Josh Penn Soskin described an intense moment during filming of his debut feature in November 2025 when Shia LaBeouf's performance led to a breakdown on set. The director used the incident to deliver a message of maximum empathy to the crew the next day.
Production on “The Rooster Prince” began in November 2025. The film draws from Soskin’s relationship with his late brother David, a Harvard-trained psychiatrist who struggled with bipolar disorder.
LaBeouf played the lead character based on David. During one scene in Oklahoma, the actor screamed across a parking lot in a performance that blurred the line between acting and reality. The outburst ended the day’s shoot early and left the crew shaken.
That night LaBeouf sent Soskin a self-tape rehearsal. In it he added the line “All I ask from you is that you treat me with…maximum empathy.” The phrase came from a Hasidic fable Soskin’s brother had referenced in his own writing.
The next morning the director addressed the crew about empathy for both those who suffer from mental illness and those affected by it. Soskin is currently wrapping post-production on the film, which also stars Jackson White and Melissa Leo.
