Olivia Wilde Says Bradley Cooper Was a 'Great Supporter' to Her While Making 'Don't Worry Darling'

Mar. 15, 2025

Olivia WildesaysBradley Cooperoffered helpful support while she directed and starred inDon’t Worry Darling.While talking withMaggie GyllenhaalforInterview Magazine, Wilde, 38, opened up about the making of the upcoming thriller, including why she decided to appear in the movie, and her relationship with the movie’s main starsFlorence PughandHarry Styles.When asked why she decided to star in the movie as well as direct, theBooksmartdirector kept her answer simple: “It was out of necessity,” she explained, saying that the production “basically ran out of money and I needed someone who would take a really low salary.“For more on Olivia Wilde, listen below to our daily podcast PEOPLE Every Day.After trying to find the right person, the casting director suggested her for the role. “The funny thing is, when I asked director friends how that experience would be, I just happened to ask a bunch of dudes, and they all said, ‘Oh, it’s so great,’ " Wilde said to Gyllenhaal, 44, who directedThe Lost Daughter.Jamie McCarthy/Getty; Kevork Djansezian/GettyAs it turns out, one of those directors was Cooper, 47, who starred in and directed 2018’s hit movieA Star Is Bornand is currently working on double duty inMaestro. “Cooper was a great supporter,” Wilde noted, “He said, ‘It’s going to be really wonderful to be able to direct from within the scenes.’ “Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.After deciding to do it, Wilde realized the task wasn’t as easy as they made it out to be. “All of these men had done this in comfortable shoes, and I swear part of it is that I was in a f—- bustier and heels and a wig,” she said. “They were coming at me doing these necessary but frustrating touch-ups at every second, and I was like, ‘I need to be at the monitor, I need to be in charge.’ I found that to be really hard.“But Wilde doesn’t regret her decision. “I did find that being in solidarity with the actors felt important,” she said, noting that she wasn’t “just the director in comfortable sweats sitting over there in the air-conditioned video village.“Wilde also saidChris Pine"probably agreed to do the movie at first as a favor to an old buddy, and then he really took it and ran with it,” noting that she’s known him for “like, 20 years.“RELATED VIDEO: Olivia Wilde Calls Jason Sudeikis Serving Custody Papers Onstage a ‘Vicious’ and ‘Appalling’ AttackAs for the other stars of the movies, Pugh and Styles, Wilde had nothing but praise.“She’s ferociously talented,” Wilde said of theMidsommaractress, 26. “She was so dogged in her pursuit of the most authentic version of every moment. She also knew that my real goal was to create a love story that felt so sincere between her and Harry that people would be incapable of not falling for them as a couple.“Wilde added that both of them are “very loving people” which helped them “differentiate a performative love from an authentic love” in the movie.Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures"With Harry, who’s obviously a musician, it was like there was no other option for him than to work as hard as possible and to commit to the scene as hard as possible,” Wilde said of the singer, 28. “He never holds back.““Oftentimes when it’s not your scene, and you’re in a supporting role, people give 80 percent,” she added. “But even if he was way off camera, he was so there for everyone, and for the crew and production. The tone that he set was just a very positive force.“Don’t Worry Darlinghits theaters on Sept. 23.

Olivia WildesaysBradley Cooperoffered helpful support while she directed and starred inDon’t Worry Darling.

While talking withMaggie GyllenhaalforInterview Magazine, Wilde, 38, opened up about the making of the upcoming thriller, including why she decided to appear in the movie, and her relationship with the movie’s main starsFlorence PughandHarry Styles.

When asked why she decided to star in the movie as well as direct, theBooksmartdirector kept her answer simple: “It was out of necessity,” she explained, saying that the production “basically ran out of money and I needed someone who would take a really low salary.”

For more on Olivia Wilde, listen below to our daily podcast PEOPLE Every Day.

After trying to find the right person, the casting director suggested her for the role. “The funny thing is, when I asked director friends how that experience would be, I just happened to ask a bunch of dudes, and they all said, ‘Oh, it’s so great,’ " Wilde said to Gyllenhaal, 44, who directedThe Lost Daughter.

Jamie McCarthy/Getty; Kevork Djansezian/Getty

As it turns out, one of those directors was Cooper, 47, who starred in and directed 2018’s hit movieA Star Is Bornand is currently working on double duty inMaestro. “Cooper was a great supporter,” Wilde noted, “He said, ‘It’s going to be really wonderful to be able to direct from within the scenes.’ "

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.

After deciding to do it, Wilde realized the task wasn’t as easy as they made it out to be. “All of these men had done this in comfortable shoes, and I swear part of it is that I was in a f—- bustier and heels and a wig,” she said. “They were coming at me doing these necessary but frustrating touch-ups at every second, and I was like, ‘I need to be at the monitor, I need to be in charge.’ I found that to be really hard.”

But Wilde doesn’t regret her decision. “I did find that being in solidarity with the actors felt important,” she said, noting that she wasn’t “just the director in comfortable sweats sitting over there in the air-conditioned video village.”

Wilde also saidChris Pine"probably agreed to do the movie at first as a favor to an old buddy, and then he really took it and ran with it,” noting that she’s known him for “like, 20 years.”

RELATED VIDEO: Olivia Wilde Calls Jason Sudeikis Serving Custody Papers Onstage a ‘Vicious’ and ‘Appalling’ Attack

As for the other stars of the movies, Pugh and Styles, Wilde had nothing but praise.

“She’s ferociously talented,” Wilde said of theMidsommaractress, 26. “She was so dogged in her pursuit of the most authentic version of every moment. She also knew that my real goal was to create a love story that felt so sincere between her and Harry that people would be incapable of not falling for them as a couple.”

Wilde added that both of them are “very loving people” which helped them “differentiate a performative love from an authentic love” in the movie.

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

“With Harry, who’s obviously a musician, it was like there was no other option for him than to work as hard as possible and to commit to the scene as hard as possible,” Wilde said of the singer, 28. “He never holds back.”

“Oftentimes when it’s not your scene, and you’re in a supporting role, people give 80 percent,” she added. “But even if he was way off camera, he was so there for everyone, and for the crew and production. The tone that he set was just a very positive force.”

Don’t Worry Darlinghits theaters on Sept. 23.

source: people.com