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Olivia Wilde Said She Doesn t Feel The Need To Deny Those Feud Rumors After Florence Pugh Skipped The Don t Worry Darling Press Conference

Florence Pugh was notably absent from Don’t Worry Darling’s press conference on Monday, but that didn’t stop the journalists from asking about her.By by Stephanie SoteriouBuzzFeed News ReporterUpdated on September 5, 2022, 3:10 pmPosted on September 5, 2022, 2:12 pmTwitterFacebookLink

On Sunday it was confirmed that Florence Pugh would not be attending Monday morning s press conference for Don t Worry Darling ahead of its premiere at the Venice Film Festival

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In fact her only press commitment for the film s rollout is to walk the red carpet at the Monday evening premiere despite being the movie s lead actor

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The news came after months of mounting speculation that there is a rift between Florence and the movie s director Olivia Wilde

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The two women seemingly had polar-opposite ideas about what Don t Worry Darling was and how the movie should be marketed with Florence speaking out against the hypersexualization of the movie while Olivia repeatedly boasted about how the portrayal of female pleasure was one of her biggest goals in the project

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Olivia s relationship with Florence s costar Harry Styles is also thought to have been another source of contention between the two women there are reports that Florence was uncomfortable with their blossoming romance during filming

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It has also been claimed that Olivia was so distracted by Harry that Florence ended up directing parts of the movie Meanwhile Olivia recently denied rumors of a huge pay disparity between Florence the movie s star and Harry who has a supporting role

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But just 10 days ago the messy situation reached a boiling point when Shia LaBeouf released a series of emails text messages and a video recording that directly contradicted comments that Olivia had publicly made regarding Florence in the past

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In case you didn t know Shia was originally cast to play Harry s character Jack but he left the project before filming began Over the past few months Olivia has repeatedly suggested that she fired him starting in February when she said that she has a strict no assholes policy on set

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Last month Olivia told Variety that Shia had a combative energy so she let him go from the project in order to protect Florence and make her feel safe

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For our film what we really needed was an energy that was incredibly supportive Particularly with a movie like this I knew that I was going to be asking Florence to be in very vulnerable situations and my priority was making her feel safe and making her feel supported she said

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I believe that creating a safe trusting environment is the best way to get people to do their best work Olivia added Ultimately my responsibility is to the production and to the cast to protect them That was my job

View this photo on Instagram Instagram: @oliviawilde

But just days later Shia presented the same publication with all of his receipts which revealed that he was the one who chose to leave the production because he didn t feel like he had enough time to rehearse

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One text from Olivia which seemingly confirmed that leaving the project was Shia s decision read Thanks for letting me in on your thought process I know that isn t fun Doesn t feel good to say no to someone and I respect your honesty I m honored you were willing to go there with me for me to tell a story with you I m gutted because it could have been something special I want to make clear how much it means to me that you trust me That s a gift I ll take with me

View this photo on Instagram Instagram: @oliviawilde

And in a direct contradiction of what Olivia had said about protecting Florence a video that she sent to Shia two days after he quit showed her begging him to reconsider as she claimed that Florence — whom she referred to as Miss Flo — needed a wake-up call

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In the clip which later leaked on social media Olivia told Shia I feel like I m not ready to give up on this yet and I too am heartbroken and I want to figure this out

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She added You know I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss Flo and I want to know if you re open to giving this a shot with me with us If she really commits if she really puts her mind and heart into it at this point and if you guys can make peace — and I respect your point of view I respect hers — but if you guys can do it what do you think Is there hope Will you let me know

View this photo on Instagram Instagram: @oliviawilde

Olivia has not publicly commented on Shia s exposé and when the topic came up during Don t Worry Darling s press conference on Monday it was quickly — and awkwardly — shut down

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Olivia appeared alongside a press moderator and the movie s actors Styles Gemma Chan and Chris Pine — with Florence notably absent

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A journalist referenced this as he addressed the bubbling discourse surrounding the film saying to Olivia It s a shame not to have Florence here Can you just clear the air and address if there s been a falling-out there and if so why Because it s something people are discussing

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Looking uncomfortable Olivia heaped praise on Florence s work in the movie and suggested that Florence couldn t make the conference because of her filming commitments for Dune Part Two which is currently shooting in Budapest However Olivia refused to deny that there is a rift between them

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Florence is a force and we are so grateful she s able to make it tonight despite being in production on Dune she said of the upcoming premiere I know as a director how disruptive it is to lose an actor even for a day so I m very grateful to her I m grateful to Dune Part Two s director Denis Villeneuve for helping us and we re really thrilled we get to celebrate her work tonight

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Olivia continued I can t say enough how honored I am to have her as our lead She s amazing in the film and as for all the endless tabloid gossip and all the noise out there I mean the internet feeds itself I don t feel the need to contribute I think it s sufficiently well nourished

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A journalist for the Hollywood Reporter followed up saying I would also just like to ask about the noise that you mentioned and this question s to Olivia…

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But he was quickly interrupted by the press moderator who was sitting next to Olivia She sternly stated The question has been answered

tatiana @tatianabethia OK SO olivia wilde spoke about why florence pugh isn’t at the press conference but refused to answer any questions about shia labeouf !!!!! there is 100% more tea to be shared #DontWorryDarling #VeniceFilmFestival 10:51 AM - 05 Sep 2022 Reply Retweet Favorite Twitter: @tatianabethia

It s separate the journalist replied It s about Shia LaBeouf…

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But the moderator refused to budge repeating I think the question was answered when she talked about the internet as Olivia nodded in apparent agreement

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Olivia could then be heard thanking the moderator as the camera awkwardly lingered on the stars while they waited for a different question

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In addition to the text messages and video that Shia shared about his decision to walk away from Don t Worry Darling he provided an email that he sent to Olivia after her Variety interview was published

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In the message he told her that he was a little confused about the narrative that he was fired The email continued You and I both know the reasons for my exit I quit your film because your actors & I couldn t find time to rehearse I have included as a reminder the screenshots of our text exchange on that day

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Shia went on to accuse Olivia of claiming that she fired him because it s attractive clickbait and said Firing me never took place Olivia And while I fully understand the attractiveness of pushing that story because of the current social landscape the social currency that brings It is not the truth

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He claimed that she did not respond to his emails

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While the tension surrounding the movie is now palpable this certainly wasn t always the case when Florence was first cast in Don t Worry Darling back in 2020 she painted a very different picture

View this photo on Instagram Instagram: @florencepugh

Announcing her involvement in the project on her Instagram page at the time Florence called Olivia her idol as she wrote @oliviawilde just tagged me in a picture *gasp no 1* @oliviawilde casted me in a film *gasp no 2* @oliviawilde is my idol and allowed me to be a part of this fecking incredible cast Shia Chris *gasp no 3*

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But by the time the movie wrapped in February 2021 something appeared to have shifted with Florence giving the first hint that all wasn t well when she posted a selection of behind-the-scenes photos from the shoot and heaped praise on the various crew members involved

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Olivia was not included in the incredibly lengthy caption and ever since Florence has seemed to be reluctant to discuss the film in any capacity and has barely posted about it on her social media page

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Then in August Florence spoke out against the way that the movie was being marketed in an interview with Harper s Bazaar with fans left shocked when Don t Worry Darling s trailer included a graphic sex scene that showed Harry s character Jack performing oral sex on Florence s character Alice

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Months after filming had wrapped Olivia told Vogue that depicting female pleasure onscreen was a priority to her because she wanted her audience to realize how rarely they see female hunger and specifically this type of female pleasure

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Olivia also said that she wanted to make sex scenes good again through Don t Worry Darling and was obviously thrilled when she was praised by the Clit Test for showing how it s done following the trailer s release

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And she recently told the Associated Press that she originally had more sex scenes in the trailer and was upset when regulators forced her to cut them

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But Florence was vocal in her disagreement with this stance When it s 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 she told Harper s Bazaar

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Obviously the nature of hiring the most famous pop star in the world you re going to have conversations like that she added in reference to Olivia s now-boyfriend Harry 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

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Florence further fueled the feud speculation when she reposted her Don t Worry Darling costar Gemma s congratulatory message about the interview to her Instagram story but pointedly ignored Olivia s

Instagram: @florencepugh

One month earlier Florence had also ignored a gushing tribute that Olivia had posted about her on her Instagram page

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Soon after Florence s views on the Don t Worry Darling sex scenes were made public Olivia s interview with Variety was published and really reiterated just how different their perspectives are

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In the opening paragraph of the profile Variety highlighted Olivia s unabashed pride at her female character orgasming onscreen She then boasted Men don t come in this film only women here

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Much of the chat went on to focus on the sex scenes and Olivia explicitly contradicted Florence s comments when she insisted that they are integral to Don t Worry Darling s story

View this photo on Instagram Instagram: @oliviawilde

Interestingly Variety revealed that Florence had declined to speak to the outlet as part of Olivia s profile

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Another element of Florence and Olivia s apparent strained relationship stems from the director s treatment of Harry with Olivia sparking backlash last year when she celebrated him for being willing to take on a supporting role in a woman-led film

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Many pointed out that up until this point Harry only had one other acting credit to his name a bit part in the war epic Dunkirk while Florence is an Academy Award nominee

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It is bizarre that she thinks someone with one released acting project where he had a minor role deserves such a massive round of applause for conceding the lead to a literally Oscar-nominated actor journalist Roisin O Connor summarized at the time

Roisin O'Connor @Roisin_OConnor It is bizarre that she thinks someone with one released acting project where he had a minor role deserves such a massive round of applause for conceding the lead to a literally Oscar-nominated actor https://t.co/wkNhb8hHLz 08:14 AM - 16 Feb 2021 Reply Retweet Favorite Twitter: @Roisin_OConnor

Olivia however doubled down on this stance in her Variety interview where she once again championed Harry for being such a great supporter of Florence s as someone who understood it was her film

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Florence who has a history of shutting down online rumors via her social media page has not publicly commented on any of the reports and neither Olivia s nor her representatives have responded to a BuzzFeed News request for comment

More on this

Here Is Everything You Need To Know About The Olivia Wilde And Florence Pugh Feud Rumors After Shia LaBeouf’s Shocking Exposé Stephanie Soteriou · Sept. 1, 2022 People Are Heartbroken For Florence Pugh After A Resurfaced Instagram Post Highlighted A Huge Shift In Her Approach To “Don’t Worry Darling” Stephanie Soteriou · Aug. 23, 2022 Olivia Wilde Just Contradicted Everything That Florence Pugh Said About “Don’t Worry Darling’s” Sex Scenes And It’s Seriously Awkward Stephanie Soteriou · Aug. 25, 2022 Everyone Is Obsessed With The Nonstop "Don't Worry Darling" Drama Steffi Cao · Aug. 27, 2022

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Florence PughOlivia WildeShia LaBeouf Stephanie SoteriouBuzzFeed News Reporter Stephanie Soteriou is a Celebrity Reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in London Contact Stephanie Soteriou at stephanie.soteriou@buzzfeed.com. Got a confidential tip? Submit it here

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