‘Even Stevens’ star claims Shia LaBeouf was ‘always trash-talking’ Hilary Duff’s Disney show

See more of our coverage in your search results. Christy Carlson Romano said Shia LaBeouf had a one-sided beef with fellow Disney Channel star Hilary Duff. Romano claimed her “Even Stevens” co-star constantly spoke badly about Duff because of Duff’s Disney Channel show, “Lizzie McGuire,” competing with “Even Stevens” when it came to ratings. “Hilary had no clue about that,” Romano recalled during her recent appearance on “The Joe Vulpis Podcast.” I’m sure she was doing her own thing, but he would always be kind of like trash-talking Lizzie McGuire.” Christy Carlson Romano claimed her “Even Stevens” co-star Shia LaBeouf constantly trash-talked their fellow Disney Channel star Hilary Duff during Romano’s appearance on “The Joe Vulpis Podcast” last week. The Joe Vulpis Podcast Romano called LaBeouf (seen here on “Even Stevens”) “competitive” and said his beef with Duff was one-sided. ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection She said of LaBeouf, “He was very competitive.” Romano explained why LaBeouf wanted so badly to be the top show on the Disney Channel. “He had to be the number one show because I think his life depended on that show doing well,” she said. “He had a rough upbringing and I think, like, he needed that show to do well for him.” Romano said she’s no longer in contact with LaBeouf — nor does she want to be. Romano said of Duff (pictured here on “Lizzie McGuire”), “I’m sure she was doing her own thing.” ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection Romano said that LaBeouf was so competitive about ratings because he needed “Even Stevens” to do well because he had a “rough upbringing.” LaBeouf and Duff are seen here in April 2007. NBCUniversal via Getty Images Want more celebrity and pop culture news? Start your day with Page Six Daily. Thanks for signing up! “I don’t really want to talk to him … I’m fine with it,” she said. ‘When good stuff happens to him, I root for him. If bad stuff happens, I pray for him,” she added. “But at the same time, like, I don’t need to know him.” Romano, 42, and LaBeouf, 40, played brother and sister Ren and Louis Stevens on “Even Stevens,” which aired from 2000 to 2003. Romano has been promoting her memoir, “Once Upon a Trainwreck: The Rise and Fall of a Child Star” — released Oct. 6 — in which she shared that she was paid half what LaBeouf was paid for “Even Stevens.” In Romano’s memoir, “Once Upon a Trainwreck,” she said she was only paid half of LaBeouf’s salary though they shared equal screen time on “Even Stevens.” S&S/Simon Element But she said he “earned every dollar.” ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection In an Instagram post earlier this month, Romano shared a throwback photo of herself, LaBeouf and her mom, Sharon. writing, “I was a kid and the female lead on ‘Even Stevens.’ I was paid half of what Shia was paid; we were co-leads and had the same screen time.” The “Cadet Kelly” star also shared a letter her mom sent to her agent in 2000, revealing that LaBeouf was earning $12,000 per episode while she made $6,000. But Romano said that LaBeouf “earned every dollar,” and that ultimately, her memoir was not about him or other famous people she writes about. “They were part of my story. They were never the story,” she said. “The story is a girl who grew up too fast and a business that decided she was worth half.” Community Guidelines Welcome to the Page Six Community! Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space. In order to do so, we've created a simple set of rules that will improve your experience. Simply put, keep it civil. Your post will/might be rejected if it contains: Spam Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language and threats of any kind Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author User accounts will/might be blocked if we notice: Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected Racist, sexist, or homophobic comments Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk So, how can you be a power user? Stay on topic and share your passion. Feel free to elaborate to get your point across. 'Like' or 'Dislike' when you are filled with emotions! Protect your community. Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules. Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Don't forget, freedom of speech is not the freedom of reach!