Shia LaBeouf is a changed man these days after ditching his wild lifestyle to become a religious family man with wife Mia Goth – and a source says he’s won huge respect from a ton of Hollywood peers who have happily united to “uncancel” him.
“Shia has taken stock of his mistakes and is making amends every day. He’s taken direct action,” a source exclusively tells In Touch. “But Shia’s mea culpa and conversion to Catholicism is also, surprisingly, paying dividends, and not just in the form of his flashy, juicy role in Francis Coppola’s wild extravaganza Megalopolis.”
The Disturbia actor, 38, was received into the Catholic Church with the sacrament of confirmation in January. The actor’s sponsor confirmed to the Catholic News Agency that Shia had also expressed his intention to become a deacon in the church “at some point down the line.”
The Disney Channel alum recently made a rare appearance at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in May, attending the premiere of his latest film, Megalopolis, alongside esteemed costars Adam Driver, Aubrey Plaza, and Laurence Fishburne.
His last red carpet appearance dated back to February 2020 at the 92nd Academy Awards, months before his ex-girlfriend Twigs (real name Tahliah Barnett) filed a lawsuit against him in December 2020.
In her lawsuit, the “Cellophane” singer, 36, claimed he sexually and physically assaulted and battered her, and knowingly gave her a sexually transmitted disease. In response, Shia’s legal team denied all the claims and asked for his ex to be ordered to pay his legal fees. After the allegations went public, Shia took a break from acting and parted ways from his agency, CAA.
“The deeper his penance, the deeper the cult around Shia is growing, and he’s starting to finally realize how important an artist he is to actors younger than him,” the insider claims. “They seek him out now like a wise man, and he falls into that special category of L.A.-based guys like Joaquin Phoenix and Sean Penn where everybody wants time with him and he’s ready to give it.”
The source says Shia will “sit down and talk about his art to anybody, without judgments” and will often be joined by his wife, 30.
“She has such a cool perspective herself and is always doing highly interesting work,” the insider concludes. “Shia is still a controversial figure, especially among the executives who are actually cutting the checks, but he has won the hearts and minds of the generation below him and they all want to emulate his mojo. Nobody predicted this would happen, least of all Shia!”
