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Los Angeles, California
June 11, 1986
LaBeouf was born in Los Angeles, California, the only child of Shayna (née Saide), a dancer and ballerina turned visual artist and clothing/jewelry designer, and Jeffrey Craig LaBeouf, a Vietnam War veteran who "drifted" from job to job, working as a mime at a circus and as a rodeo clown. Shia LaBeouf's New York-born mother is Jewish and his father is a Cajun (once described by LaBeouf as a "Ragin' Cajun"). LaBeouf was raised in the Jewish religion and had a Bar Mitzvah. The name Shia is Hebrew for "gift from God", and the surname LaBeouf is a variation of "le boeuf", the French term for "the ox" or "the beef". LaBeouf has said that he comes from "five generations of performers" and was "acting when [he] came out of the womb." LaBeouf's maternal grandfather, who shared his first name, was a comedian who worked in the Borscht Belt of the Catskill Mountains, and his paternal grandmother was a Beatnik poet and lesbian who associated with Allen Ginsberg.
LaBeouf has described his parents as "hippies", his father as "tough as nails and a different breed of man", and his upbringing as similar to a "hippy lifestyle", stating that his parents were "pretty weird people, but they loved me and I loved them." LaBeouf's father used to grow cannabis, and the two smoked marijuana together when LaBeouf was ten. LaBeouf has also said that his father was "on drugs" during his childhood, being addicted to heroin and placed in drug rehabilitation for heroin addiction, while LaBeouf's mother was "trying to hold down the fort." His parents eventually divorced, and he had what he has described as a "good childhood", growing up poor with his mother (who worked selling fabrics and brooches) in Echo Park, Los Angeles, California
Even Stevens
January 1, 1999 - June 2, 2003
LaBeouf became well known among young audiences after playing Louis Stevens in the Disney Channel weekly program Even Stevens, a role for which he was cast three months after being signed by his agent.
Louis Stevens is a 7th grader in middle school. His best friends are Twitty, Tawny and Tom. He usually gets himself into trouble when one of his pranks backfires.
Tru Confessions
April 5, 2002
LaBeouf also appeared in the Disney Channel hit Tru Confessions, where he played a mentally challenged kid with a sister who made a documentary about his disability. His father, at the time just released from rehab, served as his on-set parent and the two bonded.
Tru Confessions (2002) is a Disney Channel Original Movie. Tru Walker aspires to be famous, and has a twin brother Eddie who suffers from a mental disability. He becomes the subject of her documentary for film contest she enters.
Holes
April 18, 2003
LaBeouf appeared in another Disney production, Holes, as Stanley "Caveman" Yelnats IV, opposite Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight and Tim Blake Nelson. While filming Holes, Voight gave LaBeouf a book on acting, and this made LaBeouf realize acting could be more than a job. The film was a moderate box office success. Steven Spielberg was also a fan of LaBeouf in Holes, saying he reminded him of a young Tom Hanks
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
June 27, 2003
LaBeouf appeared in Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle as Max Petroni, an orphan whom the Angels end up protecting
Constantine
Feburary 18, 2005
LaBeouf appeared in the action-horror film Constantine (2005), opposite Keanu Reeves and Rachel Weisz.
The Greatest Game Ever Played
September 30, 2005
LaBeouf played the role of Francis Ouimet. Set in 1913, the film is about golfer Francis Ouimet, an amateur who was expected to fare poorly at the 1913 U.S. Open, and who was supposedly incapable of competing against professionals. Additionally, to discontinue an ongoing feud with his father, Francis agrees to get a real job and never play golf again. However, after getting a once-in-a-lifetime offer, Francis goes back on his word and competes for the U. S. Open crown. Against all odds, he managed to beat the British champions Harry Vardon and Ted Ray, who were considered the world's best golfers, and become the first amateur to win the U.S. Open.
Bobby
November 23, 2006
In 2006, LaBeouf co-starred in the ensemble film drama Bobby, which called for him to do his first nude scene when he strips naked while on an LSD trip.
Bobby is a Golden Globe Award-nominated historical drama film written and directed by Emilio Estevez. The film features an ensemble cast and is a fictional account set in Los Angeles, California on June 4th and June 5th, 1968. It concerns the lives of many people inside the Ambassador Hotel that day, and Senator Robert Kennedy's presence within the country during the late 1960s, through his bid for the Presidency, and at the hotel that night upon winning the California Primary.
Disturbia
April 13, 2007
In 2007, LaBeouf starred in Disturbia, a thriller released on April 13. He played a teenager under house arrest who suspects that his neighbor, played by David Morse, is a serial killer. The film was a hit and LaBeouf received positive reviews for the role, with the Buffalo News stating that LaBeouf "has grown into an appealing, bright young actor who is able to simultaneously pull off [the character's] anger, remorse and intelligence", Kurt Loder of MTV writing that LaBeouf "gets his star ticket decisively punched", and the San Francisco Chronicle noting that LaBeouf is "fast becoming the best young actor in Hollywood.
Transformers
July 3, 2007
LaBeouf played teenager Sam Witwicky, who becomes involved in the Autobot-Decepticon war on Earth, in Michael Bay's Transformers, released on July 3. LaBeouf has said that he is a fan of The Transformers television series and the 1986 The Transformers: The Movie,[35] and executive producer Steven Spielberg cast him in the role having been impressed by his performance in Holes
Arrested
November 4, 2007
On November 4, 2007, LaBeouf was arrested early in the morning for misdemeanor criminal trespassing in a Chicago Walgreens after refusing to leave when asked by a security guard.
Charges Dropped
December 12, 2007
The criminal charges stemming from LaBeouf's misdemeanor criminal trespassing were dropped on December 12.
Arrest Warrant
March 1, 2008
In March 2008, an arrest warrant was issued for LaBeouf after he failed to turn up to a court appearance. The hearing was in relation to a ticket he received for unlawful smoking in Burbank, California in February 2008. When neither LaBeouf nor a lawyer turned up at the court at 8:30 a.m., a $1000 bench warrant was issued for his arrest,[46] however the court commissioner in California recalled this warrant on March 19, 2008 after the actor’s attorney arrived a day late to plead not guilty on LaBeouf's behalf, and a pre-trial hearing was set for April 24, 2008.[47] The charge was dismissed after the actor paid a $500 fine.
Dating Lauren Hastings
May 5, 2008 - Now
On May 5, 2008, it was reported that LaBeouf is now dating model Lauren Hastings
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
May 22, 2008
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a 2008 adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, from a story co-written by executive producer George Lucas. Set in 1957, the fourth film in the Indiana Jones film series pits an older Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) against agents of the Soviet Union, led by Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), in the search for a crystal skull. Indy is aided by his former lover Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), the greaser "Mutt" Williams (Shia LaBeouf), and fellow adventurer Mac (Ray Winstone). John Hurt and Jim Broadbent also play fellow academics.
