Not aging well? Amid the offscreen Don’t Worry Darling drama, a resurfaced clip of Florence Pugh gushing about Olivia Wilde is making its rounds on social media.
The U.K. native, 26, previously complimented Wilde, 38, during Variety‘s Actors on Actors interview special with Beanie Feldstein in 2019.
“What was it like to work with Olivia Wilde? Because I am totally in love with her and Kaitlyn [Dever] as well. I have been watching her for the last couple of years and I think she is just incredible,” the Little Women star asked Feldstein, 29, who worked with the director on Booksmart.
The Broadway star, for her part, weighed in on a potential collaboration between Pugh and Wilde, saying, “I think you and Olivia would be so drawn to each other because she is just as fearless as you are in her own on screen and off.”
Pugh was later cast as the lead in Wilde’s upcoming movie Don’t Worry Darling alongside Harry Styles, Gemma Chan, KiKi Layne, Nick Kroll and Chris Pine. The psychological thriller follows a housewife (Pugh) who begins to question the utopian experimental community that she lives in with her husband (Styles).
Late last month, Pugh’s relationship with the director became a topic of conversation amid rumors of a feud. The House alum, for her part, praised the lead during a screening of the movie at the Venice International Film Festival.
“Florence is a force,” Wilde said at a press conference on Monday, September 5, in response to a question about a potential “falling out” between the duo after Pugh skipped the press line. “We are so grateful she’s able to make it tonight [for the red carpet] despite being in production on Dune.”
The New York native continued: “I know as a director how disruptive it is to lose an actor even for a day, so I’m very grateful to her and to [Dune director Denis Villeneuve] for helping us. And we’ll get to celebrate her work tonight. I can’t say how honored I am to have her as our lead. She’s amazing.”
Wilde also subtly addressed the speculation of a feud, adding, “As for all the endless tabloid gossip and all the noise out there, the internet feeds itself. I don’t feel the need to contribute; I think it’s sufficiently well-nourished.”
The Midsommer star, who wasn’t able to attend the press conference because she was on a flight from the Dune: Part Two set, made an appearance at the red carpet premiere that same day.
Pugh and Wilde didn’t seem to publicly cross paths after a source exclusively told Us Weekly that the costars struggled to see eye to eye off screen. “Florence and Olivia have had several disagreements personally and professionally, that’s why Florence isn’t doing any press for the movie,” the insider shared with Us late last month.
