Born Villain is a surrealist horror short film directed by actor Shia LaBeouf in collaboration with singer Marilyn Manson.

The short premiered at the L.A. Silent Theater on August 28, 2011; the screening could only be attended by people who had purchased copies of Campaign, a limited edition book by Manson, LaBeouf and Karolyn Pho.

[4] It was inspired by William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel's surrealist short film Un Chien Andalou (1929), Alejandro Jodorowsky's The Holy Mountain (1973), and what LaBeouf described as "heavy theology.

[4] In an interview with Revolver, Manson said that his use of a Macbeth quote within Born Villain – "Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more.

In the same interview, Manson said that part of the reason he made Born Villain was because he viewed traditional music videos as "pointless", due to the decline of MTV.

[6] Via MarilynManson.com, the band's frontman explained his intentions in creating the short:[7] "While looking to experiment in unlikely collaborations, I met Shia, and we spent a long night at my studio.

'"LaBeouf told MTV News that he enjoyed making the film, and that he would be unfazed if people who became fans of his through his role in Holes (2003) did not appreciate Born Villain, explaining: "I don't think my audience is the only thing I should exercise my artistic muscle for.

The movie then depicts an underage boy in white face makeup sitting next to an elderly man on a couch, who starts caressing the child's thigh.

He then says "The wages of sin is death", before forcing a gun attached to a crucifix into the mouth of the man who molested the boy in white face makeup.

[8] MTV reported that Manson and LaBeouf would appear at Los Angeles's Hennessey + Ingalls bookstore to sign copies of the book and screen the short.

[8] Born Villain was also screened at the Studio Servitu in Los Angeles, a club co-owned by Miss Crash, a fetish model who appears in the film.

"[11] Writing in Spin, Kevin O'Donnell said that Born Villain "proves the shock-rocker has not lost his ability to freak fans out" and is "sicker than ever," adding that the scene "where Manson pokes a needle into a woman’s cheek, might be the sickest thing ever captured in a music video.

"[12] Lina Lecaro of LA Weekly felt that through the "arty, dramatic, salacious, [and] depraved" film Manson "reaffirms his 'shock rocker' status," though she was unsure of its meaning.

[14] The Chicago Reader's Miles Raymer said that "Born Villain is pretentious garbage, and it's fantastic....I think LeBeouf [sic] just might have what it takes to be a great B-movie filmmaker.

[16] Max Feldman of PopMatters wrote that by collaborating with LaBeouf for the short and Johnny Depp for his band's cover of Carly Simon's "You're So Vain" (1972), Manson is feeding the consumerism and celebrity culture he used to criticize.

[17] IndieWire's Kevin Jagernauth and Metal Injection's Robert Pasbani dismissed the video as boring, with the former criticizing its music and the latter jokingly telling LaBeouf and Manson to commit suicide due to the short's poor quality.