With Transformers‘ $220 million (and counting) gross, and a prominent role in the forthcoming installment of the Indiana Jones series, erstwhile Project Greenlight kid Shia LaBeouf is well on his way to stardom, getting so far out ahead of any disastrous solo projects that he can milk this high for another four or five years, easy.

A few quotes from a July 1 piece in the Los Angeles Times, just before Transformers‘ bow, however, showcase a manic streak that could conceivably augur trouble if LaBeouf hits a rough patch. “I freak out sometimes,” he says at the article’s end. “When I’m in my trailer, I have panic attacks. I’m like a nervous little gremlin. [On set] I can control myself, I can watch the monitor and say, ‘That’s the person I’ve created, that’s who I want to be right now.'”

“Acting is my entirety. This is the most important thing in life to me — above politics, above my family, above my own happiness. If I didn’t have it, I wouldn’t want to live, literally. I’m saying this and I mean it. Happiness isn’t worth anything, it’s momentary. This is forever.”

Such notions of forever are all well and good when you’re starring in blockbusters, of course. It’s a different matter when you’re no longer on the receiving end of phone calls and offer sheets. I’m not saying he’s doomed or anything, but LaBeouf seems like a genuinely good kid; I hope he doesn’t get too caught up in numbers analysis.