How Shia LaBeouf Shed His Disney Image And Became A Leading Man

Posted February 13, 2013, 5:00 pm   •   by Kira Coplin   •   1 comments

With a series of mega blockbuster hits under his belt, Shia LaBeouf - who ranks No. 15 on the Celebuzz Hollywood Power Index - is ready to take his career to the next level. Following in the footsteps of Hollywood heavyweights like Sean Penn and Daniel Day-Lewis, the 26-year-old star has embraced method acting - a technique actors use to complete emotional identification with a role.

“What I know of acting, Sean Penn actually strapped up to that [electric] chair in Dead Man Walking. These are the guys that I look up to,” he said in a recent interview.

The actor - who made headlines in June after going full frontal in Sigur Ros’ "Fjogur Piano" video- has been very vocal about the ways he gets into character. From drinking moonshine, dropping acid and having “real sex” on set, there's nothing the actor won't do for his craft. In August, the star explained on Chelsea Lately how he nabbed the lead role in Lars von Trier's upcoming Nymphomaniac by saying, "I sent him videotapes of me and my girlfriend having sex and that's how I got the job."

But, as the saying goes, there's "no such thing as bad publicity" and this certainly rings true for LaBeouf who continues to receive top billing in major films alongside acclaimed veteran actors like Robert Redford, Sam Elliot, Michael Douglas and Guy Pearce.

Eager to put the larger-than-life Transformers film franchise behind him, the actor told the Associate Press, "I'm done. I'm sure they'll make more of them, it's still a very hot franchise, there's still value in it...I just don't know if I have anything to contribute."

What do our expert's have to say about the future of LaBeouf's success? Watch the video above to find out.