Trivia

When he was a guest on Late Show with David Letterman (1993) during the hype for Transformers (2007), Dave asked Shia how his name originated. Shia responded saying that the name "Shia" was Hebrew for Praise God and his last name "LaBeouf" was French for Beef, hence the phrase "Praise God for Beef".

Was accepted at Yale University but has not attended.

Had only two days off between finishing the shooting of Disturbia (2007) and beginning that of Transformers (2007).

When he was a child, he and his parents would dress up like clowns and sell hot dogs in the park across the street from their apartment.

Considers The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005) as his transition movie from child actor to adult actor.

His second father and mentor was Jon Voight.

Once spent three days non-stop watching his own movies in a theater, which he filmed himself.

He topped Forbes magazine's list of actors who give movie studios the best return on their investment, with his films earning an average of $160 for every $1 he is paid (2009).

Before casting Armie Hammer, Shia LaBeouf traveled to New York to do a reading for Call Me by Your Name (2017), and according to producer/screenwriter James Ivory, he was great, but as time passed, LaBeouf lived up to his reputation, with various troubles, so the production company felt they couldn't wisely go with him.

Enjoys playing the drums and making independent short films with his friends.

His mother, Shayna Saide LaBeouf, was a former ballet dancer from New York who once studied with Martha Graham. She also once managed a head shop across the street from Tompkins Square Park.

In July 2008, he was arrested for driving under the influence after being involved in a car crash. The crash left him with a damaged hand. He had to undergo extensive surgery that lasted for at least four hours. His injury was written into Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) from which he had to take some time off after the crash. In January 2009, his driver's license was suspended for a year as a consequence of his refusing blood-alcohol-level testing after the crash.

His French-Cajun father, Jeffrey LaBeouf, was a clown from San Francisco who spent time in France studying commedia dell'arte.

Named after his grandfather, Szaja Yeshayhu Saide, who was also a comedian. Szaja was born c. 1913 in Bialystok, Poland.

Grew up in Echo Park, Los Angeles, California.

He was first arrested for stealing Nike Cortezes sneakers from a store in Pacoima, California.

On September 25, 2018, Shia has filed for divorce from his wife of 23 months Mia Goth.

Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight, Jodie Foster and John Turturro are his inspirations. He would later work with John Turturro in Transformers (2007), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) and Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011).

For music, he likes to listen to System of a Down, 50 Cent, Eminem, D12, Led Zeppelin, Jack Johnson, Ben Folds and others. His film Disturbia (2007) features a song by System of a Down, "Lonely Day".

Is involved with Joe Torre's Give Back to the Children's Fund.

His favorite movies are Dumb and Dumber (1994), American Beauty (1999) and Saving Silverman (2001). He was in the prequel Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003).

His father has Cajun (French) ancestry while his mother is of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Shia's maternal grandfather, Szaja Yeshayhu "Sam" Saide, was a Polish Jewish emigrant, who was born in Bialystok, and moved to the United States in 1930. Shia's maternal grandmother, Mary Ann Rosen, was born in New York City, to Russian Jewish parents.

Shia LaBeouf converted to Catholicism while preparing for the movie Padre Pio (2022), where he plays the young saint. To prepare for the role, he resided in a monastery with Franciscan Capuchin friars.

Became engaged to his longtime girlfriend Mia Goth. (March 2016)

Sometimes plays basketball with Lizzie McGuire (2001) star Adam Lamberg.

Currently resides in Sherman Oaks, California.

Attended the prestigious Hamilton Academy of Music in Los Angeles, California. Fellow alumni are Emile Hirsch, Fernanda Romero, Frank Miranda, Will Rothhaar, Rachel Kiri Walker, Candace Lifson, Kyla Pratt, Kaitlin Doubleday and Cherish Lee.

Attended and graduated from Alexander Hamilton High School (2003).

His first name is pronounced to rhyme with "hiya" and his last name is pronounced "La-buff".

Has appeared twice on the cover of GQ magazine: June 2008 and April 2010.

Started a hip-hop group/record label (Element) and a film production company (www.grassyslope.com) with fellow actor and best friend Lorenzo Eduardo.

Has appeared in five movies that feature sentient technology: Transformers (2007), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011), I, Robot (2004) and Eagle Eye (2008).

Shia's film #TAKEMEANYWHERE (2018) was accepted into the 2017 Williamsburg Independent Film Festival.

Ranked #24 on Entertainment Weekly's "30 Under 30" the actors list (2008).

When younger, he attended 32nd Street USC Visual and Performing Arts Magnet.

Growing up, he resided in an apartment on Glendale Boulevard in Los Angeles, California.

His mother, Shayna Saide LaBeouf, passed away from heart failure on August 27, 2022 at age 80.

Grew up in Los Angeles, California with actor Bo Barrett.

Ranked #6 on Moviefone magazine's "The 25 Hottest Actors Under 25". (2008)

His family name does not actually mean "the beef". As spelled, it is a Cajun deformation of the original French name "LeBoeuf". "Le" instead of "La" because in French, "Beef" or "Boeuf" is masculine and the correct way the name is spelled is "Leboeuf" or "LeBoeuf". As so often happened in Louisiana, the name became deformed because the French sent there could say their name but could not read or write French correctly. "Beouf" is not a French word or name. There is no such name as "Labeouf" or "LaBeouf" in French. Correctly spelled it would mean "the beef" in the singular tense.

Ranked #4 on Interview magazine's Hollywood faces to watch "Future Stars of Tomorrow".

Ranked #7 on Yahoo! List of 10 Most Popular Stars of 2007 on Yahoo! Movies (2007).

Performed alongside hip-hop MC G. Money at the Viper Room. (January 2005)

Wants to star in a biographical film about New York Horror-Core MC and personal friend Chris Palko.

Rapper Post Malone said he loves this when people claim that he bears a resemblance to Shia.

At age 13, he celebrated his Bar Mitzvah (the traditional coming-of-age ceremony for Jewish boys).

Attended the premiere of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) at the Oktyabr Theater in Moscow, Russia on June 16, 2009.

Attended the premiere of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) at Odeon Leicester Square in London, England on June 15, 2009.

Attended the world premiere of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) at Roppongi Hills in Tokyo, Japan on June 9, 2009.

Friends with Transformers (2007) co-star Megan Fox.