Olivia Wilde is addressing the persistent rumors of on-set drama during the filming of Don’t Worry Darling.
In a recent interview with The Cut on Wednesday, June 24, Wilde, 42, clarified, “I have never had a screaming match on my set. I was never not available on set.” She expressed frustration over the falsehoods, stating, “I wanted to be like, ‘None of this is true.’”
Prior to the release of Don’t Worry Darling, speculation ran rampant about tensions between Wilde and the film’s lead, Florence Pugh. Wilde, who directed and starred in the movie alongside Pugh, 30, and Harry Styles, was rumored to have had on-set friction due to her romantic involvement with Styles during production.
Wilde and Styles, 32, ended their relationship in November 2022, after nearly two years. In her recent interview, Wilde described their time together as a “loving and wonderful and joyful” experience.
Wilde shared that she was advised to stay silent amidst the rumors about her professional and personal life. “I was told, ‘Don’t say a f***ing word. Just go out there and smile,’” she recalled. She expressed her dissatisfaction with this advice, noting it taught her a lesson about how she wants to approach such situations.
Reflecting on the overall experience, Wilde remarked that Hollywood had stripped her of her innocence. “I deeply hate the feeling of being misunderstood, too,” she added, referencing a conversation with Jennifer Garner during their collaboration on the 2011 film Butter.
Wilde recounted Garner’s observation, “It’s like you get cast in a soap opera by the public,” where people are assigned archetypes like “the damsel in distress, the good girl, the pretty girl.”
Before Don’t Worry Darling premiered in September 2022, the psychological thriller was already in the spotlight due to offscreen drama. Directed by Olivia Wilde and featuring Florence Pugh and Harry Styles, the film encountered delays, casting changes, and rumors of discord among the cast long before its release. Continue to read for a full breakdown of events.
Wilde noted that initially, she was seen as “an object of desire” by the public, but the rumors surrounding Don’t Worry Darling shifted that perception.
“I became the full-on villain,” she commented. “Like Cruella.”
In an episode of “Call Her Daddy” earlier this month, Wilde discussed the public reaction to her relationship with Styles.
“It really did upset people. It was crazy,” she remarked during the June 17 podcast. “I don’t know how much I understand it yet.”
She continued, “I know that it has existed for a long time in our society, like, I understand it had very little to do with me. It is something that we have done to women for a long time. Why is it? I don’t know. People were f***ing pissed.”
