Don’t Worry Darling, I’ll Explain The Tea With Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, And Olivia Wilde
If youโve been anywhere near social media within the last week, youโve undoubtedly heard about the Donโt Worry Darling drama. Or, at the very least, you know there is drama there, even if you donโt exactly know what itโs about. Thereโs little chance you havenโt seen a video of Chris Pine zoning out in the middle of Harry Stylesโs interview, even if you arenโt sure why. Or youโve heard that Florence Pugh basically dropped out of every press-related event regarding the movie, which many people think is a slight to Director Olivia Wilde.
But have no fear: This article is for those of you who canโt escape the filmโs drama but canโt actually figure out whatโs going on. Why is Florence Pugh mad at Olivia Wilde? Are Olivia and Harry Styles dating? Did Harry Styles spit on Chris Pine? Let me spell it out for you, darling.
Sex, Styles, And Getting Served
Perhaps the very first whiffs of drama came after internationally renowned popstar Harry Styles was cast as the leading man of the film, despite only having a few acting credits to his name. Soon after filming began, many rumors about Styles and Director Olivia Wilde began circulating, despite Wildeโs seven-year engagement to actor Jason Sudeikis, and within a few months, Wilde and Sudeikis officially split, with Sudeikis winning the publicโs sympathy. Two months later, Wilde and Styles made their couple debut at Stylesโs agentโs wedding, though it was rumored that theyโd been dating for a while by then.
During filming, there were also unverified rumors circulating that Styles and Wilde were constantly sneaking away together, showing up late to call times, and ultimately acting unprofessional on set due to their relationship.
But perhaps the most public display of this relationship drama happened during CinemaCon, where Wilde was served custody documents from Sudeikis while onstage speaking about Donโt Worry Darling. Wilde later characterized this situation as โviciousโ and โan attack,โ though Sudeikis claimed it wasnโt intentional.
Though Wilde and Styles are generally quiet about their relationship, Wilde has been spotted at several of the singerโs concerts, and itโs believed that a few of the songs on Stylesโs newest album, Harryโs House, reference the director. However, many have called their relationship into question after their appearance at the Venice Film Festival, where the two showed up separately and seemingly kept their interactions to the bare minimum.
While itโs entirely possible (and even likely) that Styles and Wildeโs choice to keep their distance was a PR move to try to keep peopleโs attention away from the drama surrounding the film, it left many wondering if Wilde and Styles were still together and on good terms.
The Shia LaBeouf Showdown
Fun fact: Harry Styles wasnโt originally meant to be in the film at all. The popstar only took over the role after the original frontman, Shia LaBeouf, left the project.
In 2021, Olivia Wilde, the filmโs director, implied that LaBeouf was fired due to her โno assholesโ set policy, which seemed to match up with the actorโs general public personaโnot only did he have a well known history of being combative on set, but a few months after he parted ways with Donโt Worry Darling, his ex-girlfriend, singer FKA Twigs, sued him for sexual battery, assault, and emotional distress. In general, this was a widely accepted explanation for why Harry Styles was later cast instead.
However, the narrative began to change in August 2022 when Olivia once again went on record explaining that she fired LaBeouf due to his combative nature and how she believed it was important that Pugh felt comfortable on set, especially since she was being asked to make herself very vulnerable for the role. Soon after, LaBeouf denied that heโd been fired from the role and leaked several emails and even a video of Wilde attempting to convince him to come back to the film, even going so far as to say, โYou know, I think this might be a bit of a wakeup call for Miss Flo, and I want to know if youโre open to giving this a shot with me, with us. If she really commits, if she really puts her mind and heart into it at this point and if you guys can make peaceโand I respect your point of view, I respect hersโbut if you guys can do it, what do you think?โ
The leaked video of Wilde was pretty damning to the directorโs public perception, especially after she painted herself as a strong supporter of Pughโs. It is highly believed that this might have played a role in Wilde and Pughโs strained relationship later on.
The Florence Pugh Feud
The first sign of drama between the director and her leading lady was actually quite subtle. As the Donโt Worry Darling promos began rolling out, fans began noticing that Pugh didnโt acknowledge the film on her social media accounts, instead choosing to promote her other upcoming films. What made it stranger was that Wilde made several instagram posts dedicated solely to Pughโs performance, though Pugh didnโt interact with or otherwise acknowledge them.
Many people began speculating why there might be bad blood between the two, with three main theories circulating online:
- The first theory had to do with unverified accounts from the supposed crew of the film, which claimed that Wilde was so wrapped up in her workplace romance that she often showed up late to her call times or left Pugh to take on parts of her job.
- The second theory had to do with Pughโs disapproval of Wildeโs relationship with Styles, especially since Pughโs then-boyfriend, Zach Braff, was good friends with Jason Sudeikis, Wildeโs fiancรฉ of seven years. If Wilde really did begin an on-set romance with Styles before Wilde ended her relationship with Sudeikis, itโs clear how that might cause discomfort for Pugh.
However, as the film began receiving more coverage, it became clear that there were several other points of contention that could have led to the tension between the two women. For instance, Wildeโs promotion of the movie focused almost solely on the sex scenes and their depiction of female pleasure; later, Pugh told Harperโs Bazaar, โWhen itโs reduced to your sex scenes, or to watch the most famous man in the world go down on someone, itโs not why we do it. Itโs not why Iโm in the industry.โ
Similarly, once the Wilde and LaBeouf drama came to light, many began to wonder if part of Pughโs standoffishness toward Wilde also had to do with her discomfort with LaBeouf and Wildeโs attitude surrounding this conflict before Styles was cast.
The rift between Pugh and Wilde became more obvious in the lead-up to the filmโs premiere at the Venice Film Festival, when it was announced that while Pugh would walk the red carpet but wouldnโt attend the press events or any other promotional events. And though Wilde claimed this was due to Pughโs Dune filming schedule, it began to grow into an increasingly unbelievable excuse, given Pughโs Dune costars (including Timothee Chalamet, who plays the main protagonist) were promoting their own movies at the festival and that Pugh was later caught on camera drinking an Aperol Spritz outside the festival during the press event.
While Pugh did walk the red carpet and attend the screening of the film, she pointedly didnโt interact with Wilde or Styles, and she cut the post-screening standing ovation short when she left four minutes into it, causing the rest of the cast to follow her out of the theater.
It doesnโt help that in the only interview Pugh did about the film, she said, โI think itโs very, very inspiring to see a woman push back and say โnoโ and question everything. Itโs very exciting to see a woman do that on and off camera.โ I think we got the message loud and clear.
Did Harry Styles Spit On Chris Pine? An Investigation
This was definitely one of the wilder rumors that came out of the Venice Film Festival, with people online arguing over whether the popstar spit on the veteran actor due to this video clip from the filmโs screening:
The reason people believe Styles may have done this? There literally is none, but this film has become so notorious for its drama that weโre now looking for it everywhere.
Admittedly, Chris Pineโs reaction does make it seem like he could have been spit on, though I personally believe itโs more gossip fodder than anything else. Not only does it seem pretty off-brand for Stylesโs public persona, but it seems unlikely that he would do something so disrespectful in a public setting where he knows heโs surrounded by cameras. Others have pointed out that if Styles had spat, itโs likely that Pine would have wiped it away, which he didnโt.
But thereโs another reason Iโm skeptical about the claim that Styles spit, and itโs this: Itโs clear that everything about this premiere has been planned to mitigate the drama as much as possible. The cast was carefully placed at every event, often keeping Styles away from Wilde and Wilde away from Pugh. It seems unlikely that they would have kept Styles and Pine together if there was any ongoing beef between them.
Is Donโt Worry Darling the most cursed film of the last decade? Probably! And though Pugh clearly means to distance herself from the project, itโs unlikely that anyoneโs going to forget all the relentless drama surrounding it. I, for one, wonโt stop talking about it and donโt ever plan to.
Look, whatever it is thatโs happening with the Donโt Worry Darling cast and crew, itโs clear that nobodyโs having a good time, except for maybe us, the dirty gossips of the world. Xoxo.