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Shia LaBeouf Plagiarizes 1973 Book in Explanation of His Behavior

Shia LaBeouf

Credit: Photo by: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

He’s at it again! Even when Shia LaBeouf is making apologies for plagiarism…he’s still using someone else’s words!

The actor reportedly posted, and then deleted, two long tweets on Monday night, calling his recent behavior performance art. According to his message, the 27-year-old has been using Twitter and the #stopcreating hashtag to start a “broad cultural discussion that needs to be had about plagiarism in the digital age.”

The problem is — part of this explanation was also plagiarized! In his starting paragraph, Shia wrote, “The problem with American artwork, is a problem of subject matter. Artwork keeps getting entangled with the problems of America itself. We made “selfies” when we had no idea of who we were. We tried to find God in landscapes, that we were destroying as fast as we could paint them. We pained Indians as fast as we could kill them. And during the greatest technological jump in history, we painted ourselves as a bunch of fiddling rustics.”

Save a few lines and phrases, this statement is taken directly from the 1973 book Painters on Painting.

Despite the criticism he’s gotten, Shia added that the conversations that came about because of his actions were just as interesting as his actions themselves. “The fact that [the conversations] were started at all is a positive thing,” he wrote.

Issues for the Transformers star began when he was sued for plagiarizing graphic novelist Daniel Clowes in a short film. Since then, he has been continuously apologizing on Twitter, although many have deemed his attempts insincere, and even announced that he’s “retiring from all public life.” His four most recent tweets all read, “I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE.”

MORE LINKS

Rupert Grint Talks Shia LaBeouf’s Acid Trip

Shia LaBeouf Responds to Jim Carrey’s Diss

Shia LaBeouf: “I’m Retiring From All Public Life”

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