Olivia Wilde has a hit on the 2026 movie schedule, with critics raving about the latest Seth Rogen movie, The Invite. It’s a big win for Wilde, who talked about how the movie came about in part because she followed up one of her greatest movies with the somewhat infamous Don’t Worry Darling.
Readers may remember Wilde’s directorial debut with Booksmart, and how many praised it as the equivalent of Superbad for young women. The actress and director told Variety about how the success is welcome and a „blessing”, but it can also come with some downsides as well:
I believe in early failure. The first pilot I did got canceled in three episodes. There were a lot of early bumps, and I think that taught me to have level-headed expectations for Hollywood. Booksmart was a blessing, but it also creates a certain expectation for yourself when it comes to connecting with the audience, and you forget how subjective it all is.
It seemed things would only go up from there, but then came Don’t Worry Darling, in which her behind-the-scenes marriage drama and on-set tensions piled onto a movie that critics largely panned. While the film received some praise for its performances, the overall story for it was deemed lacking and unworthy of the hype it generated.
Now removed from all the drama of that project, Olivia Wilde talked about how going from Booksmart to Don’t Worry Darling helped pave the way for The Invite. It may sound odd to say, but she explained, when talking about the bad reviews the film received for various reasons:
So my next movie has a 38 on Rotten Tomatoes, and I’ve been reflecting on how healthy it is to be reminded of how fickle it all is. You’ve already been through the thing that strikes fear in the heart of directors. What if they don’t like it? Once you’ve survived that, there’s liberation.
That liberation led to The Invite, in which Olivia Wilde directs and stars alongside Seth Rogen in an A24 comedy with a a stressful trailer. The whole thing goes off the rails when their neighbors, played by Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton, propose they all engage in an extramarital affair. If that sounds familiar, the movie is a remake of the 2020 Spanish film The People Upstairs. A fun concept, but probably not one to invite any neighbors over to watch, unless you’re into that sort of thing.
It’s a great lesson for budding directors in Hollywood that success isn’t always assured and can be difficult to sustain. I’m sure that Olivia Wilde would’ve loved to have Don’t Worry Darling get as much love as Booksmart and The Invite, but I think the main takeaway was that having the follow-up fumble at the box office wasn’t the death knell of Wilde’s directing career. She’s back on top again with another hit, and while she may make another flop in the future, it looks like she has the right mindset now, knowing that it ultimately means nothing as to what comes next.
The Invite is in theaters right now, but readers may have to search out what theaters and showtimes work for them. There are so many other movies making waves this summer, now might be the time to grab one of those unlimited subscriptions to see all of them before they come to streaming!