Writers Carey Van Dyke, Shane Van Dyke (grandsons of Dick Van Dyke), and Silberman came up with a speculative screenplay that Katie Silberman adapted into a screenplay. Olivia Wilde directed Don’t Worry Darling is an American psychological thriller set in the background of 1950s California.
It got picked up and released by Warner bros. The movie leans heavily on the satirical novel Stepford Wives (genre: feminist horror), which has already been adapted quite a number of times.
Don’t Worry Darling Plot:
The film Don’t Worry Darling revolves around a good-looking young couple leading an isolated idyllic in an isolated community in the California desert. It is an experimental company town housing where all the people have pre-fixed rules which they follow without question.
The husbands spend time at work and the wives at the beauty parlors. But then, one day, the wife Alice begins asking questions as her mirror of illusion cracks.
What has Wilde Directed Before?
Previously an actor, so far, director Olivia Wilde’s direction includes two shorts Free Hugs and Wake Up. Besides those, she also directed the movie Booksmart which became a hit with the critics. This coming-of-age female buddy film was her directorial debut.
Who is in the Cast?
The movie boasts a star-studded cast of Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, Gemma Chan, Chris Pine, etc. Even director Olivia Wilde makes an appearance.
#DontWorryDarling was INSANEEE omg florence pugh never disappoints pic.twitter.com/FNyjEDPZVk
— phoebe (@cinepugh) September 24, 2022
British actress Florence Pugh is one of the most talented actresses of the young and upcoming generation. Her most famous movies include Lady Macbeth, Midsommar, Little Women, and Yelena Belova in the marvel film Black Widow. She got an Oscar nomination and a Bafta nomination for her role as Amy in Little Women.
She is also supposed to appear in Dune: Part Two as Princess Irulan. Florence Pugh plays the role of housewife Alice Chambers in DWD.
Famous pop star and teen heartthrob Harry Styles (formerly of the band 1D) plays the role of her husband, Jack Chambers. This is his actual debut film. Before this, he had done documentaries and made cameos in Dunkirk and Eternals.
Director Olivia Wilde is Alice’s best friend, Bunny.
Chris Pine plays the character of Jack’s boss and founder of the top-secret Victory project. He is the husband of Gemma Chan’s character Shelley. You might have spotted Chris Pine in the Star Trek movies and the DC’s Wonder Woman films.
Gemma Chan‘s latest outing was one of the leads in Marvel’s Eternals.
Did you know that originally Shia Labeouf was cast as Jack Chambers but bowed out later? A lot of controversies followed that (read on to get the latest news).
Kiki Layne, playing the role of Margaret Watkins, got in after Dakota Johnson dropped out due to schedule clashes.
What do we Know About the Movie, Don’t Worry Darling?
Olivia Wilde based Chris Pine's #DontWorryDarling character on Jordan Peterson. Is he a "hero to the incel community"? Peterson, fighting back tears, says: "Sure. Why not? People have been after me for a long time because I speak to disaffected young men." https://t.co/EIYXiYK0ok
— Variety (@Variety) September 29, 2022
While shooting for DWD in LA during the pandemic, filming had to undergo breaks due to Covid outbreaks. In an interview in April, Olivia Wilde explained that she wanted to make a thriller set in a world where the people had everything they could want – both materialistic stuff like luxurious cars and sprawling houses. etc., as well as emotional needs like soulmates, true love, etc. The film tries to pose the existential question of how far one would go to keep their life perfect.
What do the Actors Themselves Have to say About the Movie?
Harry and Florence on set for Dont Worry Darling! pic.twitter.com/7919KU9P2j
— Harry and Niall News! (@HarryNiallNews) September 27, 2022
Lead actress Florence Pugh has spoken out in frustration when the sex scenes in the released clips have garnered more than a normal level of attention. Pugh said,
“When [a film is] reduced to your sex scenes, or to watch the most famous man in the world go down on someone, it’s not why we do it. It’s not why I’m in this industry.”
“Obviously, the nature of hiring the most famous pop star in the world, you’re going to have conversations like that. That’s just not what I’m going to be discussing because [this movie is] bigger and better than that. And the people who made it are bigger and better than that.”
In another incident, Harry Styles drew in a lot of mocking laughs after he described his movie, DWD in the most bizarre manner in an interview. When asked what his favorite part about the film was, Styles said,
“You know, my favorite thing about the movie is, like, it feels like a movie”… “It feels like a real, like, you know, go to the theatre film, movie. The reason why you go to watch something on the big screen.”
Chris Pine gave rise to a number of memes after reacting in a baffled manner at Styles’ answer!
What Happened Behind the Scenes?
Turns out the car chase in Don't Worry Darling wasn't scripted. Florence Pugh happened to flee the set and the crew just ran with it. pic.twitter.com/Xhkq81IiJV
— Helgason (@PerceptiveCoot) August 26, 2022
Before the movie even hit the theatres, it garnered a lot of attention due to the behind-the-scenes drama in its post-production promotion. It gave rise to endless tabloid gossip and rumor columns.
Shia Lebouf, who was initially cast instead of Styles, dropped out due to a rumored beef with Florence Pugh. However, that came to the limelight after director Olivia Wilde tried to throw ‘Miss Flo’ under the bus!
Then there was the issue of the affair between Harry Styles and then married Olivia Wilde, which was looked down on as it was not conducive to the ethos of Florence Pugh. Another odd online illusion surfaced on the internet feeds about Harry Styles spitting on Chris Pine at the awards!
You can find a detailed analysis of everything that happened Behind the Scenes and other DWD movie details here.
Where can we Watch it?
Watch the trailer here
After premiering at the 79th Venice film festival, DWD‘s release date in the USA was on the 23rd of September. You can catch it in your nearest theatres. If not possible, wait for a few months (or is it weeks?) for it to pop out on the HBO Max platform.
Prepare for the extraordinary. #DontWorryDarling is now playing in theaters! Get tickets NOW: https://t.co/pLbFmFdqKO pic.twitter.com/veFOg6IARR
— Don’t Worry Darling (@dontworrydarlin) September 23, 2022
