Olivia Wilde is the star of Sundance this year.
Both projects Wilde is involved in at this year’s Sundance festival in Utah have been met with buzz and critical acclaim, particularly her third directorial credit, The Invite.
A24 managed to acquire the film, but only after an intense, old-fashioned, all nighter bidding war against other buyers, including Focus features, Neon, Apple, Netflix, Black Bear and Searchlight. The film sold for at least $12M.
In The Invite, Wilde has again teamed up with Annapurna Pictures, the studio who produced Booksmart, her directorial debut.
Wilde is no stranger to success, with her most popular project to date, Don’t Worry Darling, opening to a $20M box office in 2022.
The film also sparked intense controversy and speculation over an alleged feud between Wilde and lead Florence Pugh, as well as the casting of Wilde’s then boyfriend Harry Styles as her co-lead.
Wilde also featured elsewhere in the Sundance lineup, with a role in I Want Your Sex, an erotic comedy thriller from Mysterious Skin director Gregg Araki.
In The Invite, Wilde co-stars with Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz and Edward Norton.
In other words, Wilde has enlisted a stacked cast, and the word coming out of Sundance is that The Invite is a hilarious watch, and her best work thus far.
So it’s no surprise that Wilde has been lobbying for a grand-scale, traditional theatrical release for the film. Clearly, she’s taking huge strides in her directorial career.
