Olivia Wilde is looking back on one of the most intensely scrutinized periods of her career—and admitting there are things she wishes she had handled differently.
Appearing on the popular podcast Call Her Daddy while promoting her latest project, The Invite, Wilde opened up about the controversy that surrounded the release of Don’t Worry Darling in 2022 and the public fascination with her relationship with Harry Styles.
The filmmaker said the experience left her feeling disconnected from the public narrative that was being created around her.
“I never felt more disconnected from the person that people were talking about. It was also very strange to see complete fiction traded as fact,” Wilde said. “I wanted to be like, ‘Can I just talk to people?’ Can I just go and say like, ‘That’s not true?’ And it was like, ‘No, that won’t help.’ And that was really hard… I felt I was working on behalf of hundreds of people [who worked on this movie]. I felt frustrated that I couldn’t defend myself but it was not about [me]… I think that my own attempt to be strong and to kind of like rise above it in a way came off as inauthentic.”
The production and release of Don’t Worry Darling became one of the most discussed entertainment stories of the year. What should have been a celebration of a highly anticipated psychological thriller quickly became overshadowed by headlines, rumors, and social media speculation.
Stories circulated about alleged tension between Wilde and star Florence Pugh, while internet sleuths dissected every public interaction involving the cast. The frenzy intensified during the film’s premiere at the Venice Film Festival, where online speculation reached a fever pitch.
Looking back now, Wilde says the media storm often felt disconnected from what was actually happening in her personal life.
“There was all this public madness, but my private life was very far from it,” Wilde said about the press tour. “And very, actually kind of wholesome and sweet. I had a lot of like real joy and love and happiness during that time. It was like the tornado was right outside the door and if you were inside, you were like, ‘It’s so nice,’ and then you’d open the door and a f—king like cow and a tractor would fly by.”
One of the biggest factors fueling public attention was her romance with Styles, whom she met while making the film. Wilde believes public reaction to their relationship became far more intense than she ever anticipated.
“I think that it also had a lot to do with the kind of parasocial relationship people had with, have with him, which is a burden that is very weighty and not something I envy and he carries it with grace,” Wilde said in regards to the backlash against her romance with Styles. “I think that is an enormous responsibility that all those stars have to carry that’s f—king impossible.”
The director also addressed the couple’s age difference, noting that it became another talking point online.
“I think that people were mad. It’s almost like the happiness made them mad. I would go to shows and dance, and people were like, ‘You sl-t! How dare you dance and smile?’ It really did upset people, though.”
Wilde described the relationship itself in far warmer terms than the public narrative often suggested.
She said their romance was the “loveliest relationship” and “so sweet and so beautiful and really, actually, very domestic and kind and lovely.”
Despite the constant headlines, she believes they were able to protect what mattered most.
“I think that we existed in this, like, little bubble and the judgment never really got into that bubble, which was a miracle and testament to us making that happen,” Wilde added.
Years later, Don’t Worry Darling remains one of the most talked-about film releases of the decade—not necessarily because of the movie itself, but because of the extraordinary media circus that surrounded it. Wilde’s latest comments offer a reminder that behind every viral headline is a real person navigating an experience that often looks very different from the version unfolding online.
