For no apparent reason, Shia LaBeouf has departed the all-star comedy Rock the Kasbah, which is set to be directed by Barry Levinson. Currently in pre-production, the film boasts an impressive cast that includes talent like Bill Murray, Bruce Willis, Kate Hudson and Danny McBride. LaBeouf was set to play a supporting role as one half of a military duo, with the other half being McBride’s character.
As we previously reported, Rock the Kasbah follows Murray’s “has-been” manager who goes on a USO tour of Afghanistan with his last client. While in Kabul, he suffers a string of misfortunes and winds up stranded without money or a passport. His shot at redemption comes when he discovers a talented young girl and takes her under his wing. Together, they board the popular reality show Afghan Star, and Murray’s character attempts to regain his fame and fortune.
Aside from Fury, LaBeouf has no other projects coming up, so his departure is definitely not due to scheduling conflicts. Producers say that the parting was amicable but I, for one, am a bit skeptical. There doesn’t seem to be a logical reason for why the actor would drop out of what seems like a pretty promising project. Getting to work with actors like Bill Murray and Bruce Willis would have been good for LaBeouf. Maybe they could have set him straight.
Or, perhaps, maybe it was them who voted to boot him off of the film? After all, given the troublemaker’s recent public antics (including wearing a paper bag on his head and becoming entangled in allegations of plagiarism), LaBeouf might have attracted some bad press while shooting and damaged the film’s marketing campaign.
Regardless of why he left Rock The Kasbah, I think we can all agree that it wasn’t the smartest move on LaBeouf’s part. Although at this stage, is anyone still expecting him to make wise career decisions?
