I think we can safely say that the real-life drama around Don’t Worry Darling was probably always going to eclipse the film, whether the film was good or bad. The fact that so many critics are blasting the film though… it’s quite delicious. All of this controversy, all of this drama and Don’t Worry Darling leaves Venice with a 43% rating at Rotten Tomatoes. Apparently, there are major script and story issues, but again, critics say that Florence Pugh is the best part of the uneven, stupid film, a film which “borrows” too much from other films. Hilariously, most critics are in agreement that Harry Styles is the worst part. So much for Harry’s big Oscar campaign. Olivia Wilde’s publicist is already trying to do damage control:
The cast of Olivia Wilde’s upcoming thriller Don’t Worry Darling assembled on the red carpet for the movie’s world premiere at the Venice Film Festival Sept. 5. But an industry insider says in the new issue of PEOPLE that all the drama surrounding the film has been “tough to navigate with a smile.”
The situation is unfortunate, continues the source, because “everyone went into the movie with the best intentions.”
Ultimately, the glitzy Venice premiere only fed the news cycle about behind-the-scenes tensions, the insider feels. “By trying to not make headlines they made way more.” Star Florence Pugh, who skipped the movie’s press conference but attended the premiere, “came out looking flawless while the others invoked questions.”
The insider believes the thriller itself could generate plenty of appeal without the pressures of the film festival premiere: “There is so much sexiness and intrigue to mine. They should have skipped the festival and led with marketing.”
Florence “came out looking flawless while the others invoked questions,” huh? While I agree that Florence came out looking flawless – a true quiet quitting queen – I would also argue that Chris Pine, Gemma Chan and Nick Kroll came out looking amazing because they were being used as literal buffers. Olivia Wilde’s own toxicity has touched every part of this promotion, to the point where her cast is in open revolt against her and making it clear that they’re ALL on Team Miss Flo. All except Harry Styles, who seemed to want to avoid both Florence and Olivia, bizarrely. Anyway, beware of industry insiders using passive voices. Olivia didn’t “invoke questions,” she had film festival organizers shut down entertainment reporters when they tried to ask her directly about how she lied about firing Shia LaBeouf.
Oh, and Olivia’s stylist posted this on Monday right after Florence’s stylist posted her “Miss Flo” Instagram.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Avalon Red, Backgrid.
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- Olivia Wilde, Gemma Chan, Harry Styles, Sydney Chandler, Chris Pine, Florence Pugh, Nick Kroll attends “Don’t Worry Darling” red carpet at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on September 05, 2022 in Venice, Italy.,Image: 719790658, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: Maria Laura Antonelli / AGF Foto / Avalon
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- Italy, Lido di Venezia, September 05, 2022 : Olivia Wilde attends the ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ red carpet at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on September 05, 2022 in Venice, Italy.,Image: 719946075, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: **** World right excluding Italy ****, Model Release: no, Credit line: Ottavia Da Re / Agenzia Sintesi / Avalon
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- Italy, Lido di Venezia, September 05, 2022 : Olivia Wilde attends the ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ red carpet at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on September 05, 2022 in Venice, Italy.,Image: 719946140, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: **** World right excluding Italy ****, Model Release: no, Credit line: Ottavia Da Re / Agenzia Sintesi / Avalon
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- Nick Kroll, Florence Pugh, Chris Pine, Olivia Wilde, Sydney Chandler, Harry Styles and Gemma Chan – Don’t Worry Darling – Red Carpet – 79th Venice International Film Festival Venice – Venecia Film Festival – La Biennale Mostra dArte Cinematografica – Lido Venice 1.9.2022 -,Image: 719946892, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NOGER,NOAUS,NOSWISS, Model Release: no, Pictured: Dont Worry Darling – Red Carpet, Credit line: F.Altmann / Bang Showbiz / Avalon
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- Olivia Wilde – Don’t Worry Darling – Red Carpet – 79th Venice International Film Festival Venice – Venecia Film Festival – La Biennale Mostra dArte Cinematografica – Lido Venice 1.9.2022 -,Image: 719946997, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NOGER,NOAUS,NOSWISS, Model Release: no, Pictured: Dont Worry Darling – Red Carpet, Credit line: F.Altmann / Bang Showbiz / Avalon
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- Venice, ITALY – Olivia Wilde seen arriving at the airport during the 79th Venice International Film Festival. Pictured: Olivia Wilde BACKGRID USA 4 SEPTEMBER 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- Venice, ITALY – Celebrities attend the “Don’t Worry Darling” photocall at the 79th Venice International Film Festival in Venice, Italy. Pictured: Olivia Wilde BACKGRID USA 5 SEPTEMBER 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- 79th Venice Film Festival: `Don`t Worry Darling` – Premiere Featuring: Nick Kroll, Florence Pugh, Chris Pine, Olivia Wilde, Sydney Chandler, Harry Styles, Gemma Chan Where: Venice, Italy, Italy When: 05 Sep 2022 Credit: Aurore Marechal/ABACA/INSTARimages.com/Cover Images **North America Rights Only**
By all means, keep the cryptic tweets/Instas coming. Like THAT’S going to help this noise go away. This is gonna be gossip for yeaaaars.
It’s a war between the stylists!!! This just keeps getting juicier and juicier. What happened with Shia, why did Olivia lie about it, when did her affair with Harry start, why won’t Pugh do any press for this movie, and then yesterday we had Spitgate 2022, and now we have the feuding stylists!!!!
This is the best gossip gold we’ve had in years. Sorry Bennifer 2.0, you’ve been dethroned as the celeb gossip story of the year.
Spitgate 2022 LMAO
Well said 🙂
I do believe that the Press is misogynistic and giving OW a harder time and tons more bad coverage than they would a man. HOWEVER, WTF, EVERYONE IS FEUDING IN THIS MOVIE. OW’s job was to run a professional, equitable set, and she really f*cked this up. I’ve never seen so much weirdness around a film and so much negativity between cast and crew. Honestly, ALL OF THIS is inappropriate. OW’s stylist should never have responded to what was OW’s own lapse in judgement (disparaging remarks about FLO), and you bet OW’s stylist asked for permission before she posted. Even HS being paid more than two times what FP made blows my mind.
Florence Pugh’s stylist started this. Yes it would have been better to let it go but let’s not put this all on OW. Let’s not ignore the shadiness of FP here. FP didn’t need to do that little photoshoot with drink in her hand during the press conference in order to make it absolutely clear to everyone that there was drama. She didn’t need to give that shady comment about the power of saying no on the red carpet. I agree with you that OW likely gave permission to her stylist but FP also gave permission to hers first.
I do not this thing where in any conflict people cast one person as the hero and one as the villain and then everyone tries their hardest to keep the people in their assigned roles. You can justifiably criticize both of them but people actively ignore shady things when it comes to FP and imagine the worst when it comes to OW. OW has had nothing but public praise for FP but people refuse to see that as her professionalism because they want her in the villain role. People are more complicated than that.
Pugh’s stylist didn’t post that picture until after the video of OW calling Florence “Miss Flo” was released, though, right? So there was bad blood before the stylist ever posted anything. My guess is that there were obviously some issues but Florence learning that OW was actively trying to keep Shia on board (while probably telling her something else) and belittling her (Florence) in the process was the final straw.
I think FP always does a little private photoshoot when she walks the red carpet in a Valentino gown. Probably part of her deal with them.
Of course there’s more to the story than the very little we know. I hope one day we get it all.
Agree. And frankly, the fact that the “juiciest” gossip we have came from Shia is concerning and should be viewed through a more critical lens — he’s a narcissistic abuser and surely only shared what made him look the best and Olivia look the worst. We know a very small bit of a large story.
Anyway, I hope the journalists trying to get Olivia to comment keep the same energy when David O’Russell’s new film comes out next month.
Right? 109%, He was fresh off the ‘yeah I abused my partner’ boat and suddenly he’s the righteous hero.
Also agree re DOR next film, I hope the press is going to micromanage gossip from actors who distance himself from him after fans who hate him attack him relentlessly.
I don’t see anyone coming for Angie for managing the press – she doesn’t allow any unflattering questions at promotions, this has been known for over a decade. Why is it okay for her but speaks badly of Ow?
Why OW even hired Shia in the first place is my question, but she clearly has questionable taste in men. As for Florence, she’s got a chart a lot like Kate Middleton, she knows how to CYA, side with the powerful, and she is.
All of this misogyny has made OW toxic. OW is clearly her own mess, but not any more so than any other director. I gotta stop reading stories about her, it depressed the ever loving crap out of me that nothing ever changes.
@WiththeAmerican Exactly. Wilde definitely has some issues, but the way they’re being overinflated is just ridiculous.
Well i am sure this has been a mortifying experience for the cast especially its director Olivia. I hope she has learned that her conduct was unbecoming, but the cast with the obvious Team Flo shenanigans are begining to look like means girls, they should all come together now and try salvage whatever they can.
I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss O.
Exactly! LOL Also, she shouldn’t have come out on the carpet looking like Messy Melania either.
It just makes me think that whatever happened on that set was enough to have people like Chris Pine actively wanting to stand between Florence and Olivia. There’s a reason for that beyond artistic disagreements, you know?
Over privileged people with too much time on their hands and not enough to do.
@BTB 💯
I saw a commercial for the movie and it actually looks good. Too bad all anyone is talking about is the off-screen drama. Orrrr was that calculated all along to get people’s attention ? Hmmm.
I honestly do not think this was calculated because attention alone is worth nothing to them. Filling seats in theatres is and there is not telling whether this drama will make people more curious to see the film or annoy them so much that they loose all interest in watching it.
There is this radio commercial in Germany for a cereal. It is absolutely annoying and it gets peoples blood boiling with the result that everyone knows the name of the cereal brand but people (me included) refuse to buy the brand on principle because of this annoying commercial
I don’t think this was calculated either bc now I feel like everyone is just over this movie.
@cinnamon
Very intriguing! I may regret it, but I really want to see this commercial!
At this point, my issue with Wilde is that this has been going on for months and at no point did she stop and think, I need to pull myself together here. Yes, unfair and misogyny, totally true. But that is part of the real world that you are living in.
I had a friend say male directors don’t get this shit for their bad behavior. Yes, but they don’t really throw fuel on the fire this spectacularly either.
She’s a part of the Cockburn family of British writers, who tended to be infamous bomb throwers in their political writing. Christopher Hitchens lived with her family when she was a child, fer chrissakes! I think the instincts on how to deal with fame and the press from growing up in this environment have not served her well as an actress becoming a director.
In addition to the myriad issues that make her problematic – too many to list – she has a big mouth. Watch interviews. She can’t help herself. She’s so profound and gutsy and simply MUST share her immense genius with those less enlightened. People think it’s performative, but it feels kind of like she really does see herself as a visionary, and if/when she decides to talk about this, she’ll frame herself as the hero. Trust.
Absolutely this. It seems like a common trait in many directors, actually. This may get me some hate, but I had similar thoughts about Aronofsky after I watched Mother! (don’t even know how to punctuate that sentence)
I can only imagine what people in the industry know and are talking about right now. There’s probably much more to the whole drama than what’s been leaked. I’ll be seeing the movie even if its bad lol. I had planned on seeing it regardless- I haven’t actually been in a theater in ages.
I’m so jealous. I want to know it all.
Olivia strikes me as someone going through a midlife crisis. It would have been fine if she had just been honest and professional about everything. It’s sad to see her career go out like this but she did it to herself.
Her career will not “go out” like this. She’s a respected up-and-coming director. This might be a sophomore slump, but Booksmart was hugely popular and praised. This drama is unfortunate but by no stretch career ending. Literally abusive directors (not just personally, but in some cases abusive to their actors) have had decades-long, lauded careers.
Olivia’s a woman in Hollywood close to 40. They’ll find any excuse to get rid of her. She literally walked herself into this door. Just based on the sexism in this town alone, I think she’ll have a hard time surviving. Why have her when you can have one of the million male directors or 20 something actresses?
I don’t think this will end her career, but Booksmart was not “hugely popular”. Olivia was on twitter begging people to go see it because it wasn’t performing that well. I think it was well received but she has connections, and that’s what is saving her.
Her reach definitely exceeds her grasp. She fantasizes that she’s at the top of the field in a male-dominated industry but she’s shown by this train wreck of a movie shoot that her so-called feminism and wanting a respectful and egalitarian atmosphere on set is merely performative.
This drama is the gift that keeps on giving LOL
I hope the full story gets leaked once promo for the movie is done. I feel like everyone is just playing nice (as nice as they want to be anyway) at this point.
So much drama. Nick Kroll has even thrown shade at Olivia. Last night on Twitter I saw his post of the entire cast. He named everyone in the picture with the exception of Olivia, her put an octopus over her face in the picture. More and more leads me to believe the issue is her with the rest of the cast (but what do I know lol).
I might have watched the film but this is all so exhausting that I have zero interest now. Will watch anything w/ FP but pretty meh on the rest of them.
Really? Because Nick’s wife Lilly (a landscape artist and very interesting person) posted a bunch of pics on her Insta that prominently showed OW and Harry with no shade. There is even a pic of Nick and Olivia all smiles and he seems very comfortable.
I’ll try and find it, it was there last night. Although, I was tired and my eyes are terrible. Knowing me someone else did it and I thought it was him. Apologies if that’s the case!
I went to his Twitter and Insta and didn’t see that. On his Insta he has a picture of himself with every cast member including OW and the video of him kissing Harry. I’m pretty sure he’s trying to be Switzerland here.
That is likely a doctored photo, this is very much a “go look at the source material, not retweets or memes” or whatever situation. People are doing screenshots with comments that don’t track to the full videos of a lot of it, it is out of control.
Every time I see Nick Kroll, all I can ever think of is Simon the Devious and his cursed witches hat
“I caught your arrow with eeeeease.”
All I can hear when I see his face.
I think OW’s stylist has more to explain than that post. This Melania Trump cosplay is not good.
Omg, you nailed it! I can’t unsee it now, Melania 2.0…
Even if this story turns out to be more nuanced than reported and there’s been bad behavior all around (always a chance), OW’s shining inability to paint herself in even a remotely positive or even neutral light is damning for her. I mean, where is her PR team in this debacle?? Presumably there are wayyyy more receipts out there if her best option is publicly praising FP in the hope she doesn’t drop them and sending her stylist to post vague nothings.
I think the person who comes out looking the best here is Nick Kroll whose body language seems largely unfazed by all the drama. Poor Chris Pine has looked extremely uncomfortable this whole time.
Olivia looks like she’s been crying in the red carpet photos. She’s got some puffiness under her eyes that weren’t there yesterday. I wonder if the stress of this whole thing isn’t getting to her. Hopefully, she’ll go home, be with her kids, and take a break. This, too, shall pass.
She has quite a bit of natural puffiness under her eyes. If you look at candid shots of her, she almost always has large bags under them. I think she and her makeup artist work extra hard to get rid of them for events.
I’ve been spending entirely too much time thinking about this. Pugh isn’t happy with the sexually charged marketing around the film, while Wilde has been at the opposite end of the spectrum and constantly touching on female pleasure / sexuality when promoting this film. I’m wondering if that was also a problem during filming, and if Wilde was putting pressure on Pugh or making her feel uncomfortable.
That’s really weird of Wilde to do, because it’s obvious from the trailer that the women have been trapped there by the men. I don’t know what precisely the twist is – brainwashing, microchipping, suspended animation, simulation, colony on a moon of Jupiter, etc – but if the men established their Stepford utopia principally to get the women to have sex with them at the drop of a hat, then none of these women are consenting.
That is a very good point that I hadn’t considered. I’ve been itching for some spoilers for the movie because I guess I’m into that kind of thing, but all I’ve been able to find is a summary of the original Blacklist script, before Silberman did her rewrites, and it didn’t really get into specifics.
OW has handled this very badly and it WILL affect her future opportunities and maybe she deserves it. However, while there has much been made of Olivia’s behaviour, am betting there was also bad behaviour from Harry on set – hence why Florence stayed away from him as well. She avoided Styles just as much as Wilde. Am betting there was drama with him, esp when their affair started.
As someone who knows little about HS, I will say he comes off as vapid and narcissistic.. I bet he contributed to the drama. I wouldn’t even be surprised if he spit on CP. He seems privileged and knows it.
That’s a little unfair… because he is none of those things. He’s always maintained a humble and grateful attitude. I think his association with OW has led many that aren’t familiar with him or his music to think he’s a narcissist jerk.
All the drama around this movie has been self-inflicted. I’m starting to wonder whether Olivia being served with court papers while she was on stage promoting the film was actually set up by her.
How would that even be possible? She finds out who Jason’s process server is, contacts her and invites her to the event? And Jason and his lawyer never find out? And then she perjures herself in legal documents accusing Jason of being behind it?
Everything about this is so delightfully stupid. It’s exactly the kind of low stakes, backstabbing rich people drama that I show up here for.
Like, are you worried about any of these people? I’m not. All of them are either well connected or wealthy enough that even if their careers tanked, they’d be perfectly fine. By all reports, the movie was mediocre at best, so it’s getting far more attention than it would have likely received without all of this going on. Probably the only people anybody should feel bad for are Chris Pine and Gemma Chan, who are clearly the kids stuck in the middle of the dumbest divorce drama of all time.
C’mon. Florence Pugh showed up in a Valentino resort outfit holding a daquiri, sashaying down the aisle. She’s here to feed us. We should appreciate it.
Exactly. This is the kind of juicy yet utterly frivolous gossip that’s been missing since the pandemic.
Bravo madam. You have hit the nail on the head. I am here for all of this low stakes drama. Keep it comin’ DWD cast and crew! How easy would it be to drop some delicious tidbits anonymously?
This film actually has been having the crew snipe at it (in blinds of course) from the very beginning. First I heard that if it looks like it will be good it’s all because of the cinematographer and production manager not the newish director (a common snipe against new directors) and the long Covid directive Olivia gave the crew before Christmas break (basically don’t go out and see anyone except your families) then her roll out of her Harry relationship by attending a wedding thereby looking like a hypocrite. So anything else we hear will be from the crew I’ll bet because they know everything and started the sniping really.
Blinds should not be treated as fact! I could easily pretend to have been a crew member on that set and let’s be honest if I told you some negative made up tea you would believe me because that is what you want to believe.
Not to mention that she’s got a horde of Harry stans that actively hate her and places like DeuxMoi don’t verify blind items at all.
All this drama is funny guys, some people are taking it too seriously (Btw, I don’t believe Florence was abused as some are suggesting, to me it was more about Olivia being an a-hole to her the whole time). It’s not the end for any of the parts involved, no matter how many people are trying to cancel Olivia online. It’s not gonna happen, she’ll probably go quiet for a while and then come back. If Shia is coming back, why wouldn’t she?
Don’t know if any of you saw them on instagram, but Benito Skinner did a funny impersonation of Harry and Caitlin Reilly did another one pretending to be Olivia’s publicist. Both are hilarious.
omg, CBers, if you don’t know of or watch a tiktoker whose page is @damnitmadeline, check her out- she does a couple pretty funny vids around DWD while she was ill with covid yesterday. She’s quite funny generally.
I was under the impression that Wilde had been gaining some serious credibility as a director, which was great. I was rooting for her. It sucks to hear these reviews.
I don’t understand why a self described feminist like OW would hire someone with a reputation like Shia LaBeouf’s at all.
Where was OW’s supposed “ethos” during the hiring phase?
The work environment got predictably difficult after filming started.
Then she tried to woo SL back after he quit the film. Again, where was OW’s “ethos” at the time?
After SL was replaced, OW’s personal life contributed to an already bad workplace.
At best, it appears OW’s feminism is disingenuous.
OW also needs to become acquainted with the concept of boundaries.
OW looks so poorly in all of this from an inappropriate relationship with an employee, failure to direct that employee well, said relationship the impetus for drama (lack of directing because otherwise occupied), lies about Shia and protecting FP, taking away lines from an actress to give to herself, paying an untested “actor) 3 times as much as an Oscar nominated actress, etc etc etc.
I swear OWs PR is working OT In The comment sections because her behavior was objectively bad – no two ways about it. How anyone not connected to her can think otherwise when presented with the facts is mind boggling
Yes, I agree with you @eyeswideopen. Misogyny is not an excuse for all of the awful things OW has done.
I think marketing professionals stepped in and said:
–> Keep Harry and Olivia separated, because a boss banging her much-younger employee is what started this mess,
–> Keep Florence and Olivia separated, but not too separated, or it just feeds the rumours,
–> And everybody needs to come out looking utterly fabulous, and then put their acting skills to work by smiling and getting their body language right.
And as much as it could work, it did: They gamed this appearance out, and they mostly pulled it off. People who don’t pay attention to gossip won’t see anything weird in the photos.
But for for those of us who do like gossip? Wow, this whole story is some good gossip! 😀
Who is the dark haired woman between Olivia and Harry? And where is Kiki Layne? I really liked Kiki in Old Guard.
That’s Sydney Chandler. She’s in the film, too.
Olivia Wilde give me villainess teas.
I am sure there are multiple sides to the story here. All of this pitting women against each other amplified because Shia LAbuser wanted to redeem himself. I bet he’s gloating right now. Did he have a right to share his side? Of course, but I think he knew exactly what he was doing… Something about Pugh strikes me as very self righteous. I can’t place my finger on it, but I’ve always gotten that vibe from her.
Harry’s “big Oscar campaign” was always for My Policeman, not DWD.
And OG directioners know that he loathes spitting, and would never.
#ifyouknowyouknow
THANK YOU. All these ppl thinking Harry is that kind of a person. You don’t have to be a fan and he’s not for everyone, that’s fine. But come the f**k on. Even LeAnn Rimes wouldn’t spit on someone… i don’t think so anyway lol.
I love Florence Pugh! She is an absolute gem! She got my attention in midsommar. But I will NEVER see this movie bc Olivia Wilde rubs me the wrong way. You don’t push others down to get your way up. Very mean girl vibes. On another note: my policeman looks pretty interesting if your into Harry styles 🤷♂️