{"id":38502,"date":"2026-08-11T12:07:52","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T07:07:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=38502"},"modified":"2026-08-11T12:07:52","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T07:07:52","slug":"olivia-wilde-says-the-invite-melted-the-cynic-out-of-her","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=38502","title":{"rendered":"Olivia Wilde Says &#8216;The Invite&#8217; Melted the Cynic Out of Her"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/olivia-wilde\/\" id=\"auto-tag_olivia-wilde\" data-tag=\"olivia-wilde\">Olivia Wilde<\/a> said she has become \u201cso much more romantic\u201d because of \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/the-invite\/\" id=\"auto-tag_the-invite\" data-tag=\"the-invite\">The Invite<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s melted the cynic out of me,\u201d she said at Switzerand\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/locarno-film-festival\/\" id=\"auto-tag_locarno-film-festival\" data-tag=\"locarno-film-festival\">Locarno Film Festival<\/a> .<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI have spoken to people who have been through so much with their partners, and people have been in marriages for 40, 50, 60 years. They told me it was a very honest depiction of their own experience of really having several relationships with the same person.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tIt\u2019s Wilde\u2019s third feature after \u201cBooksmart\u201d and \u201cDon\u2019t Worry Darling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cThe Invite,\u201d where she also stars alongside <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/seth-rogen\/\" id=\"auto-tag_seth-rogen\" data-tag=\"seth-rogen\">Seth Rogen<\/a>, Pen\u00e9lope Cruz and <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/edward-norton\/\" id=\"auto-tag_edward-norton\" data-tag=\"edward-norton\">Edward Norton<\/a>, takes place one evening when Joe and Angela (Rogen and Wilde) invite their upstairs neighbours Pi\u00f1a and Hawk for a dinner party.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAt first, she thought her hit film was about the end of a relationship.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cNow, I feel that it\u2019s much more about whether a relationship can begin again with the same person, whether you can have multiple relationships with one person, and actually whether there\u2019s more merit to that than I would have thought before,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThe other unexpected thing?<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI did not think we were making this movie for all ages. I thought that this would probably hit people in a very specific part of their lives that were somewhere similar to our parts of lives, and then I\u2019ve been blown away by meeting all these young people. In the States, our biggest audience is under 35, and a huge chunk of them are in their twenties,\u201d she admitted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cTheir questions are not based in regret. They\u2019re based in hope, and I have just been blown away by how advanced, how mature these audience members are in terms of the way they\u2019re thinking about who they want to be individually, who they want to be in relationship to someone else. It\u2019s made me less cynical across the board.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tShe added: \u201cIn terms of the reality of cinema today and the theatrical landscape, in terms of romance and whether or not it\u2019s dead, in terms of young people and their appetite for adult kinds of storytelling, this whole experience has made me much more optimistic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tWilde fought for the film\u2019s theatrical release.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s an ancient part of our culture as humans. We used to gather and tell stories, and laugh together \u2013 for thousands of years. But comedies have been relegated to this second tier that didn\u2019t deserve theatres,\u201d she noted.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI have the benefit of hearing from audiences and hearing how cathartic they have found it to laugh at some of these things and to laugh with strangers, which is why we fought for theatrical.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cToday is very special for me, and for all of us, because I was hoping we\u2019d be seen in a few theaters. Tonight, we\u2019re going to watch it with 8,000 people and I actually can\u2019t believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tWilde admitted that seeing the film at Sundance convinced her it was the right choice.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cWe felt the film had that chemical reaction with the audience. I thought: \u2018This was magic, we have to listen to this and fight for it. If you don\u2019t fight for it, they \u2018bribe\u2019 you to not take theatrical. But we were really lucky that our financier gave me the opportunity to make this decision, which is something I don\u2019t take lightly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cWe really believed that audiences deserve to discover this together. I\u2019m obviously really passionate about it, but I was passionate about it with a lot of support, which was great because we were able to take the correct offer from A24 and they really do believe in the theatrical game. Filmnation Entertainment has made international deals around the world \u2013 all theatrical.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tShe also called directing \u201cthe most thrilling and most fun job anyone could have.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI love it more than anything. I\u2019ve been waiting to do it my whole life and I took a long time to actually have the confidence to do it. I was 35 when I directed my first movie [\u2018Booksmart\u2019], and I feel like my training in acting allowed me to speak the language of actors in a way that has been integral to the way I direct. I can empathize completely.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI always say that directing is like being multilingual \u2013 you have to be able to speak to each actor in the language of their specific training and experience. I think that the job of acting never actually ends, even if you\u2019re not in the movie.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAccording to Wilde, each of the characters ended up being created by the actors.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cPen\u00e9lope gave her so much specificity and Edward really transformed that character and gave him nuance. Seth is such a genius that he understood, at every point, how to make this mad, both maddening and totally lovable. He mixed all this vulnerability with sad rage. For me, it was a masterclass. There\u2019s alchemy to it. I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s something you can create and as a director, you can only pray for an experience like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tInitially, she wasn\u2019t supposed to play Angela.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt was the cast that asked me to play that role! I\u2019m really happy they bullied me into it because I didn\u2019t realize how much I needed to play her. It was very cathartic and fun, and I love her. I\u2019ve never had this experience before where it felt like I knew her. She was so different than me in many ways, but I knew her completely,\u201d she recalled.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cThis project was really singular because we had such a unique kind of chemistry. There was this like-minded dedication to the project that made the process of acting and directing, I think, a lot smoother. There was also the benefit of being able to be in the scenes and to, at times, make a fool of myself so that they knew it was okay for them to make a fool of themselves. You kind of jump first so everyone else is a little less nervous,\u201d she laughed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI had an extraordinary cinematographer, Adam Newport-Berra, who had my back in a way that made it possible, as well as the rest of the crew. But I don\u2019t know if I could ever do it again. I think I probably won\u2019t! But I\u2019m glad I did it this time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tAlso because she discovered a new side to her acting<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cI think because I was directing myself, I didn\u2019t tell myself not to be as expressive. I feel like I\u2019ve been told to be less expressive since I was really young. It\u2019s not necessarily \u2018beautiful,\u2019 in the very superficial sense of that word,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt sometimes involved directors telling me: \u2018Your face can look quite intense.\u2019 So many actors, so many women and probably just people in general, are told to be less. Part of getting older is getting rid of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tShe wanted the audience to see Angela\u2019s \u201cheart beating.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cIt was liberating to play someone that vulnerable. I think that people have always asked me to play tough people, and I don\u2019t know why. I\u2019m not very tough. I think that if most actresses direct, they do often show a side of themselves that they feel they haven\u2019t been allowed to.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Olivia Wilde said she has become \u201cso much more romantic\u201d because of \u201cThe Invite.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s melted the cynic out of me,\u201d she said at Switzerand\u2019s Locarno Film Festival . \u201cI have spoken to people who have been through so much with their partners, and people have been in marriages for 40, 50, 60 years. They&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":38503,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MixCollage-08-Aug-2026-06-19-PM-8975.jpg?w=1000&h=563&crop=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-trending-viral-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38502\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/38503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}