Actress and director Olivia Wilde said she doesn’t seek your approval when choosing a project to work on.
Appearing at the Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Wilde, who has been in the industry for 20 years, told the audience that although he does not want to be accepted or liked by the viewer, he pursues projects with an element of uncertainty.
Wilde said he would “naturally gravitate toward roles that were less risky,” which ultimately influenced the types of projects he was asked to be a part of, per deadline.
Wilde’s career was launched by the controversial short-lived TV series “Skin” in 2003.
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Olivia Wilde is not looking for “acceptance or popularity” as a director. (Gilbert Flores/WWD via Getty Images)
He went on to guest star as Alex Kelley on the hit teen television show, “The OC,” in 2004, playing a bisexual alcoholic who falls in love with Adam Brody and Mischa Barton’s characters on the show. Wilde was eventually removed from the show because his story and this latest one sparked public debate.
But Wilde didn’t worry. Because of this, the 40-year-old says that he has supported the projects of people who “know that I will not be afraid,” he said. “And I think part of that is being willing not to be accepted, being willing not to be celebrated by everybody, being willing not to be liked by everybody.”
Olivia Wilde stops by the Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for the Red Sea International Film Festival)
“I think the biggest problem with our business – globally, I think it’s the same – if you combine filmmaking or acting with fame or with being accepted on a large scale, you quickly close all opportunities to do any risky work,” he continued. . “So I think it was important for me to never focus too much on being accepted or liked,” she said.
Wilde’s series came in 2019 with “Booksmart,” a youth drama that touched the masses well, although his next film, “Don’t Worry Darling,” in 2022, was more controversial, full of scandals. on and off the film set. The film starred actress Florence Pugh and pop star Harry Styles, which Wilde continues to this day.
Florence Pugh and Harry Styles star in Olivia Wilde’s 2022 film “Don’t Worry Darling.” (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Going forward, Wilde said he’d rather be called “controversial” or hated for his work than agreeable: “I’d rather be controversial than boring. You don’t want to make a film as a director and people like him, ‘Eh, I don’t know, I didn’t hear anything.’ I’d rather people hate you than not hear anything.”
Olivia Wilde would rather do something controversial and be hated than do something boring. (Gilbert Flores/WWD via Getty Images)
“It was important to me to never focus too much on being accepted or liked.”
Looking ahead, Wilde will prioritize work that is “more challenging than the last thing I did,” he revealed. “I feel bored otherwise. I think my biggest fear is probably being fake as an artist and just being lazy.”
