UPDATE: Shia has taken to Twitter to issue an apology for his recent behavior during his arrest. Let's hope he can get it together. We're pullin' for ya, Shia.
The original TRANSFORMERS was an unexpected megahit, making over $700 million globally back in 2007, effectively turning star Shia LaBeouf into a superstar. He starred in the following two films, REVENGE OF THE FALLEN and DARK OF THE MOON, but bowed out of future installments to do…whatever it is he’s been doing. Director Michael Bay has extended an olive branch to the actor, though, and has made an offer allowing him to come back to the series…under one condition.
The director recently spoke on the red carpet with Cine Pop, and was asked if the actor could ever return to the series in the future. Bay seemed very open to having the actor return, but only if he keeps himself out of the slammer long enough:
He can come back. If he stays out of jail he can come back. He’s been in jail quite a bit in America, so if he stays out of jail long enough he can come back.
LaBeouf has experienced his share of legal troubles in the last few years and was recently arrested for public drunkenness and disorderly conduct. But legal troubles aside he’s been hard at work, turning in post-TRANSFORMERS movies like LAWLESS, NYMPHOMANIAC, FURY and the upcoming BORG VS. MCENROE. He’s also put out several “performance art” pieces, most famously one where he sat in a theater and watched all his movies, his reactions posted all across the internet.
Needless to say, he’s a busy guy and has turned in his most interesting work since his ‘Formers days. Something about this quote makes it sound like Bay is just being a smart aleck, but if true, and taking LaBeouf's current acting choices into account, a question must be asked: Would he even want to return to the smashing robot series? It seems he’s put his commercial movie days behind him in favor of more stimulating work, and a new TRANSFORMERS script would make it into whatever art installation in his home he calls a garbage can.
If he does laugh off the possibility of doing more I would quickly support him. Doing the movies was a smart move to break out onto the scene, but then he spring-boarded into more mature roles that tested him as an actor. He’s beyond stuff like TRANSFORMERS now, and I’m excited to see what else he puts out. However, it will be hard to see him screaming on the tennis court as McEnroe without imagining him shouting, "OPTIMUS!"
Catch LaBeouf in BORG VS. MCENROE September 8.