When Hollywood superstar and performance artist Shia LaBeouf announced his retirement, the cinematic and art worlds came to a crashing halt. Fortunately, it seems like Mr. LaBeouf has heard the public’s urgent pleas that he reconsider his decision to leave us alone in the cultural wasteland. A mere three weeks following the actor’s painful announcement, he has returned to his adoring public, signing onto indie comedy Rock The Casbah and allowing us all to breathe a sigh of relief.
LaBeouf will join the cast of the Barry Levinson film alongside Bill Murray, Bruce Willis, Kate Hudson and Zooey Deschanel. Murray leads the film as Richie Vance, a manager who follows his sole client on a USO tour in Afghanistan. There he discovers a talented singer and enters her into a singing competition called Afghan Star, or Afghanistan’s version of American Idol.
Admittedly, the plot sounds pretty good, especially with Murray in the lead. There is no word yet on what parts the stars (other than Murray) are going to play, but right now we seem to be missing a young Afghan from the cast list.
With Shia LaBeouf having a bit of difficulty of late – all of it self-inflicted – perhaps it’s a good thing that he’s going to be working on a film where he’s not the star of the show. Bill Murray does not seem the sort of guy to put up with prima donnas and between him and Bruce Willis, maybe our young artist can learn a thing or two. Then again, there’s a good chance that LaBeouf will find some asinine way to ‘get into character.’
We will keep an eye on the development of Rock The Casbah and let you know as more news arises. What do you think about LaBeouf returning to the screen after his long, contemplative retirement? Let us know in the comments section.
