Shia LaBeouf recently opened up about his career and personal challenges during the Cannes premiere of ‘Megalopolis’ on May 16, 2024. The actor was lined up to appear in a Broadway revival of Orphans with Alec Baldwin in the early 2010s. He shared that he exited due to creative differences. This decision, he explained, was born out of an earlier fight scene with Baldwin that revealed their opposing philosophies about acting.
LaBeouf described his relationship with Baldwin as complex, recalling, “By the time Baldwin got there, it was almost unfair.” He acknowledged the intensity of their exchanges, stating, “It got insane. But me and him are good because he’s gone through a lot. I’ve gone through a lot.” This honest self-portrait painted a portrait of LaBeouf’s path of self-discovery continued in the cut-throat acting world.
Visiting Baldwin’s acting class at NYU, LaBeouf revealed his battle with insecurity and ego in his quest for greatness. As he noted a bit ruefully, “To go into this field, you have to be a little ego driven. That ego disease is a lot of times what leads people to acting.” And now I’m finding what the healthy iteration of that is. This more than anything else rang true to his earlier comments on ambition. The latter rang especially true to him in Timothée Chalamet’s comments about pursuing excellence.
LaBeouf seemed to express a competitive spirit towards Chalamet, saying, “I so know the feeling. On him, it’s cute. On me, it wasn’t cute. You know what I’m saying?” This growing rivalry seems to be the driving force behind LaBeouf as he now has the ambition to join the ranks of these highly regarded actors.
He cited several figures as inspirations in his quest for greatness, including Daniel Day-Lewis, Marlon Brando, Viola Davis, Michael Jordan, and Michael Phelps. These titans play as touchstones to LaBeouf, who is clearly not only ambitious but hell-bent on reputation within this bourgeoning industry.
“I know we’re in a subjective business, but I’m really in pursuit of greatness. People don’t usually talk like this, but I want to be one of the greats.” – Timothée Chalamet
Shia LaBeouf’s stated desire to be great reflects Timothy Chalamet’s just as much. Chalamet previously stated, “I’m inspired by the greats. I’m inspired by the greats here tonight,” reinforcing the theme of ambition that both actors share.
