A source tells ET, the actress 'was getting a lot of hate for dating Shia due to all the abuse claims.'
Shia LaBeouf and Margaret Qualley are going their separate ways. A source tells ET the pair, who had maintained a relatively private relationship, recently broke up, as he faces allegations of abuse from his ex-girlfriend, FKA twigs.
"Margaret’s friends aren’t surprised that the relationship didn’t last. Margaret was getting a lot of hate for dating Shia due to all the abuse claims and she couldn’t handle it," the source says, adding, "she didn’t want to risk her own career to be with him."
"She really did like Shia a lot, but she is over it and knows she has to focus on her own future," the source notes. People was first to report the split.
The two reportedly got close after starring in the NSFW "Love Me Like You Hate Me" music video by Rainey Qualley, musically known as Rainsford. The project dropped in October.
In the last couple of months, the two were spotted out and about in Los Angeles.
Last month, ET confirmed that FKA filed a lawsuit against LaBeouf, accusing him of "relentless abuse," including sexual battery, assault and infliction of emotional distress.
In an interview with The New York Times, she claimed that during her relationship with the 34-year-old Transformers star -- which lasted about a year after the two met when she was cast in his 2019 film, Honey Boy -- he would grab her to the point of bruising, isolated her from her professional team, and also knowingly gave her a sexually transmitted disease. Karolyn Pho, a stylist who previously dated LaBeouf, also accused him of abusive behavior in the lawsuit, according to The New York Times.
FKA's attorney, Bryan Freedman, claimed in a statement to ET, "Shia LaBeouf has abused Ms. Barnett, Ms. Pho and others. We tried to resolve this matter privately on the condition that Mr. LaBeouf agree to receive meaningful and consistent psychological treatment. Since he was unwilling to agree to get appropriate help, Ms. Barnett filed this suit to prevent others from unknowingly suffering similar abuse by him."
LaBeouf responded to FKA and Pho's claims in emails to The New York Times, writing, "Many of these allegations are not true."
"I'm not in any position to tell anyone how my behavior made them feel," LaBeouf added. "I have no excuses for my alcoholism or aggression, only rationalizations. 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."
"I am not cured of my PTSD and alcoholism," he continued, noting he's in therapy and a sober member of a 12-step program. "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."
See more in the video below.
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