Olivia Wilde refutes claim of on-set “screaming match” with Florence Pugh
Olivia Wilde has hit back at claims that she had a “screaming match” with Florence Pugh during the filming of her 2022 thriller, Don’t Worry Darling.
At the time of the movie’s release, Wilde and her cast were overshadowed by a string of controversies, such as Shia LaBeouf denying his involvement and subsequent firing from the film.
Further controversy was stirred up after a Vulture report released at the time claimed that tensions between Wilde and Pugh on set eventually escalated into a “blowout argument” and “screaming match”.
The report also quoted an anonymous source who suggested to the outlet that Pugh was frustrated with Wilde’s “frequent unexplained absences”, as well as her relationship with Styles, which went public during the film’s rollout.
Now, in a new interview with The Cut, Wilde has addressed the rumours: “I’ve never had a screaming match on my set. I was never not available on set. I wanted to be like, ‘None of this is true.’”
Wilde revealed that she was advised not to refute the claims sullying her name. “I was told, ‘Don’t say a fucking word. Just go out there and smile,’” she shared.
She added, “I resent that, but it taught me it’s not the way I want to handle things.”
Despite her own tight-lipped approach, more than 40 members of the Don’t Worry Darling crew, including producer Katie Silberman, issued a joint statement at the time refuting the claims of misconduct on set.
“There was never a screaming match between our director and anyone, let alone a member of our cast,” the statement said, going on to describe the allegations of unprofessional behaviour during production as “completely false”.
While putting the unfortunate controversy in the past, Wilde is looking forward to her future projects. She will next appear on the big screen in the chamber dramedy The Invite, which she also directed. She will also star in the forthcoming erotic drama I Want Your Sex.
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