Actor Shia LaBeouf has denied “each and every allegation” from FKA twigs after the British singer accused him of physical and emotional abuse.
FKA twigs, whose legal name is Tahliah Barnett, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles in December alleging the Hollywood star was a danger to women.
The 33-year-old from Cheltenham said LaBeouf once slammed her into a car, tried to strangle her and knowingly gave her an unspecified sexually transmitted disease.
LaBeouf’s lawyers have filed a response at Los Angeles Superior Court and denied all the allegations.
They said LaBeouf (34) did not cause harm to Barnett and moved to have the sexual battery allegations dismissed because “none of the acts alleged were based on sex and/or the conduct was not sexual”.
The lawyers also said the actor’s “alleged conduct was reasonably necessary for his self-defence and/or safety”.
LaBeouf’s legal team has requested the case be dismissed in its entirety and he be awarded costs and “further relief as the Court may deem just and proper”.
Los Angeles-born LaBeouf is a former child star known for his work on blockbuster franchise Transformers and films including Fury, The Peanut Butter Falcon and Pieces Of A Woman.
In the latter movie, released last year, he starred alongside British actress Vanessa Kirby. Netflix removed LaBeouf from its “for your awards consideration” page following Barnett’s allegations.
He is reportedly now on a hiatus from acting.
LaBeouf and Barnett met while filming 2019 drama Honey Boy, which the actor wrote and based on his childhood and relationship with his father.
In her lawsuit, Barnett claimed they became a couple after he launched a “charm offensive”, but the relationship had soon become a “living nightmare”.
He abused her both physically and mentally, the lawsuit alleges.
In an email to the New York Times when the lawsuit was filed, LaBeouf said: “I have no excuses for my alcoholism or aggression, only rationalisations. I have been abusive to myself and everyone around me for years.
“I have a history of hurting the people closest to me. I’m ashamed of that history and am sorry to those I hurt.”
He added that many of the allegations “are not true”. LaBeouf said he was in recovery and therapy over alcoholism and PTSD, adding he “will forever be sorry to the people that I may have harmed along the way”.
