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Olivia Wilde covers Vanity Fair’s October issue where she addresses rumours head-on, specifically those surrounding cast members of her forthcoming film “Don’t Worry Darling” and those regarding her split from ex fiancé, Jason Sudeikis.
Just two days after Wilde’s psychological thriller premiered at the Venice International Film Festival, the actress and director told VF that “No amount of internet bullying can cause me to question my belief in a movie made collectively by so many brilliant people,” referring to multiple rumours between castmates that have been circulating online for weeks. “We worked too hard, and went through too much together, to be derailed by something that really has nothing to do with filmmaking.”
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The film, which stars “Florence Pugh as the rebellious Alice, and Harry Styles as Jack, her stylish, exuberant husband,” had originally cast Shia LaBeouf as Jack but Wilde had to fire him after Pugh was uncomfortable with LaBeouf’s behaviour. The “Transformers” actor publicly disputed that he was let go, instead claiming he “quit” due to lack of rehearsal time with Pugh.
Following the Venice world premiere, private messages between Pugh and LaBeouf surfaced on the internet to which Wilde commented: “This issue is so much more nuanced than can be explained in private texts released out of context. All I’ll say is he was replaced, and there was no going forward with him. I wish him the best in his recovery.”
— Photo: Emma Summerton/Vanity Fair
As for Styles replacing LaBeouf, word followed that Wilde became smitten on set with the singer, distracting her from her job, forcing Pugh/ or the cinematographer to step in and direct scenes.
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“It is very rare that people assume the best from women in power,” Wilde says of the never-ending gossip and online headlines. “I think they don’t often give us the benefit of the doubt. Florence did the job I hired her to do, and she did it exquisitely. It is ironic that now, with my second film–which is again about the incredible power of women, what we’re capable of when we unite, and how easy it is to strip a woman of power by using other women to judge and shame them–we’re talking about this.”
— Photo: Emma Summerton/Vanity Fair
Pugh’s silence about the film has been interpreted as her way of throwing shade at Wilde, however, the director seemingly shuts down those rumours.
“Florence is one of the most in-demand actresses in the universe,” Wilde says in her VF cover story, on newsstands September 20. “She’s on set on ‘Dune’. I gather that some people expect for her to be engaging more on social media. I didn’t hire her to post. I hired her to act. She fulfilled every single expectation I had of her. That’s all that matters to me.”
Additionally, Wilde has been scrutinized for the timing of her relationship with Styles, which some believe overlapped with Sudeikis.
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“The complete horsesh*t idea that I left Jason for Harry is completely inaccurate,” she says. “Our relationship was over long before I met Harry. Like any relationship that ends, it doesn’t end overnight. Unfortunately, Jason and I had a very bumpy road, and we officially dissolved the relationship towards the beginning of the pandemic.”
Wilde and Styles met on set of “Don’t Worry Darling” in September 2020. The two sparked dating rumours at the beginning of 2021 when they were spotted holding hands at a wedding.