FKA twigs has shared more details on the alleged abuse by ex Shia LaBeouf, who reportedly told her to not ‘look men in the eye’ during the time they dated.
The singer-songwriter shared some unusual details about their rocky relationship on the latest edition of BBC podcast Grounded With Louis Theroux.
“I was told I knew what he was like, and if I loved him I wouldn’t look men in the eye, so that was my reality for a good four months towards the end of the relationship, that I wasn’t allowed to look men in the eye,” twigs, whose real name is Tahliah Debrett Barnett, said.
The couple dated briefly after twigs starred with LaBeouf in the 2019 film ‘Honey Boy’. The film was based on the Hollywood star’s own life as a child actor. The couple broke up the same year.
In December, twigs filed a lawsuit against LaBeouf, in which she alleged sexual battery, assault, infliction of emotional distress and that he knowingly gave her a sexually transmitted disease. A second former girlfriend, Carolyn Pho, also added her own allegations to the lawsuit.
On the podcast, twigs also alleged that “just any sort of day-to-day, pleasant interaction could result in a three-day, you know, event of me being berated and kept awake.”
The singer also stated that she had to interact with LaBeouf a certain number of times, based on a “quota”.
“I had a quota that I had to meet, which changed… so, it was, like, touches, or looks, or kisses, that his previous partner apparently met this number very well, so I was ‘inadequate’ compared to a previous partner of his, and I had to get the touches and the kisses correct,” she shared. “But I never exactly knew... what the number exactly was but it was essentially around 20 a day.”
twigs stated that the stress was too much and she stopped speaking with her family and friends until the couple took a trip to the desert where LaBeouf allegedly choked her while she was asleep at a gas station. She also alleged that the actor drove recklessly and threatened to crash the car if she didn’t tell him that she loved him.
“I remember going back to where I was staying and calling an abused women’s help line. And I literally just, like, Googled free women’s abuse help line USA,” twigs said. “You know, I just called the first one that came up.”
The singer said she finally reach out to a friend and sought the help of a therapist, but claimed she still suffered from panic attacks for a while after the relationship had ended.
LaBeouf hasn’t responded to the most recent revelations, but in December, he had issued a statement to the New York Times stating many of the allegations were not true.
“I’m not in any position to tell anyone how my behaviour made them feel. I have no excuses for my alcoholism or aggression, only rationalisations,” he said in the statement. “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. There is nothing else I can really say.”
LaBeouf also stated at the time that he had enrolled in a 12-step programme. “I am not cured of my PTSD and alcoholism, but I am committed to doing what I need to do to recover, and I will forever be sorry to the people that I may have harmed along the way.”
