Actor, performance artist, director, and all-around unpredictable human being, Shia LeBeouf, stopped by the Ellen DeGeneres show this week to promote his new film, American Honey, but all eyes were on the actor’s legs, which were on full display as he was wearing a pair of cut-off khaki shorts during the interview. Ellen was quick to point out the considerable ink on Shia’s thighs, asking if the tattoos were real or fake, and the actor was happy to explain the meaning behind the hip-hop-inspired pieces.
When asked by Ellen what his tattoos mean, Shia stutteringly said, “These are, like, landmarks. It’s love, it’s people I love.” He went on to point out two matching tattoos of Missy Elliot, a tattoo of Biggie Smalls, and one of Tupac, Dr. Dre, and Prince, all done as lo-fi cartoon portraits that encircle his left and right thighs, just above his knees. When asked by Ellen, Shia remarked that there are also a couple of tattoos “higher up” that he preferred not to reveal on camera.
We’ve been hearing rumors about Shia LeBeouf’s mysterious Missy Elliott tattoos for quite some time now, but no one really believed that the rumor was true, until this week. Turns out, the ink is real, and the Missy Elliott tattoos in question are actually duplicate images of the rapper from “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” video, in which she is dressed in a giant, black, inflated trash bag-looking outfit.
Who knew that Shia LeBeouf was such a hip hop fan, and that he was inspired enough by hip hop and R&B legends like Missy Elliott, Tupac and Dr. Dre to get portraits of them permanently inked on his body, saying that they are the people he loves? Then again, back in September, Shia told Variety, “I don’t love Missy Elliott like I wanna get two Missy Elliott tattoos. But you’re in a tattoo parlor, and, [well], peer pressure.” So the jury’s still out on that one. Shia also apparently just got married, tying the knot with actress Mia Goth at a wedding chapel in Vegas, but we’re still waiting on a tattoo of that love of his life.
