Olivia Wilde fired Shia LaBeouf from Don't Worry Darling to make Florence Pugh 'feel safe'

Olivia Wilde has revealed the reason for axing Shia LaBeouf as the lead man from her upcoming movie Don’t Worry Darling.

Although the studio initially cited scheduling differences as the reason for his departure, the actor-director has opened up about the real reason in an interview with Variety.

"I say this as someone who is such an admirer of his work: His process was not conducive to the ethos that I demand in my productions," Wilde said.

She explained, "He has a process that, in some ways, seems to require a combative energy, and I don't personally believe that is conducive to the best performances."

Olivia shared she was always skeptical about his behavior on set and the notion was endorsed after LaBeouf found himself under multiple controversies following his exit from the movie.

"A lot came to light after this happened that really troubled me, in terms of his behavior," She said pointing at LaBeouf's ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs, who sued him for sexual battery, assault, and emotional distress.

LaBeouf also shortly announced his split with his longtime agency, CAA, and entered inpatient treatment.

Besides Olivia having second thoughts about her casting choice from the first go, she explained that her main issue stemmed from when she felt LaBeouf lacked the supportive energy to make his co-star Florence Pugh comfortable while filming vulnerable scenes on set.

"For our film, what we really needed was an energy that was incredibly supportive. Particularly with a movie like this, I knew that I was going to be asking Florence to be in very vulnerable situations, and my priority was making her feel safe and making her feel supported," Wilde said.

Shia LaBeouf was later replaced by Harry Styles who had been Wilde's first choice for the leading role but initially declined because of conflicts with his world tour.

"Ultimately, my responsibility is to the production and to the cast to protect them," she added. "That was my job."