Seth Rogen said the cast for Olivia Wilde’s new movie shared their most private and vulnerable stories about romance and marriage to delve deeper into the project’s themes.
The Invite stars Wilde and Rogen as a San Francisco couple on the brink of a breakup when they invite a free-spirited couple from their building (Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton) over for dinner.
The Studio actor told Variety that before filming began for the comedy drama, he and the cast shared personal stories related to the script, and things got “very personal very fast.”
“We all just kind of sat in a room and sort of read through the script, but mostly talked about kind of what we all thought made a good marriage and maybe made a bad marriage and made a healthy sexual dynamic and an unhealthy [sexual dynamic],” Rogen said.
“It got very personal very fast with a lot of the actors because that’s what the movie is about,” he continued.
“I think in order to make it feel as real and reflective of the filmmakers and the team’s lives as possible, we all really got very honest with one another and I think it made the film much better and a lot of it worked its way into the film in various ways.”
Wilde, who directs and stars in the film, told the publication that “conversations that stem from a comedy are really about people recognizing themselves and laughing at even difficult things.”
The Invite is an English-language adaptation of Cesc Gay’s 2020 Spanish film Sentimental, which he adapted from his stage play of the same name.
The film has already received warm reviews on its opening weekend. The New York Times critic Alissa Wilkinson noted that while the film sometimes hits some false notes, “for the most part, it’s a romp, rhythmically enjoyable and cleverly directed, with subtle flourishes that build out the characters’ quirks and anxieties.”
The Wall Street Journal’s Kyle Smith called the film “one of the best movies of the year.”
The critic remarked that “Rogen balances the joking and the despair like the great comic actors” while Wilde is “equally affecting as Angela, who is trying to paint a cheerful face on a foundering marriage.”
The project marks Wilde’s first directing outing since 2022’s Don’t Worry Darling, starring Harry Styles and Florence Pugh, which was overshadowed by a series of rumored controversies.
Wilde recently poured cold water on the claims that she and Pugh had a blowout argument on the set of the movie, telling The Cut: “I’ve never had a screaming match on my set. I was never not available on set.”
Wilde, 42, said that she had wanted to publicly deny the allegations when they first surfaced but was advised against responding.
“I was told, ‘Don’t say a f****** word. Just go out there and smile,’” she said. “I resent that but it taught me it’s not the way I want to handle things.”
