Why Christy Carlson Romano Doesn’t Speak to Shia LaBeouf Anymore
Christy Carlson Romano revealed the reason that she is no longer friends with Shia LaBeouf.
The Even Stevens star answered everybody's burning question regarding what happened between her and her on-screen brother in a new YouTube video.
"To be honest, I don't even really know if we were ever really friends," Romano admitted in the vlog. "We were coworkers. We had this really good on-screen chemistry. People assumed we were in real-life brother and sister. And that in real life I had an influence over what this guy did."
The actress added that she "didn't know a lot of the backstories that came out about where they [Shia] were living at that time and how much hardship they'd seen and stuff like that.
Fans got an inside look at LaBeouf's personal life in the 2019 film Honey Boy, which was inspired by the actor's rocky relationship with his father and mental health struggles.
"I just kick myself because I really do kind of wish, if I'd known anything about him, I could have been, I don't know, more patient? But I was dealing with my own thing. I was moving across the country for the opportunity. I was sad about a breakup or something when I was 16, and I was dealing with my own drama," Romano continued.
Romano also recalled the moment when LaBeouf won his 2003 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series for the show.
"Something that actually really hurt my feelings was when he won his Emmy award," she recalled. "He was on the podium, I was sitting there with the rest of our team and he thanked everybody at the table but he didn't thank me. I was hurt at the time because I felt like since day one it was him and me. It was our show."
"The person that I knew is not the same person now," Romano said, "which is based on all of this life experience he's had."
Over the years, Romano couldn't bring herself to watch any of LaBeouf's movies as she was a bit "salty" that he was able to get a better agent and manager, which furthered his opportunities. She noted that the two didn't so much as lose touch but simply went on completely different paths, as she went off to college while he continued acting.
"The only thing that I can say is that I really do kind of wish at the time when I was younger I would have given him a little more time and energy and love, like a real sister," Romano shared. "I really do regret that. It kind of makes me sad."
Romano concluded her video by sending a message to her former co-star: "Shia, if you see this, know that I love you. I'm sorry we didn't connect well when we were kids. And I hope that you are taking it one day at a time... Be well, because I'll always love you."