CULTURE

Olivia Wilde Praises Harry Styles’s Talent on Instagram


Harry Styles in Floral.
Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for Sony Music

The internet has several boyfriends, but actress and director Olivia Wilde has consciously coupled up with Gucci prince charming, Harry Styles. The power couple has kept mum about their relationship, with only one semi-public appearance at Styles’ manager’s wedding and confirmation via anonymous sources. Now, Wilde has heaped effusive adoration onto her reported love’s talent in front of the camera, giving us a glimpse of their workplace and personal chemistry.

“Little known fact: most male actors don’t want to play supporting roles in female-led films,” Wilde began in an Instagram post. Styles plays Jack in Wilde’s new film Don’t Worry Darling, opposite lead Florence Pugh; the two reportedly met on set. “The industry has raised them to believe it lessens their power (i.e financial value) to accept these roles, which is one of the reasons it’s so hard to get financing for movies focusing on female stories,” she continued, noting that, while compensation such roles is a barrier, she struggles to find male actors who “recognize why it might be worth it to allow for a woman to hold the spotlight.”

She goes on to praise how Styles took a step back to allow Pugh to shine — not at all difficult, considering her incredible talent. Wilde also gushed about how he “infused every scene with a nuanced sense of humanity” and pointed out his “ability to drive backwards, making us all the more curious to see this film.

Wilde also included a film still from the photo; Styles’ hair is slicked back, he is seated in a convertible in what looks like Palm Springs, California. The film takes place in the 1950s and is described as a psychological thriller about "A 1950's housewife living with her husband in a utopian experimental community begins to worry that his glamorous company may be hiding disturbing secrets."

He was cast in the role of Jack after Wilde fired actor Shia LaBeouf for violating the set’s “no assholes” policy, reported Variety. The film also stars Gemma Chan, Nick Kroll, and Chris Pine as a cult leader, which is giving us serious midcentury Midsommar vibes. No word on a release date.