Olivia Wilde has spoken candidly about her romance with Don’t Worry Darling co-star Harry Styles, including the intense reaction to their age difference.
During the June 17 episode of Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast, the actor, director, and producer discussed the scrutiny she faced while dating someone younger, as well as the way public opinion around the relationship became entangled with the fallout from Don’t Worry Darling.
Wilde and Styles were first linked in January 2021 after they were photographed holding hands at a wedding while filming the movie, and their relationship later ended in November 2022. At the time, Wilde was 36 and Styles was 26, which made their 10-year age gap a frequent talking point in coverage of the romance.
The conversation turned to the way women are often judged differently than men in similar relationships. Wilde’s own experience became a clear example after she began seeing Styles following their work together on Don’t Worry Darling.
Styles appeared in the film alongside Florence Pugh, while Wilde directed the project. Production ran across 2020 and 2021, and by January 2021 the two had been photographed holding hands, fueling speculation that they were together.
Cooper pointed out that older men dating younger women is rarely treated as controversial, and asked Wilde why the reverse seems to provoke such a strong response.
Wilde admitted: “Oh man, I don’t know, it really did upset people though.”
As Cooper referenced the suspicion and resentment directed at her, Wilde said: “Yeah, yeah. It was crazy. I don’t know how much I understand it yet. That’s one of the factors that I never really felt like I fully… I don’t know.
“I know that it has existed for a long time in our society. I understand it had very little to do with me. It is something – we’ve done this to women for a long time. Why is it?
“I don’t know. People were f**king pissed. I think that it had also a lot to do with the parasocial relationship people have with him. Which is a burden that is very weighty and not something I envy and he carries it with grace. I think that is an enormous responsibility that all those stars have to carry and it’s f**king impossible.”
She also reflected on what their relationship was like away from all the outside noise.
Wilde described it as ‘the loveliest’ and ‘so so sweet and beautiful’.
“And really actually very domestic and kind and lovely,” she said. “I think that we existed in this little bubble.”
According to Wilde, criticism from the outside world never truly managed to break into that space, something she called both a “miracle” and a “testament” to the relationship.
“I think people were mad, they were just. I think it was just like the happiness made them mad,” she recalled.
Cooper said the discussion matters because women, especially mothers, are judged far more harshly than men when it comes to dating, desire, and life after a separation. She argued that society still expects women in those situations to be self-denying and without sexuality.
Wilde’s interview also revisited the broader turbulence surrounding Don’t Worry Darling, a period that included intense tabloid speculation and years of online debate over the cast and crew’s personal dynamics. Her latest comments suggested that, despite the public backlash, she still views the relationship with Styles as a positive chapter in her life.
For another perspective on the subject, Emily Ratajkowski has also spoken publicly about similar double standards.