“Don’t Worry Darling” Drama Explained
Image courtesy of Ernesto Ruscio/Getty Images
By Margaret Adams
The year is 2020: the COVID-19 pandemic has the world quarantining in their houses and apartments, yearning for some kind of glimmer in the dark, vast abyss of the future. Suddenly, The Hollywood Reporter announces that the most in-demand rising star, Florence Pugh, and pop king, Harry Styles, will lead a psychological thriller directed by actress-turned-director, Olivia Wilde, following the success of her debut film, Booksmart (2019).
The project quickly became one the most highly anticipated films of the past decade; due to the obscene amount of drama concerning the filming, the story, the actors, and the reviews, everyone has their attention on how quickly this project went south (spoiler alert: as fast as a spit-take).
Whispers about this film made big waves in the industry; with a script initially written by Dick Van Dyke’s grandchildren (Carey and Shane Van Dyke) that made the 2019 Black List, the film was auctioned with 18 studios bidding on producing the film. New Line Cinema, owned by Warner Bros., won the auction with the promise of a theatrical release.
Starring Pugh, Styles, Wilde, Gemma Chan, KiKi Layne, Nick Kroll, and Chris Pine, Don’t Worry Darling was initially described as a psychological thriller set in an experimental community in California in the 1950’s; Wilde cited inspirations such as Inception (2010), The Matrix (1999), and The Truman Show (1998). Sinister and sexy, the making of the film was just as much of a spectacle as the film itself.
Pre-Filming Drama: “Miss Flo”
Before Styles was attached to the project, actor Shia LeBouf was initially casted as male lead. Many people believed that LeBouf was fired for abusive behavior during rehearsals, as he is currently being sued for sexual battery, assault, and infliction of emotional distress towards his ex-partner and musician, FKA Twigs.
Wilde promoted the idea that LeBouf was fired in her feature with Variety: “I say this as someone who is such an admirer of his work. His process was not conducive to the ethos that I demand in my productions. He has a process that, in some ways, seems to require a combative energy, and I don’t personally believe that is conducive to the best performances. I believe that creating a safe, trusting environment is the best way to get people to do their best work. Ultimately, my responsibility is to the production and to the cast to protect them. That was my job.”
LeBouf backfired these comments recently and released multiple text messages between himself and Pugh, as well as an odd video from the director herself that proves that he voluntarily left the project. In the video, Wilde is pleading with the actor to reconsider his decision to leave the project.
She also condescendingly refers to lead, Florence Pugh, as Miss Flo, and implies that his departure had something to do with her: “You know, I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss Flo, and I want to know if you’re open to giving this a shot with me, with us.”
Drama during the Filming: The Birth of Holivia
As many already know, Styles and Wilde had a relationship during the filming for Don’t Worry Darling; production started on October 26, 2020 and wrapped on February 13, 2021. Many sources claimed that Pugh was unhappy with the way their relationship interfered with the filming (especially since Pugh’s boyfriend at the time, Zach Braff, was good friends with Wilde’s ex-husband, Jason Sudeikis).
“I can tell you for a fact that Flo seeing Olivia and Harry all over each other on set did not go down well as Olivia was still with Jason when she first hooked up with Harry,” claimed the insider.
The speculation around Pugh’s distaste for Wilde was emphasized when Pugh barely promoted the film on her social media accounts (which would not matter if she never promoted them, but she has a track record heavily promoting her films).
Everything came to a head at the Venice Film Festival.
Venice Film Festival: The Spit Heard Round the World
The drama started before the film even began its premier day when Pugh announced that she would be skipping the press conference “due to scheduling conflicts”; despite the explanation, Pugh showed up to Venice, Aperol Spritz in hand, while the rest of the cast attended the conference.
While not many can confirm any real tension between cast members, the pictures at the festival’s red carpet speak volumes; there were no pictures of the leads together, nor either one with the director. The cast members look carefully positioned, so that the director and two leads were not standing next to or interacting with each other.
Besides the continuing drama concerning Olivia and Harry, Olivia and Florence, and Olivia and Shia, a specific video made its way through the internet one day after the premier; the video looks like Harry Styles publicly spit on co-star Chris Pine at the premiere.
In a statement to People, Chris Pine’s representative stated that Styles did not, in fact, spit on Pine; the rep added that “there is nothing but respect between these two men and any suggestion otherwise is a blatant attempt to create drama that simply does not exist.”
Reviews
Debuting with a 42% on Rotten Tomatoes, Don’t Worry Darling seemed to disappoint critics.
‘“Don’t Worry Darling” is so clearly, so obviously not set in an idyllic ’50s community that to say the film packs a twist is not at twist at all,” wrote Kate Erbland in her review. “It’s disingenuous, easy, cheeky — much like the film itself, which starts off strong before crumbling into baffling storytelling choices made worse by the revolting intentions behind them. More frustrating is that the film also offers stunning craft work, a wonderfully immersive quality, and one of star Florence Pugh’s best performances yet. Too bad about the rest of it.”
Despite the shocking reviews and negative press surrounding the film, it is certain that everyone will be in line for a ticket to Don’t Worry Darling.
