Harry Styles Opens Up About ‘Difficult’ Criticism of Olivia Wilde Romance, Compares Music and Acting Careers: ‘Rolling Stone’ Revelations

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Harry Styles Opens Up About 'Difficult' Criticism of Olivia Wilde Romance, Compares Music and Acting Careers: 'Rolling Stone' Revelations

Coming to terms with the territory. Harry Styles opened up about his personal life like never before in his new Rolling Stone cover story — and shared intimate details about his romance with Olivia Wilde. The "As It Was" singer, 28, dished on dating in the public eye during the candid interview, which was published on Monday, August 22. "I've never talked about my life away from work publicly and found that it's benefited me positively," Styles confessed. "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." The former One Direction member, who is currently in the middle of his 15-show residency at New York City's Madison Square Garden, worried some fans would call him a "hypocrite" for wanting to remain private. "When I'm working, I work really hard, and I think I'm really professional," he said. "Then when I'm not, I'm not. I'd like to think I'm open, and probably quite stubborn, too, and willing to be vulnerable. I can be selfish sometimes, but I'd like to think that I'm a caring person." [jwplayer HxBtVM0A-zhNYySv2] Despite his best efforts, Styles' love life continues to make headlines. Us Weekly confirmed his relationship with Wilde, 38, in January 2021 after the pair were spotted attending a wedding together. The twosome connected while collaborating on Don't Worry Darling, which Wilde stars in and directed. "We were looking for someone with innate warmth and palpable charm," the House alum told the magazine of casting the role of Jack, the male lead of the upcoming psychological thriller. "The entire story depended on the audience believing in Jack." Styles joins Florence Pugh and Chris Pine in the highly anticipated movie, which hits theaters this fall, and he held his own with the star-studded cast. Wilde even recalled one "disturbing" scene where the Grammy winner "left us all in tears" during filming. "The scene called for him to stand onstage with Frank [Pine] and chant their creepy slogan, 'Who's world is it? Ours!' over and over again. Dark as hell. But Harry took it to another level," the Booksmart director gushed. "He was so fully in the moment, he began screaming the lines to the crowd, in this primal roar, that was way more intense than anything we expected from the scene." Wilde's public praise for her beau is rare. Since sparking their romance — which came months after Wilde ended her seven-year engagement to Jason Sudeikis — the pair have tried to stay low-key. However, that hasn't stopped them from facing criticism. "Can you imagine going on a second date with someone and being like, 'OK, there's this corner of the [internet], and they're going to say this, and it's going to be really crazy, and they're going to be really mean, and it's not real. ... But anyway, what do you want to eat?'" Styles teased, noting that sometimes "other people blur the lines for you" when it comes to fame. The Lazarus Effect actress, for her part, still tries to see Styles' fans as "deeply loving people" despite the backlash. "What I don't understand about the cruelty you're referencing is that that kind of toxic negativity is the antithesis of Harry, and everything he puts out there," Wilde said. "I don't personally believe the hateful energy defines his fan base at all. The majority of them are true champions of kindness." Scroll down for the biggest takeaways from Styles' Rolling Stone interview: [podcast_block]

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On Dating Olivia Wilde

The X Factor UK alum isn't overly active on social media — especially Twitter, which he called "a s--tstorm of people trying to be awful to people" — but negative comments about his relationship with Wilde can be hard to avoid. "It's obviously a difficult feeling to feel like being close to me means you're at the ransom of a corner of Twitter or something," he added. "I just wanted to sing. I didn't want to get into it if I was going to hurt people like that." 

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On Going to Therapy

"I committed to doing it once a week," Styles told the outlet of attending therapy sessions. "I felt like I exercise every day and take care of my body, so why wouldn't I do that with my mind?"

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On Having Kids

The Dunkirk star opened up about where he sees himself in the future — and starting a family could be part of the picture. "Well, if I have kids at some point, I will encourage them to be themselves and be vulnerable and share," he said.  

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On His Sexuality

Some critics have accused Styles of "queer baiting" and questioned his fluid fashion, but the "Satellite" crooner doesn't think much of their arguments. "Sometimes people say, 'You've only publicly been with women,' and I don't think I've publicly been with anyone," he explained. "If someone takes a picture of you with someone, it doesn't mean you're choosing to have a public relationship or something. ... I think everyone, including myself, has your own journey with figuring out sexuality and getting more comfortable with it." 

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Comparing Acting to Music

"In music, there's such an immediate response to what you do. You finish a song and people clap," the "Boyfriends" artist said, reflecting on his time on the Don't Worry Darling set. "When you're filming and they say 'cut,' there's maybe part of you that expects everyone to start clapping, [but] they don't. Everyone, obviously, goes back to doing their jobs, and you're like, 'Oh, s--t, was it that bad?'"

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On 'My Policeman'

In the upcoming '50s drama, Styles plays a police officer who falls for a museum curator named Patrick. The pair are forced to keep their romance under wraps. "It's obviously pretty unfathomable now to think, 'Oh, you couldn't be gay. That was illegal.' ... It's not like, 'This is a gay story about these guys being gay.' It's about love and about wasted time to me," the songwriter told the magazine. "So much of gay sex in film is two guys going at it, and it kind of removes the tenderness from it. There will be, I would imagine, some people who watch it who were very much alive during this time when it was illegal to be gay, and [director Michael Grandage] wanted to show that it's tender and loving and sensitive."

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On 'Star Wars' Rumors

Styles took fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe by surprise with his brief cameo in 2021's Eternals, but he doesn't have plans to join another major franchise any time soon. When asked about speculation that he's in talks to appear in a future Star Wars project, he teased, "That's the first I've heard of that. I'd imagine ... false."