Nobody can accuse Shia LaBeouf, erstwhile star of the Transformer movies and burgeoning arthouse adventurer, of not being keen. After revealing that he took acid to prepare for a tripped-out scene in new film The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman and drank moonshine while filming John Hillcoat's upcoming prohibition tale Lawless, the 26-year-old actor has now claimed he secured a part in Lars von Trier's controversial new film Nymphomaniac by posting sex tapes to the Danish arch-provocateur.

The tapes reportedly featured LaBeouf and his girlfriend Karolyn Pho, whose reaction to such salacious material falling into the hands of the most unpredictable film-maker in Europe is at this stage unknown.

"I sent him videotapes of me and my girlfriend having sex and that's how I got the job," LaBeouf told late-night US talk show host Chelsea Handler during an appearance on her Chelsea Lately programme. "I don't know what it's gonna be until I get out there. I know he's a very dangerous director; I know we're trying to do something different. It's not your typical film."

Von Trier is promising to release Nymphomaniac in softcore and hardcore versions, with the latter reportedly breaking film-making taboos by including footage of real sex. LaBeouf suggested in a recent interview that body doubles would most likely be used for the film's more salacious scenes, but has also expressed a willingness to follow orders on set, whatever they may be. "There's a disclaimer at the top of the script that basically says we're doing it for real," he told MTV last month. "Everything that is illegal, we'll shoot in blurred images. Other than that, everything is happening."

LaBeouf's willingness to share with Von Trier would appear to be something of a volte-face from his earlier assertion that he'd have to consider Pho's feelings before engaging in real sex on film. In fact, there are so many contradictions in the actor's proclamations on Nymphomaniac that one wonders if he may have picked up a touch of tongue-in-cheek disease from the famously playful director.