By Daniel Ogas
The debut of Olivia Wilde’s second feature film, “Don’t Worry Darling,” took place last week at the Venice Film Festival. After rumors of feuds garnered recent attention, the premiere prompted a rather tenacious reunion for the film’s powerhouse cast. The stars of the film include Harry Styles, Florence Pugh, Chris Pine, and Gemma Chan.
Rather than a glamorous celebration of what is expected to be one of fall’s biggest blockbusters, the red carpet event showcased an obvious rift amongst key members of the cast. Social media went into a frenzy consumed with memes and speculation about what was actually going on behind the scenes of the production.
If you’re confused about what in the world could have led to such a dysfunctional rollout, and where exactly Shia LeBoeuf fits into all of this, you’re not alone.
Here is a timeline of events that has us, shall we say, quite worried.
July 2019: New Line Cinema announced a new psychological thriller “Don’t Worry Darling,” with Wilde set to direct and star in the production.
April 2020: Pugh and LeBoeuf were announced as the film’s lead roles.
September 2020: LeBoeuf exited the production, citing scheduling conflicts. Shortly after, New Line Cinema announced that Styles would replace LeBoeuf.
November 2020: Wilde ended her relationship with longtime partner and father of her children, Jason Sudekis.
December 2020: People Magazine revealed that Wilde actually fired LeBeouf from the film, disputing earlier reports that said his exit was due to scheduling.
January 2021: Director, Wilde and leading man, Styles were spotted holding hands, and rumors swirled about a potential new Hollywood romance.
February 2021: Filming on the production wrapped.
August 2022: Rumors flew about a feud between leading ladies Wilde and Pugh after Pugh, who is known to heavily promote her films online, didn’t interact with Wilde’s Instagram post that directly raved about Pugh’s performance.
August 2022: LeBouf denied he was ever fired from the film and shared a video of Wilde trying to convince him to stay on the film.
“I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss Flo,” Wilde said in the clip, evidently referring to Pugh.
September 2022: The cast arrived at the Venice Film Festival.
Ahead of the festival, anticipation for the film continued to rise. Wilde, Pugh, Styles, Pine, and Chan were all in attendance.
However, it did not take long for gossip to be fueled even further when it was revealed that Pugh would be skipping the film’s press conference ahead of its premiere.
Wilde was directly asked about the controversy at said press conference that her leading lady was absent from.
“The internet feeds itself, I don’t feel the need to contribute. It’s sufficiently well-nourished,” Wilde said.
That same evening, the red carpet premiere brought the entire cast together to promote the film.
Social media wasted no time in pointing out that Styles, Wilde, and Pugh avoided standing next to one another in photos.
To top it all off, the internet went into a spiral after a clip of Styles seemingly spitting on Pine began circulating.
Needless to say, this film already has us at the edge of our seats, and the movie has yet to hit the big screen.
So far, the film has garnered mixed reviews, while Pugh has been consistently praised for her performance.
“Don’t Worry Darling” hits theaters September 23rd.
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