Robert De Niro and Shia LaBeouf to star in After Exile crime feature

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Word is being passed around the exercise yard that Robert De Niro and Shia LaBeouf have signed on to star in AFTER EXILE, a crime-related feature from JOBS and SWING VOTE director Joshua Michael Stern.

Based on a script penned by Anthony Thorne and Michael Tovo, the story of AFTER EXILE is based on true events from Tovo's own life. According to Deadline, who officially broke the news about De Niro and LaBeouf's casting, AFTER EXILE tells the sordid tale of Mike Delaney (LaBeouf) who, after being released from prison for killing an innocent man after a violent robbery, must re-enter his old life where he and his ex-criminal father (De Niro) attempt to save his younger brother from a life of drugs and crime. The drama is about the difficult trajectory toward forgiveness and redemption.

De Niro will act as Ted Delaney, an ex-con who lost his wife years ago and now suffers from alcoholism and guilt. All he has left is the instinct to save his two sons from the dark and destructive paths they are on.

Handling production on the high-profile feature are Anthony Thorne and Steve Snyder of Pacific Shore Films. Filming is expected to get underway in October in Philadelphia, with Pacific Shore Films financing the venture.

Recently De Niro reteamed with Martin Scorsese for THE IRISHMAN, a crime thriller that also stars Al Pacino, Joe Pesci and Harvey Keitel. De Niro is a co-producer on the Netflix-bound film, which is set to make its World Premiere at the New York Film Festival. Many are excited for the feature, seeing as it reunites many of the greatest actors to ever bring hard boiled mob dramas to life on the big screen.

As for LaBeouf, the once retired from public life actor recently dropped a trailer for HONEY BOY, an intense drama based on the actor's own troubled times as a child of the big and small screen. LaBeouf wrote the screenplay for HONEY BOY, and stars as James, an abusive father who put the young actor through hell while growing up in front of the camera.

With a seasoned vet like De Niro, and LaBeouf enjoying a powerful resurgence as of late, AFTER EXILE will likely be a project to keep tabs on in the coming months.