchy feely answer seems both misplaced and … weird.
It sounds to me like she’s obliquely trying to keep abreast of all the gossip surrounding her dating Styles, her separation from Sudekis, and her feud with Florence Pugh. I read it as a rather cynical attempt to appropriate a certain kind of language to give the impression that she has awareness.
Yeah, I think she also thinks that it makes her seem better, but it made her seem cold and strange.
I think that kind of language has already turned into an elite version of the Southern “Bless your heart”. I wonder if there’s some sort of grammatical term for condescension disguised as good intentions?
I dont know. To me, it seemed like she was just saying LaBouf is a bully, or an asshole, and she doesnt run her set like that, thats all.
Yeah, but she said it with a bunch of odd euphemisms that seemed designed not to make it look like she doesn’t respect Shia LaBouf which in light of all of his allegations seems…odd.
There is always the possibility she is remaining diplomatic to the situation and not casting dispersion, as she can only speak to her experience with him, and her experience was she didn’t want him on the set after he got there.When you are a BOSS in Hollywood, you can make those decisions. But you still gotta be diplomatic if you plan on working with them/anyone in their camp in the future.It sounds cool to be like, “Fuck this and that for X, Y and Z”, but that is simply not how fully-developed adults carry themselves. And being in the corpo-world, I find her comments hues much closer to “corporate positive culture” bullshit than “I am fucking Harry Styles and fueding with Pugh but I want LeBuff to heal and evolve”.
Being “corporate positive” is still weird and offputting when you’re in an industry when your likability matters.
I think she’s just trying really hard not to offend anyone, seeing that everyone on social media (and beyond) is going to have an opinion about this and no opinion is safe. There might be more specific information down the road. Wilde needs to get in front of it and she wants to make sure that her side is [H]eard.
I agree with all of that in theory. As of right now, I don’t see how this interview is helping her given the allegations against Shia LaBeouf or his volatility on set. When someone is overly parsing their words it shows. It’s making her seem disingenuous.
What good can be had by lowly commenters like us scrutinizing this so, tho? What purpose does this serve, outside of killing unproductive time at work/on lunch?
If she DID come out and say whatever folks are believing that isn’t what is in the article, all we’d have is a false sense of superiority for being “right”.I am just seriously trying to understand why this take at diplomacy is boggling for so many, and what good whatever it is these types think they are hinting in on coming to the forefront would provide?
Because diplomacy and disingenuousness don’t read the same way.Olivia Wilde is on the offensive right now due to a series of bad press pieces that haven’t made her look great on the heels of a movie coming up. Choosing not to give straight answers to questions that she and her team allowed to be asked makes her seem like she either doesn’t have an opinion or is choosing not to give her opinion. That rubs people the wrong way. Choosing to be diplomatic about Shia LaBeouf in light of the allegations against him – both set toxicity and sexual abuse allegations – also contradictions a lot of other stuff she said in the past suggesting she was either being disingenuous then or now. Also, yeah, it’s a comments section. You ought to expect people to be commenting on what she said.
“I want to fire this guy, but I also must constantly big-note myself.”
That she even considered him in the first place, then lost time and money replacing him, says a lot about her judgmentHe’s done some really good work and this was before FKA Twig’s abuse allegations so, I dunno, it wasn’t the worst idea.
Yeah, hes just kind of a jerkoff, hes no Erza Miller.
I really don’t know too much about Shia LaBeouf, but it seems like I’ve read oblique remarks about him not exactly being amongst the most upstanding human beings for as long as I’ve recognized his name, which would go back to at least the late 2000s.
An admirer of his work? #ROFLCOPTER
I’m surprised The Beef™ is still even getting work anymore. I figured his name would be in bold in the mythical Hollywood blacklist.
Quick, I’m losing my PR battles to Pugh and Jason. I need a creep to shit on!
“I find myself just really wishing him health and evolution”Of course that’s a normal human person thing to say.
Her statements sound like they were vetted by no less than a half dozen lawyers, agents and PR reps.
For sure. The whole spin around everyone/thing involved with that movie is keeping at least 50 PR people employed.
“‘Growth’?”“Implies immaturity. Too schoolyard.”“‘Healing’?”“We’ve already got ‘health’; it’s alliterative and kinda redundant. Also, legally, we shouldn’t imply that he is in some way ill.”“‘Some time for personal introspection and reflection on who he is and what he wants to become’?”“Jesus. Too verbose. That’s like half your tweet gone.”“‘Evolution’?”“That implies he’s some sort of lower lifeform that needs to evolve.”“Not in Kansas and most of the south it doesn’t.”“Fuck it, fine. Text it to her.”
Brilliant!
scarily, I think she pulled that goobledygook out of her brain on the fly LOL. Kind of impressive though.
You forgot the spiritual gurus and monks playing prayer bowls who were definitely also in the room.
Sounds like she is trying to deflect from all the other shit that’s come up in the last week.
I mean, Wilde is clearly from the same planet of superhumanly attractive people as Nicole Kidman, who is herself clearly an alien, so…
In Kidman’s case, her obvious surgeries render her pretty “plastic” looking, which is… not attractive.
To each their own.
Wait, what is he evolving into? Should we be scared??
Depends on what Pokemon you were thinking of using against him.
He’s evolving into MechaLeBeouf: the ultimate form of Shia.And yes, you should be very scared.
Wait, what is he evolving into?Lunch. Those cheekbones don’t get razor sharp by eating earth vegetables alone.
She’s hoping he’ll evolve into Homo Sapiens Sapiens.
Right now, Shia’s biology is currently at Homo Habilis.
a hole.
Ehh, just sounds like normal hollywood feel good faux positive bullshit.
She probably does those yoga prayer hands when she thanks people
it does kind of seem funny that we are surprised by this kind of Gwyneth Paltrowspeak when it used to be commonplace to make fun of Hollywood types for saying shit like this
Absolutely do not trust people who talk like this.
It’s HR speech for I fired him bc he’s an asshole.
Basically. I think she genuinely means it, cuz no one should want assholes to STAY assholes, but it reads as “this is the nicest way for me to say he should get some help and grow up”.
This isn’t a “normal” conversation, this is an interview. Of course, she’s going to be diplomatic. Not everyone likes to start a public feud.
In her defense Wilde is from an incredibly wealthy family and spent years in an exclusive and sheltered boarding school, so human emotion is alien to her.
“Normal” human persons don’t direct movies.
What’s not normal about it? She’s trying to be diplomatic and kind. I guess that does seem pretty unusual to the Very Online.
Jackie Daytona approves.
Every exclamation point I put in a work email is a fucking lie, so I can’t really judge people for being inauthentic at work.
See ya in a billion years, Beoufster.
Well his nickname in Holes was Caveman. Perhaps evolution is exactly what he needs.
Shia LaBoeuf trying to method act is like watching a dog trying to listen to classical music. He deflates every production that he’s been in, even Nymphomaniac, a film that seemed almost custom built for him. A hillbilly failing upwards since childhood.
Holes was good. But then, he wasn’t a big name star with ego to match back then.
Holes was literally only good for having a movie on in the classroom and not having to do some sheit assignment with a sub as the real teacher was out.Holes is not a good movie if you are over the age of 18.
Interesting. I was just watching that production yesterday. I’m at the part where Joe finds herself working for Jerome. I was trying not to recognize him but, yes, he just puts a stink on everything around him.
“is like watching a dog trying to listen to classical music”Superb Stewart Lee reference.
one of my favorite Stew Lee bits, with all disrespect due to James Corden
Seems like a lotta people have le beef with le beouf.
What da ruff?
I wasn’t expecting so much fence straddling from her on Shia LaBeouf tbh.
You’re surprised person who faces losing their kids because of decisions they’ve made is making statements that suggest they’re not in favour of strong repercussions for personal behaviour but whatever… this is meant to be.
She’s not in danger of losing her kids. Jason Sudekis just wants to force her to live in NYC – London instead of LA-London.
She did mention the other shit about him came to light just afterwards…
Right, with a bunch of touchy feely word salad phrases about healing.
Yeah. I would get it more if there wasn’t sexual assault allegations against LaBeouf. And we can support restorative justice and maybe decide like him should not have a platform and need to find another line work?I feel like there is real misunderstanding of restorative justice/prison abolitionism movement with Hollywood types who just latch on to it in a performative way and then misapply it. It really reminds me of the defund the police movement which is really about the reallocation of fund to prevent crime which is lost when celebrities discuss it
Honestly, I’m surprised she let the question happen at all. “We always wanted Harry and thanks to a few complications including a pandemic, Harry became available.”There are multiple things in the article that made me go “she and her team let that be asked?” Maybe that suggests an openness that I should appreciate, but it’s…odd. That’s the best word I have for it.
She’s into straddling.
But having sex with your lead actor is conducive to a safe, trusting environment?
Sometimes it’s the only way to create one.
See, this is why they shut down your corporate retreats.
Yeah, no director and actor had ever hooked up on set before Wilde and Styles. A true anomaly.
Honestly I don’t have an issue with Wilde hooking up with her lead, because as you note, that’s been going on for as long as there have been directors and actors. But don’t try to have it both ways, and say you’re all about a safe environment on set an all that. She’s trying to have her cake and eat it too, by engaging in the same sorts of sordid behavior that has been a blight on the industry, while claiming she’s above that kind of sordid behavior.
Sordid? That sounds very 20th century. I don’t think kids these days care who is boinking who or for what reason – unless such drama affects them personally and then – lookout twitter! And then it isn’t about how ‘nasty’ everyone is; it’s about ‘respect’.
Sure, it happens. I think the problem lies in the fact that she was still dating Jason Sudeikis at the time…
And there are two kids involved. That’s a fucking shitting thing to put on them.
And us being on the outside of 2 grown-folks arrangement, all we can do is speculate and cast needless judgement.Who knows what arrangement these 2 grown-folks have with each other and their lawyers, let alone what they are willing to be honest about with their kids and the greater public.So why is it wrong to publicly state someone that so clearly has problems as Shia has is hoped to get the help he so clearly has needed? Like, should she just be, “O, by the way, I am facking this Styles kid, and I hope I heal and evolve, too?”And besides, Hollywood is gross freaky. This is nothing new, and has been the biggest problem with Hollywood for as long as it’s been a thing. Casting judgement and disparaging remarks in proximity to the sanctity of marriage between two Hollywood entities is so far out of touch with the reality of the business.These two fucking might just be part and parcel for the production.Lastly – if you are so concerned about the kids, stop perpetuating this mess about their parents. Let them sort it out. It’s not that hard of a thing to do, because again – it is literally not your business.
I was the child in this situation 20 years ago and let me tell you, it pretty much ruined my life for years after.
Not really. They’re all adults. It’s none of our business.
I personally have a problem with people cheating on their significant others, furthermore, they’re celebrities who are speaking about this publicly.
But … they aren’t. At least, not here. So to out-volume the message here with something else they are publicly talking about elsewhere shows you either cannot discern when to be on-topic, or how to let go of grown-folk business that is not your own, no matter how public someone in the greater public might be about it.
The real problem is that she’s not playing Quorra in additional Tron sequels. I *liked* Tron Legacy. Yes, it was imperfect, much as the original was, but like the original it looked great and had a killer soundtrack. Sometimes that’s enough.
Blame Disney, they pulled the plug on plans for Tron 3
I know right! Regardless if Tron 3 happens, we’ve missed our window to get another Daftpunk soundtrack.
True, but the original Tron featured a soundtrack by Wendy Carlos, who kind of represented electronic music in the 1970s and 1980s. Daft Punk filled a similar role in the 2000s and 2010s. I’m not sure who is the next in this line, but I’m sure someone could fill this role.
That’s a good question. I listen to a lot of electronic, but I can’t think of an artist who would be able to create a compelling soundtrack. Maybe Porter Robinson as his alter ego Ghost Voices, or Eric Prydz. Deadmau5 might be able to pull something off, too.
I agree, I think Deadmau5 would be perfect for Tron if it ever happened. Although I could see Daft Punk being convinced if Disney were to dig deep enough into the money pit.
Yeah, but if had been a 38 year old male director sleeping with his 28-year-old star I am pretty sure you would get a different reaction on here. Over on Jezebel there are people saying that at 24 years old Florence Pugh’s brain isn’t developed enough for her to choose who she wants to date and that made Zach Braff a predator.
those directors also get called out for the same behavior and they definitely don’t claim to prioritize a “safe, trusting environment” lol
Just because something has been happening forever doesn’t make it OK
I mean yeah being stalked around the woods is unusual but it’s well known enough by this time that there’s a whole song about it:
Me going through these comments:
honestly can’t tell if that’s McConaughey or Turturro LOL
I always thought it was Turturro. FUCK. You’ve got me questioning my sanity.
It’s McConaghey.
then my work here is done LOL
Heck, I thought it was Peter Greene.
I actually saw Peter Greene on the streets of Manhattan 5-10 years ago, he was loudly talking to a street cleaner and at first I couldn’t place him until he started talking very loudly and then it clicked and I wanted to yell out “ZED!!!” but the Indian guys I was with probably wouldn’t have liked that LOL
Black Cat Run was an underrated movie.
That’s my face reading any comment section for the last 12 years.
It would be fine to say, Look, guy was a dick, he creeped out his co-star and I had to fire his performative ass. BTW- It’s my movie, I am the fucking boss, and I look out for the rest of the team and the big picture. Next question.”Too much of the pithy wishing him health and his evolution blahblahblah.
Yeah, but you can’t speak like that in Hollywood unless you’re A+ list, you have to kiss everyone’s ass even if you hate them.
Lol, you must not hold a title at your job where you have to be diplomatic, OR you are being disingenuous about how often you have to craft responses like this one – where you are professional and positive and avoid what you really feel about the situation.
I feel like I know a ton about the behind the scenes of Don’t Worry, Darling and nothing of the movie itself.
The advance word I’ve heard is that the movie is lousy, and I have to wonder if this all isn’t calculated to a certain degree, to lean into all the ugliness going on behind the scenes, in order to get people more people interested in watching the film from the standpoint of wanting to rubberneck.
True. It also probably is a bit of cover for Wilde (“the movie would have been so much better without all the distractions I had to endure” etc.)
It certainly worked in the past. Case in point, Cleopatra, which went disastrously overbudget, nearly sank 20th Century Fox, and got middling reviews, but still wound up being a success, because audiences wanted to see the movie during which Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor began their affair. If Wilde’s movie (I even had to stop and look it up, I keep forgetting the title) is a hit, I think it will be because audiences want to see it for all the drama and tension between the three leads.
Yeah? How did it work with Proof of Life?
You raise a good point. Proof of Life not only flopped, but arguably that affair was what tanked Meg Ryan’s career. The difference I see is that, a substantial part of Meg Ryan’s box office appeal was as America’s sweetheart. She was the rom-com ideal, and when she cheated on her husband with her costar, that obliterated that sweetheart image she had cultivated. Plus I think her career downturn also owed as much to her attempt to “rebrand” her image by appearing in “In the Cut” which further alienated her fanbase by being more sexually explicit than anything she’d done before. She lost the fans she had, and because the film was a critical failure as well, she didn’t gain anything in terms of new appreciation for her acting ability, which was never really her appeal. Elizabeth Taylor really didn’t have that reputation, she having already been married four times when she began seeing Richard Burton. There wasn’t any sweetheart image to be destroyed, because that wasn’t her image. Plus for as big a star as Meg Ryan was at her peak, she never ever approached the starpower that Taylor had, so while both may have taken hits to their reputations, the hit Taylor took was less appreciable because she was so big to begin with. She could weather it consequences more.
A friend of mine ran into Russell Crowe and Meg Ryan while they were filming Proof of Life when they entered a store he was in at the same time but he said he got distracted by an intricate light switch design on the wall.
Cleopatra was the #1 film of the year… and STILL lost money because it was so expensive.
Very true. The only win 20th Century Fox got out of it was it didn’t sink their studio. But it took them a long time to recover financially. The Sound of Music helped, but it wasn’t until Star Wars that they were really financially secure
wanting to rubberneck
I am guessing from your myriad of comments all “in the know” that wanting to rubberneck is what you idle at.There is SO much more out there than this petty Hollywood stuff you are jockin’ super hard with. Please find it for yourself.
LaBeouf is a pretty good actor, I think Ezra Miller has modelled his career after him.
I think everyone involved in this should be put to the sword
In a sexy way?
“I say this as someone who is such an admirer of his [Shitty the Beef’s] work”Really? He’s always the worst part of whatever (generally not great) thing he’s been in — the Transformers movies, Crystal Skull, etc. Even ignoring the fact that he may be difficult to wortk with, I don’t understand why anyone would want to.
seriously. How much more baggage can an actor who’s not an established bankable movie star accumulate before people stop giving him work?
I thought he was good in the video clip of Rob Cantor’s “Shia LaBeouf” but admitedly that was a fairly limited role.Also, I just realised he’s called Shia LaBeouf and not Shia LaBoeuf. What is up with that? The fuck is a Beouf?
To be fair, there was nothing good going on with the Transformers movies.
Hm, I pretty much hated every single second he was on-screen (or simply audible from off-screen) in the Transformers movies, but honestly, I have genuinely nothing against him in that Indiana Jones movie which was never made. He was also pretty good in the second “Wall Street” movie which came out some years back. Granted, he may have made that movie before he went completely off the rails, though… :PHe also did a passable job in “Constantine”, although the director of that movie whatsisname did take the time to point out it was Shia’s own idea that he’d stop to kick the doorman to the underground club and laugh at him, after the doorman falls to the floor. Which definitely makes Shia’s character seem like quite the douche, which knowing it was allegedly his own idea to do it thus makes him the douche. So there’s that as well.Also, at one time, he was a cute adorable kid actor in an episode of “E.R.”, way back when. One wonders what exactly made Shia disintegrate this spectacularly, some mental disorder, drugs, or maybe just having had a fucked-up childhood and/or fucked-up stage-mom/dad parents perhaps. Maybe a combination of several things at once.
What a sweet way of saying she was tired of Shia’s shit.
I want to see the LaBeouf Tom Hardy fight and I will beat the ever living fuck out of the winner. That guy will then take me out to dinner.
Give this to me interwebs and I’m sorry I saw this so late.
Weird homoerotic fantasy you decided to share with us here, but I do appreciate your mindless honesty.
Look, the winner would be Hardy in the first couple of seconds . They both have the ‘hit it with FULL STRENGTH’ perk* , but Hardy is a lot more bulked out.( mental health is no joking matter by the way ,so if you laughed at that you’re as bad as me…;) )
…I laughed.Shame on us both.
AVClub getting ready to go full Jezebel.
If you fill a room with 100 salty White women and a 100 typewriters…
She’s weird! Oh, and I hated Booksmart!
I have a feeling this movie’s ratio of “extracurricular bullshit to actual quality” will be off the charts LOL.
Olivia Munn > Olivia Wilde
I know it’s a Pullman , Paxton thing , but I’m never sure who’s who. I mean Munn is the X men one , and Wilde is the Tron legacy one ..right?
Olivia Williams is the best Olivia. And yes I am including Colman.
So weird watching the incels flock out to complain about this. Is Shia a chad sigma male now? I thought he was a shitlib snowflake? It’s so hard to keep up.Anyhow, she’s saying all this very deflective, nice stuff because “I fired the little shit because he was a wife-punching rapist who loved plagiarism” could burn bridges with creatives and moneymen who share LeBouf’s sphere, and Hollywood runs on networking. It’s obviously not hard to read between the lines. Maybe if you guys learned to be diplomatic like Olivia here, you wouldn’t keep getting dragged on the Internet?
I honestly don’t think Shia qualifies as a Chad. To me he seems more like a frazzled dope-head/nutcase who is off his meds.
Meh, she runs the show, it’s her production, that being said the movie will likely be boring and suck, like 99% of movies these days.
We love a boss, don’t we folks? We really love ‘em, we really do. Love it when they fire folks, yessir, nothing like it. They tell me- you know, they tell me they love to be fired – they come up to me, big grown men with beautiful faces, and you know what they say? Thank you.
Reopening the LeBouf storyline? She’s really trying to get this movie out of the “Florence Pugh despises Olivia Wilde” news cycle, eh?
That’s one heckuva smug portrait of Wilde you’ve chosen to frame with this article.
Meanwhile in reality she let him go because she wanted the dude she is currently fucking on the set. She is a disgusting pervert who needs help. Nothing like using her power to fuck.
Actual cannibal Shia LaBeouf?
This post could have been updated to link to this follow-up:https://www.avclub.com/shia-labeouf-claims-not-fired-from-dont-worry-darling-1849461353