Hollywood Actor Shia LaBeouf Names The Three A-list Stars Who Helped Him Get Sober As He Admits: 'They Kept Me Alive'
Shia LeBeouf credits Hollywood star trio Mel Gibson, Josh Brolin and Sean Penn for saving his life by helping him stay sober.
May 9 2025, Published 6:52 p.m. ET
Troubled star Shia LaBeouf has credited three Hollywood superstars for helping him beat the booze — and saving his life.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the Transformers actor, 38, claims he's battled back from the brink to restore his movie career.
Mel Gibson's Wise Words
Gibson, who quit drinking in 2010, introduced LaBeouf to Latin mass church services
In opening up about his film comeback in new flick Henry Johnson, LaBeouf revealed three iconic actors — Mel Gibson, Sean Penn and Josh Brolin — have become lifelines and helped him get back on track and stay sober.
LaBeouf first met Gibson, 69, in 2022, two years after the ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs first abuse allegations came to light, when the Aussie actor introduced him to Latin mass church services while he was researching a movie.
The star confirmed he and Gibson are still "very close", adding: "Big respect, big love. He's always been very lovely to me."
Josh Brolin And Sean Penn Lend Support
Brolin and Penn supported LaBeouf in his bid to get sober.
LaBeouf added: "He held my hand when I was really s----ing on myself. Dude really stepped up for me in big ways.
"Him, Sean Penn, James Brolin — these guys got me to sobriety. They got around me and kept me alive."
He continued: "Sean also showed up and motivated me to do this as a play.
"I was scared as f--- when this thing started," the actor said, noting that Penn and Sam Rockwell showed up to support him in the first week.
"There was a bunch of guys that I looked up to that just started popping up. I had never, ever felt that kind of love — not like that."
LaBeouf says it feels like a 'miracle' he's been given a second chance of a career.
When asked if their friendship could be a "gateway to rehabilitation," LaBeouf admitted: "I hope so. I hope my whole life is about that.
"I hope my whole life is squaring things, getting it right. It's what I want to do with the rest of my life. And there's a lot of things to get right."
"I'm blessed that I still have this craft, and I’m still allowed to do it at a high level with the highest. It feels like a f---ing miracle.
"It's all part of the same thing — God’s everything or nothing. I believe that. Me and Dave (Mamet) have big God talks."
The actor added: "I’ve been to temple with him. He’s been to church with me. Been deep dives for both of us."
Gibson got sober in 2010 after his controversial anti-Semitic tirade in 2006 and thusly converted to Catholicism like LaBeouf has.
Brolin, 57, went sober in 2013, while Penn, 64, has supported his son Hopper's journey to get sober from a crystal meth addiction.
FKA Twigs Accusations
FKA Twigs claimed LaBeouf infected her with an STD and relentlessly abused her.
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LaBeouf entered rehab after FKA Twigs, 33, filed court papers claiming he knowingly infected her with an STD and relentlessly abused her.
The pair met on the set of his movie Honey Boy in 2018 and dated for nine months, before splitting in May 2019 over what was reported at the time as "conflicting work schedules."
FKA claimed during a CBS This Morning with Gayle King that LaBeouf's emotional and mental "gaslighting" eventually evolved into physical abuse.
She said: "Eventually it did become physical. There were certain instances where he would push me and say, 'You fell.' And I would get really confused and think maybe I did."
LaBeouf denied FKA Twigs' allegations but apologized 'to those he had hurt' for his behavior
She recalled one horrifying instance of LaBeouf's alleged abuse, which involved him threatening to slam his car into a wall while driving on Valentine's Day in 2019 if she didn't confirm her love for him.
LaBeouf's attorney said in a court filing the Honey Boy actor "denies generally and specifically each and every allegation" in FKA's complaint.
He claimed to have apologized to "those he had hurt" but "denied each and every" assault allegation by the singer and wants her to pay his legal costs.
