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I’ve actually tried to like Olivia Wilde. I gave her a chance, just because she actually seems to have two brain cells furiously rubbing together, and I like that she doesn’t come across as the standard-issue starlet. I actually kind of like “Thirteen” on House, but when it comes down to it, Olivia as a person/celebrity is either tedious or outright annoying. First it was the constant references to how she was a princess. Then she dumped her husband for greener pastures, and she’s been “spending time” with every dude out there who has a persistent gay rumor (Bradley Cooper, Jake Gyllenhaal). And now this interview, in the LA Times Magazine. Ugh. She’s involved in a few charities that are working in Haiti, and to her credit, Olivia has put her time and effort where her mouth is. But unfortunately, her mouth still wants you to give her credit for everything she’s doing and then some, like she’s FHM’s Sexiest Humanitarian. This line alone – “I was crouched outside this cholera clinic, sitting on a cinder block talking to my agent on the phone” – we get it, Cockburn. Enough.
She’s universally known as a smouldering brunette, but Olivia Wilde has lightened up for a photo shoot with the LA Times. And the effect is amazing, platinum blonde curls completely transform the 27-year-old House star… to almost beyond the point of recognition. But in the interview, the actress reveals that never she’s quite been what she seems, by talking about her relief work in Haiti.
She told the magazine: ‘I was crouched outside this cholera clinic, sitting on a cinder block talking to my agent on the phone. I was about to help hand out rice at a refugee camp and figure out how our students can build more classrooms, so it was hard for me to be on the ball during that call. But I had to remember that acting is actually my job. Whenever I want to say, ‘F–k Hollywood,’ I have to remember that the reason I am even useful in Haiti is because I have a job here.’
With huge movies Cowboys & Aliens and The Change-Up coming soon, Wilde should be able to make an even bigger difference in Haiti. She tells the interviewer that she researched her character for John Favreau’s blockbuster Cowboys & Aliens, which co-stars Daniel Craig. She plays Ella, a woman who joins Craig’s mysterious gunslinger to fight off terrifying aliens who invade a western town in the 1800s.
‘I was shocked to see there weren’t many strong female characters in western cinema tradition,’ she admitted.
She’s also confirmed that she will stay on for a fifth series of the hit Fox show, alongside Hugh Laurie as the irascible Dr Gregory House.
[From The Mail]
So, in between movie roles and television work, she manages to find time to do charity work, so good for her. How about name-checking the charity instead of making cholera all about you and your career? You know what would have been even more selfless? If she had turned off her phone while she was working in Haiti. But then she wouldn’t have had a perfect story to tell which illustrated her selflessness.
Photos courtesy of The Mail & Pacific Coast News.
Written by Kaiser
Posted in Olivia Wilde
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Yay my favorite honeybadger! I have such a girl crush.
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She’s much more striking as a brunette IMO — as a blond she looks like every other starlet out there — pretty but interchangeable.
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Come on, she’s doing a great thing. And actually her talking about DOING something as simple as giving away rice and so on is cool as it promotes the idea. So many people seems to think that charity is when you give money to some organiztion and when you don’t have money to spare then you can delegate it to some other richier people and move on.
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Can someone explain to me why she is basically in almost every movie?
Her famewhoring is just gross, I remeber last year she was on every red carpet award show she would be the first to arrive.
She aanoys the hell out of me.
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I think she actually makes a great point. If she turns off her phone, ignores her agent, as you suggest, she’s shoving aside the very thing that allows her to DO humanitarian work – her money, fame and career. She does seem a bit haughty about it, but we’re reading words on a page and interjecting our own inflections. I’m READING it as if it’s coming from a place of “I’m so great because I CARE about the world.” Maybe she just mentioned it in passing to set up where she was going with her statement. Maybe she does think she’s so great for doing humanitarian work. We’ll never know.
I’m largely indifferent to Olivia Wilde. I like her on house, I think she’s very beautiful and she seems smarter than her peers, but I don’t normally pay much attention to her as a celebrity. So it feels weird defending her, but, I don’t know. It just seems wrong to attack someone for doing something good with the notoriety they have. She’s not being Sean Penn, toting cameras around with her and acting like she’s soooo much better and smarter. She’s just saying hey, this Hollywood thing helps me do good shit.
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I LOVE THAT DRESS!!!!
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Haha, where did you get the nickname Cockburn? I looooove it!
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That cover picture looks nothing like her. I thought the post header was wrong. Geezum
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She’s always namechecking her charity (Artists for Peace and Justice) and others and used to make blog posts about all kinds of charities and orgs I’d never have heard of otherwise, she tweets news around the world all the time, produces short films to change people’s perception of Haiti, and is as likely to be found at a fundraiser than a big show-timey stuff. Almost every interview I read of her mentions the work she does and how she believes that more people would get involved. I think she actually balances it quite well, and as far as the princess mentions go, she rarely ever mentioned it, and I’ve read a lot of her interviews. Usually it gets brought up on late-night talk shows where the same talking points get brought up all the time because those guys can’t turn a conversation without prepared topics.
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Cockburn is her real last name. It scares me I know this.
And, she is my #2 Celebrity GF after Kate Winlset.
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@kp — Cockburn is her actual last name; Wilde is her stage name.
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Hahhahahaahahah yes!!! When I first read her excerpts I was like Jesus Christ stfu but then I felt like a bitch for thinking she was annoying so thank you kaiser for making me feel like less of an asshole. Yes, it’s very generous and kind of her to help others but for some reason, the way she’s talking about it is really tacky to me…
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I agree. Olivia Wilde is out to promote herself. It is obvious because she excludes from her stories what matters most: the people alongside her working harder than she is to make a difference. She’s an actress and not a very good one because she fails at portraying a true humanitarian.
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I prefer her as a brunette.
There’s something vaguely annoying about her but she doesn’t get under my skin too badly. And I thought her explanation of the phone call while on site was insightful.
The fact that she’s meeting a bunch of different guys after divorcing her childhood husband sounds smart to me. We don’t hear of her doing the walk of shame or shacking up with some random 10 minutes after the announcement, which is pretty rare.
I think she’s like Reese Witherspoon, in that she holds her cards close to her vest a bit more than other starlets, and keeps a veneer of professionalism. She’ll confirm what you already know (yes, I married a prince…at Bonaroo or whatever) but she’s not telling you where they have sex. Pretty cool, actually.
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I just can’t wait to see her in Aliens vs Cowboys.
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she looks like a drag queen with the blonde and the dress.
lol @ the cholera clinic story. Seriously? Really? Ick. Also the fringy brown purse needs to go .
FWIW , I think she’s stunning.
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Insufferable
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‘I was shocked to see there weren’t many strong female characters in western cinema tradition,’ she admitted.
…Making it shockingly out of line with every other genre in Hollywood?
Other things that may shock Olivia:
Water is wet
Magnum PI is not real
John Travolta may not be as straight as he would like us to think.
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Bringing up every little thing she does…makes me suspicious that she’s disinguinuess, only doing things for the praise she’ll get. (Like the response is more important to her than actually helping people).
I don’t know if that comes from insecurity, bringing up every little thing, needing to be reassured that not only is she more beautiful than you, but she’s also a way better, more generous & compassionate person than you.
Surely she’s being considered for Sainthood.
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She looks like Shalom Harlow in the picture with the saw horses.
Her character in “House” annoys me but only because she was an about 23 yr old doctor in residency? Um no. So obviously just bringing shameless sex appeal to the show – but that’s not her fault.
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She looks like a drag queen with all the make up and blonde hair. I like her better on House.
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That hair color is awful. I really don’t have an opinion of her, as long as I remember she’s not Olivia Munn.
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That blonde makes her hair look like Barbie hair. And not in a good way.
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Oh why! I love her as a brunette but as a blond she looks generic. I love she has thick calves/ankles in the work out photo. I love seeing celeb flaws.,
I mean this in an endearing way. I like her for some reason.
@otherChris… cannot stand Olivia Munn – I have issues with anyone who is not hot and is sold to me as hot – of either gender but I can only think of women right now like GOOP who was my first celeb “hate”
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Harpo..who dis woman?
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I f*cking LOVE that dress. And yes, she should have mentioned the clinic.
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the Angelina Jolie syndrome!
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She annoys the crap out of me.
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I used to like her when she was married. But then I decided she is a classless hooch that is trying to sleep her way through Hollywood. But I guess that’s showbiz, right?? Haha!
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The only reason she annoys you is because she has been out with all your boy crushes. She at least is doing charity work and trying_thats more than the majority of celebrities are doing with all the money thrown at them. Now to only get them more focused on the US issues we are facing -school funding, foster homes, hunger…
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Who is this woman? She carries some real ugly handbags.
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Ugh. I barely know who she is, and have managed to avoid seeing her in anything. For some reason, she just irritates me. LOL I’m easily irritated, SO…well. Just don’t really care for her. It could be worse. She could be doing all this AND “taking time off” from college.
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@NoNeedToKnowBasis – “The only reason she annoys you is because she has been out with all your boy crushes…. ….Now to only get them more focused on the US issues we are facing -school funding, foster homes, hunger…”
She hasn’t been out with any of *my* boy crushes. I started to dislike her after reading 5-6 interviews she’d done, where she constantly felt the need to bring up the ‘I’m a princess‘ thing, even when it had nothing to do with anything. (If she was holding court as her job, sure. But she’s an actress making shows & movies about computer worlds.)
Only took a few interviews for me to find her incredibly irritating.
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I don’t mind Olivia per se, but I also do not get her appeal at all. She’s an all right actress, but not great. Thirteen would be a really moving/powerful character on what has otherwise turned out to be a disappointing show the last couple of seasons, IF Thirteen were played by someone who has more-than-mediocre acting skills. I also don’t think she’s especially attractive. She’s one of those only-looks-good-because-of-loads-of-make-up types.
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The very definition of a famewhore. Got famous, dumped her rich husband when she didn’t need him anymore, freeing her up to start sleeping with everyone in Hollywood can help further her career.
Becoming more and more unlikable by the minute.
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AJ syndrome? Really?
I don’t read about AJ being on the phone with anyone in Hollywood when she’s doing humanitarian work
She reminds me of Jerry hall
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I deeply want all Hollywood actors who show us all their amazing charity work
(I am sure no one can hand a bag of rice to a hungry person better, Olivia)to research the bazillions of dollars that ordinary nonactors give to charities. We are aware of the needs of others! Many charities are run by the small donations of people who work hard for their money and give it away as much as possible. Gosh she is annoying.
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Ugh.
Not a fan.
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Some people should never be blonde. ie Anna Paquin
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@NoNeedToKnowBasis: No she annoyed me wayyyy before she started dating the Gosdong. That Princess crap was just good for a sound bite cause she lost that dude as soon as her career took off. Also a lot of celebs just use “charity work” to get good PR. Who knows if their heart is really in it or not.
She really bugs me. Her face, her interviews, her acting. Everything.
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IMO, she looks better as a brunette.
I am hoping she hooks up with Ryan Reynolds, they would make an awesome couple. She claims she only sleeps with her dog, her pet. So, why are
we referring to her as if she was a famewhore. We have all seen worst, like the foot on SP’s crotch.
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I have no idea who this chick is buut I hope the flat silver blondey colored hair is a wig – because it looks terrible and fake.
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Is that a purse or a Shetland pony?
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The explosion of blond hair surrounding those overly made up eyes is a little off putting, but that dress…
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