Director
Alma Har’el, who has debuted “Honey Boy” at the Sundance Film Festival in 2019 with
Shia LaBeouf, says that she has “a deep respect for FKA Twigs’ courage and
resilience.”

The
electronic music singer FKA twigs (real name Tahliah Debrett Barnett) sued
actor LaBeouf for allegedly subjecting her to physical, emotional and mental
abuse during a romantic relationship that lasted just under a year.

In
an exclusive interview with Variety.com, Har’el said, “Reading what she endured
left me heartbroken and I stand with her in solidarity. I’m sending my love to
her, Karolyn Pho, all victims of domestic violence, and everyone who is trying
to stop cycles of abuse.”

“As
a filmmaker and an artist, I am drawn to stories that help us develop empathy
for the messy parts of the human condition. Like many of Shia’s collaborators
and fans who battled substance abuse, suffered childhood trauma, and face
mental illness, I am painfully aware of my past investment in his recovery. I
want to send a clear message today that none of the above should excuse,
minimize, or rationalize domestic violence,” she further added.

She
is also grateful that survivors of childhood trauma have seen some aspects of
themselves in Honey Boy and might feel less alone in their pain.

“
I hope that they don’t take these events as a discouraging moment in their own
recovery,” she said.

In
the lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, FKA twigs accuses him of
“relentless abuse,” including sexual battery, assault and infliction of
emotional distress, choking her and throwing her against a car on Valentine’s
Day 2019. She also claims he knowingly gave her a sexually transmitted disease.

On
Instagram on Friday, FKA twigs said it was difficult to “process”
that she was in an abusive relationship.