Olivia Wilde is hoping her upcoming press tour is all about the present instead of the past.
With two new movies coming out before the end of July, Wilde, 42, envisions a period of time when the spotlight will be on her work and not her past relationships with men, including ex-boyfriend Harry Styles.
“It would make me very sad if yet another project I put so much work into was eclipsed by that,” she told The Cut in an interview published Wednesday, June 24. “It would feel really frustrating and yet nothing would surprise me from the media at this point.”
In November 2022, Styles, 32, and Wilde split after nearly two years of dating. During their private relationship, the pair never walked a red carpet together or went Instagram official, although they did promote her film Don’t Worry Darling alongside his fellow cast members. The psychological thriller movie, in which he had a starring role, marked her second feature film as a director.
In an August 2022 interview with Rolling Stone, Styles explained why he prefers to keep his personal life under wraps. “I’ve never talked about my life away from work publicly and found that it’s benefited me positively,” he said. “There’s always going to be a version of a narrative, and I think I just decided I wasn’t going to spend the time trying to correct it or redirect it in some way.”
This summer, Wilde will have a starring role in the upcoming movie I Want Your Sex. The actress will play a manipulative, horny artist who seduces a young, earnest character played by Cooper Hoffman.
“It’s so camp, and it was an opportunity to laugh at not only different sides of my personality but at archetypes of women,” Wilde, who welcomes any likeness to the lead, explained in her latest interview.
Director Gregg Araki added, “This is a role for somebody who doesn’t give a f***. We have to be completely fearless and not worry that she’s unsympathetic.”
Wilde later told the director, “That’s exactly what I want to do right now.”
To this day, Wilde doesn’t regret her relationship with Styles. While speaking to The Cut, she described the relationship as “loving and wonderful and joyful.”
As for her two kids with ex Jason Sudeikis, Wilde said she is hoping they steer clear of any press — good or bad —- about their parents.
“I do worry about them Googling me,” she said, “but I want them to know that it’s all just noise.” Wilde said her kids don’t have cell phones and hopes to keep it that way until they turn 16.
