Shia LaBeouf’s career ended dramatically – and Indiana Jones 5 makes the most of the mess left behind by the fallen star

In the 2000s, Shia LaBeouf took Hollywood by storm. Small supporting roles in films like I, Robot and Constantine were followed by the Rise to Leading Man. He became the star of his own franchise with Transformers in 2007. A year later, he positioned himself in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull as the successor to one of cinema’s most iconic heroes.

Now he plays no part in either film series.

What happened? After a decade of unbridled success, LaBeouf has faced a decade of controversy, from an arrest for public intoxication to allegations of sexual assault. He no longer appears in Hollywood productions. Transformers and Indiana Jones have come up with two very different ways of dealing with this.

Attention, follow Spoilers for Transformers and Indiana Jones!

Transformers has demolished Shia LaBeouf’s Sam Witwicky without comment

For three films, LaBeouf starred in the Transformers series as Sam Witwicky before Mark Wahlberg took over as the lead. That was before LeBeouf became an unwanted name. Nevertheless, in the course of the fifth part, Transformers decided all connections to his character to cap. Sam Witwicky has died off-screen. If you’re not careful, you won’t even notice.

A casual sentence between the lines suggests Sam Witwicky’s demise. Concrete information is missing. Transformers wasn’t interested for a secondto address the matter narratively. In retrospect, it’s almost astonishing why the sci-fi series, with its fragile mythology, even bothered to deal with it. The robo-action reinvents itself anyway with each sequel.

Indiana Jones puts a lot more effort into writing LaBeouf’s central character, at least for one movie. Basically the same as Transformers happened: Mutt Williams played by LaBeouf dies off-screen as Soldier in the Vietnam War. However, the way Indiana Jones and the Wheel of Destiny conveys this information is deeply touching.

Indiana Jones 5 cleverly weaves Shia LaBeouf’s absence into the story

Regardless of the behind-the-scenes crisis management, Indiana Jones 5 finds a surprisingly elegant way to answer the inevitable question of the whereabouts of Mutt Williams, Indy’s son. She becomes part of the story. Since time travel is possible in the film, Harrison Ford’s bruised archaeologist is asked to what point in the past he would travel back to.

He would keep his son from military service, Indy explains, before revealing that his son’s death ruined his personal happy ending (family reunion and marriage at the end of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). Because of this, Indy made serious allegations and his marriage broke up. Even years later, he hasn’t gotten over the pain. No wonder he feels out of place in 1969.

Mutt Williams isn’t being written out of the series simply to provide a canon explanation for the character’s absence. A few cleverly worded sentences in the script are enough to weave the absence into both the overall narrative and Indy’s character development. Ford will do the rest if he indicated in a rueful voicewhat happened between parts 4 and 5.

His broken words linger until the emotional finale, in which he literally claws his way into the past.

In the end, it’s not about Shia LeBeouf or Mutt Williams, it’s about Indiana Jones

At first glance it seems incredibly complicated to write a character from a franchise that is so deeply rooted in the hero’s biography. The new film doesn’t let that bother you, though. Without fuss or fake exposure, he takes a step back and finds a simple, effective solution.

The focus in the decisive scene is chosen particularly cleverly. Whether or not you’re interested in Mutts’ whereabouts: In the end it’s about Indy’s feelings. Ford doesn’t have to explain in detail how his movie son fell. bullet points will suffice. He uses the moment to add a vulnerable facet to his otherwise rather serene adventurer. The quivering and trembling in Indy’s chest can be felt.

Indiana Jones and the Wheel of Destiny has been running since June 29, 2023 in the cinema.

Podcast: Is Indiana Jones 5 a worthy conclusion?

How good has Indiana Jones and the Wheel of Fortune turned out after all these years of waiting? Our colleagues from FILMSTARTS talk about this in the podcast.

This edition of Love On The Screen follows Harrison Ford’s latest Indy adventure. Did director James Mangold create a worthy conclusion to the series? Or has it become a bitter disappointment? You can find out in the podcast.

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