'I had a gun on the table': Shia LaBeouf reveals how Catholicism SAVED HIS LIFE
Actor Shia LaBeouf opened about the recent major changes in his life during an interview with Bishop Robert Barron. He said on Thursday, August 25, that he wanted to take his life after a slew of public controversies. But while doing research for the new film ‘Padre Pio,’ he realized that he can also have a second chance and converted to Christianity.
The 36-year-old told Barron said, “I had a gun on the table. I was outta here. I didn't want to be alive anymore when all this happened. Shame like I had never experienced before — the kind of shame that you forget how to breathe. You don't know where to go. You can't go outside and get like, a taco. But I was also in this deep desire to hold on.”
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According to Fox News, LaBeouf went on to say that he signed the movie by Abel Ferrara purely for work but found more than that while living in a monastery for his main character. He explained: “The reach-out had happened. I was already there, I had nowhere to go. This was the last stop on the train. There was nowhere else to go — in every sense. I know now that God was using my ego to draw me to Him. Drawing me away from worldly desires. It was all happening simultaneously. But there would have been no impetus for me to get in my car, drive up [to the monastery] if I didn't think, 'Oh, I'm gonna save my career.’”
The Emmy award winner noted, “And when I got here, a switch happened. It was like Three-Card Monte. It was like someone tricked me into it, it felt like. Not in a bad way. In a way that I couldn't see it. I was so close to it that I couldn't see it. I see it differently now that time has passed,” before adding, “It was seeing other people who have sinned beyond anything I could ever conceptualize also being found in Christ that made me feel like, 'Oh, that gives me hope. I started hearing experiences of other depraved people who had found their way in this, and it made me feel like I had permission.”
In 2021, LaBeouf had faced two misdemeanor charges. He was also sued by his ex-girlfriend and English singer-songwriter FKA Twigs, who accused him of sexual battery. The lawsuit also included another former girlfriend, who alleged that the ‘Honey Boy’ star was abusive in the relationship. Not just that, his relationship with his talent agency CAA also shattered and he lost the movie ‘Don't Worry Darling’ by Olivia Wilde.
Later, LaBeouf's attorney reportedly released a statement saying he was aware that he “needs help” and started “seeking the kind of meaningful, intensive, long-term inpatient treatment that he desperately”.
Meanwhile, after the latest sit-down with LaBeouf, Barron, of the Dioceses of Winona-Rochester, shared his experience with him. The 62-year-old said: “It was a delight to sit down for an in-depth conversation with Shia LaBeouf, one of the most compelling actors of his generation. Shia is also a man with a fascinating story to tell regarding his spiritual journey. I think that anyone who is struggling to find the way to God will be interested in what he has to say.”