Shia is Sorry He's Not Sorry for Stealing

Look, if I was reporting the news that Connie Britton straight up plagiarized one of her amazing pro-women speeches and then plagiarized her apology, we’d all be like. “Say it isn’t so!” or “NOTHING IS REAL ANYMORE” or “I give up!” and then flip the nearest table over in a fit of rage because the world would cease to make sense. But relax, Ms. Rayna James-Britton-Taylor would never play us like that. The news however is that one Shia LaBeouf was just caught plagiarizing an apology he posted on Twitter ...for plagiarizing Daniel Clowes’ comic Justin M. Damiano in his short film HowardCantour.com . This news — not shocking. Because, well, haven’t we all just started expecting poor behavior from the former Louis Stevens?

We have. Since the Transformers series began, we’ve all been witness to a string of LaBeouf’s douche-baggery. His regular stints in the news are a bit like when Joaquin Phoenix was going through a phase, except LaBeouf’s behavior smells more like Axe than art. And it’s lasted much, much longer. Let’s call it a "Bro-quin Phoenix phase.” But herein lies the actual shocking (or hilarious) bit of this news: HE STOLE APOLOGY FROM YAHOO ANSWERS. Let’s take a look at the evidence:

Shia’s tweeted apology:

Copying isn’t particularly creative work. Being inspired by someone else’s idea to produce something new and different IS creative work. In my excitement and naiveté as an amateur filmmaker, I got lost in the creative process and neglected to follow proper accreditation. I’m embarrassed that I failed to credit @danielclowes for his original graphic novella Justin M. Damiano, which served as my inspiration. I was truly moved by his piece of work and I knew that it would make a poignant and relevant short. I apologize to all who assumed I wrote it. I deeply regret the manner in which these events have unfolded and want @danielclowes to know that I have a great respect for his work.

I f-cked up.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand a response posted on Yahoo Answers:

Merely copying isn’t particularly creative work, though it’s useful as training and practice. Being inspired by someone else’s idea to produce something new and different IS creative work, and it may even revolutionalize the ‘stolen’ concept.

And just for some perspective here, the Yahoo thread was asking “Why did Picasso say ‘good artists copy but great artists steal’?” Seriously, you can just type his apology into Google and this is what pops up. Raise of hands for who thinks Shia LaBeouf is a great artist. No one? Nope? Okay.

And what we've learned about Mr. LaBeouf:

Image: ReactionGifs