Don't Worry Darling: The Drama & Why We ARE Worried

Don't Worry Darling: All The Drama

Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re looking at Don’t Worry Darling: All the Drama and Why We ARE Worried.

For this list, we’ll be looking at all the scandals, controversies and rumors swirling around Olivia Wilde’s psychological thriller starring Harry Styles and Florence Pugh.

What do you make of all the drama? Does it make you want to see the movie? Let us know in the comments.

Our story begins in September 2020 when Deadline announced that Harry Styles had been cast in Olivia Wilde’s 2022 movie, “Don’t Worry Darling.” At this point, all we knew was that he was replacing Shia LaBeouf, who’d pulled out over scheduling conflicts; and that Wilde claimed she did a “victory dance” after Styles came on board. She told Vogue that, like her film, Styles is “incredibly stylistic,” and she admired how he confidently broke traditional gender perceptions.

Now let’s fast forward to January 2021: the director and singer are spotted holding hands. Naturally, the internet was flooded with speculation over their relationship status. A source told People that the pair had, in fact, been dating for a while; apparently, after growing close on set, sparks had started to fly. However, some wondered if this might all just be a publicity stunt. Still, their relationship continued long after the cameras stopped rolling. They were spotted out and about, engaging in PDA, and seemed perfectly happy. Both have stated the importance of privacy when it comes to their relationship.

There were, however, a couple of people who allegedly weren’t so thrilled about this budding romance.

In November 2020, Wilde and fiancé Jason Sudeikis announced their separation. Apparently, it was all very amicable, and the duo was committed to doing what was best for their two children.

But in January 2021, conflicting rumors began to emerge over Sudeikis’s response to Wilde’s new relationship. Some claimed there were no ill feelings as the couple had closed their chapter long before Styles came into the picture. Sources denied that the singer was the reason they ended their engagement. However, others claimed Sudeikis was heartbroken as he’d hoped they could work past their issues.

But in April 2022, while promoting “Don’t Worry Darling” at CinemaCon, someone emerged from the audience and pushed an envelope marked “private and confidential” toward the director while she was talking. She opened it on stage to find custody papers within. A representative for Sudeikis insisted he had no idea she’d receive the documents during the event and “would never condone her being served in such an inappropriate manner.” Later, Wilde expressed concern over the security breach since safety requirements had been extra stringent given the COVID-19 pandemic. She called the move “vicious” but said it wasn’t surprising, stating, “There’s a reason I left that relationship.”

Another person who was allegedly unhappy with Wilde and Styles' relationship was the movie's leading lady, Florence Pugh. Reports claimed that perhaps there had been some overlap between Wilde's relationships, and that made people on set uncomfortable.

However, it was the typically vocally active Pugh's radio silence that left many wondering if the on-screen besties were quite the opposite behind-the-scenes. Fans noted that Pugh's usually an enthusiastic promoter of her work on social media. Yet she was uncharacteristically schtum about this one. Before shooting commenced, Pugh announced just how excited she was to work with her "idol," so why the sudden shift? Online sleuths noticed that the actress wasn't interacting with the director's social media posts regarding the film, not even ones praising her work. Pugh was barely posting about the movie on her own accounts either, and many believed she lacked passion for the project when she did it.

However, she did share an Instagram post after filming wrapped, congratulating much of the crew but leaving out the director. Still, it's important to note that no explicit comments have been made, and this is all the work of internet detectives reading between the lines.

Pugh's apparent reluctance to do much press for the movie has only added fuel to the fire.

According to some sources, the "Don't Worry Darling" execs were aware that Pugh's promotional engagements would be few from the start. After they wrapped, she started filming "Dune: Part Two," which explained her absence. According to one executive, Pugh would be "doing greetings... from the set of 'Dune'" instead. Still, fans who couldn't make it to the Venice Film Festival premiere and were hoping to hear about the movie from its leading lady would be highly disappointed. According to Deuxmoi, Styles also turned down various interview opportunities.

Anyway, fans also noticed some contention over how Wilde and Pugh discussed the film's sex scenes. A steamy interaction in the film's trailer amassed plenty of intrigue. However, Pugh had no interest in being part of that conversation, saying there was too much focus on the sex and not enough on the film's content. Meanwhile, Wilde happily discussed the subject, asking, "why isn't there any good sex scenes in movies anymore?" She also spoke candidly about the importance of subverting typical depictions of heteronormative sexual relationships and redirecting the attention to female pleasure. Since Wilde's comments followed Pugh's, some believed there was more to this story than meets the eye.

As we've seen already, the rumor mill seemed determined to come at "Don't Worry Darling" from every angle. In August 2022, Wilde was forced to deny the latest hearsay that Styles' salary was three times greater than his co-star's, even though Pugh's Alice is arguably the film's main protagonist. The original source of these claims, "Showbiz Galore," alleged that Styles' earned $2.5 million while Pugh received $700,000. They had no evidence to support these claims, but of course, it got people fired up. Wilde dismissed it as nothing more than "clickbait." She added that as a woman in showbiz, this falsity upset her as equal pay is "something that I have fought for myself and others."

Also, in August 2022, Variety published an interview with the director where she attempted to quash the falsehoods surrounding this project. She addressed many subjects we've already broached, from the controversial CinemaCon scandal to the rumored feud with Pugh. Perhaps she hoped to redirect attention back to the film, but she only seemed to stoke the flames more.

She mentioned how she originally envisioned Styles to play Jack, but when he was unavailable, she cast Shia LaBeouf instead. Eventually, it was announced that LaBeouf was no longer attached to the project, citing scheduling conflicts, as we mentioned at the start. However, now Wilde was alleging that he was fired, saying, "His process was not conducive to the ethos" (ee-thaws) she required. She believed him to be "combative" and maintained that it was her responsibility to create "a safe, trusting environment." There were also rumors that he was canned following an uncomfortable altercation with Pugh.

Given some of the other recent allegations against LaBeouf, Wilde's version of events seemed plausible enough. Additionally, several studio sources had backed up Wilde's story that LaBeouf was fired. However, the actor decided to tell his side of the story, and he had receipts.

LeBeouf told Variety via email that he hadn't been fired, rather he quit "due to lack of rehearsal time." He forwarded screenshots of text messages he’d apparently sent Wilde calling her out over her misleading comments after her Variety interview was published. The actor also shared emails he sent her on August 17, 2020, telling her he was pulling out of her movie. Arguably the most damning evidence of all was a video Wilde supposedly sent him just two days later pleading with him to reconsider. In the video, Wilde's heard saying she's "not ready to give up on this yet" and alludes to the animosity between LaBeouf and Pugh. Needless to say, Wilde might've had us sipping the tea, but LeBeouf spilled it everywhere.

So much gossip has surrounded "Don't Worry Darling" for months before it's even set to be released. Should Wilde be worried, or does all the drama help build the anticipation for her psychological thriller? Only time will tell.