‘Behemoth!’ Star Olivia Wilde’s Striking New Press Portraits Celebrate ‘The Invite’s’ Unlikely Theatrical Triumph
Directors rarely get to soak in a genuine awards-season victory lap, especially when the fight to bring their film to theaters was as contentious as this one turned out to be. For Olivia Wilde, though, the past several months have offered exactly that kind of validation.
Her third feature behind the camera has quietly become one of the year’s more unexpected success stories, working its way from a buzzy festival premiere into a genuine theatrical hit. That journey is now being marked with a fresh round of striking press portraits.
New images of Wilde have surfaced online, credited to “Olivia Wilde for The Invite Press,” showing the actress and director in a black leather jacket layered over a white lace slip against a wood-paneled backdrop. The portraits carry a full glam credit list, with styling by Karla Welch, makeup by Kara Yoshimoto Bua, and hair by Barb Doe using Redken’s Shades EQ.
‘The Invite’ first made waves at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, where the dark comedy about a dinner party gone catastrophically wrong ignited a fierce multi-day bidding war before ultimately selling to A24. The film centers on a married couple, played by Seth Rogen and Wilde, whose already fragile marriage unravels further when their mysterious upstairs neighbors, played by Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton, arrive for dinner and reveal themselves to be swingers.
Written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack, the film marked Wilde’s third directorial effort following ‘Booksmart’ and ‘Don’t Worry Darling,’ and reportedly commanded an offer north of $12 million during its competitive sale, with A24 ultimately winning out over Focus Features and several other major buyers.
What makes this particular press moment especially meaningful is the battle Wilde waged behind the scenes to ensure the film actually reached movie theaters rather than heading straight to streaming. Speaking at a press conference during the film’s screening at the Locarno Film Festival, Wilde described turning down more lucrative streaming offers in favor of a traditional theatrical run.
“They bribe you to not take theatrical,” Wilde said in comments reported by Deadline. “It’s a bribe. You get paid more… and you can take that bribe and give that up if that’s where your priorities lie.” She credited Annapurna producer Megan Ellison for ultimately backing her push to accept A24’s theatrical offer instead.
Official trailer for Olivia Wilde’s ‘THE INVITE’
— Pop Base (@PopBase) April 7, 2026
Starring Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton.
In theatres this July. pic.twitter.com/DqWyNEI2eZ
That gamble appears to have worked out. ‘The Invite’ went on to earn $55.7 million at the box office against a modest $15 million budget, a strong result for an original adult-skewing comedy in a marketplace increasingly dominated by franchise fare. The film also earned praise from critics, with Variety’s chief film critic Owen Gleiberman calling it a “bravura dinner-party dramedy” that “keeps you laughing and never stops surprising.”
Beyond directing, Wilde’s 2026 has also included a starring turn opposite Cooper Hoffman in Gregg Araki’s ‘I Want Your Sex,’ another Sundance premiere that further showcased her range across both sides of the camera this year. Between that performance and the success of ‘The Invite,’ Wilde has cemented herself as one of the year’s more consistently talked-about filmmaking voices.
Given how much personal conviction went into fighting for a proper theatrical release, these latest press portraits feel like a fitting celebration of a bet that clearly paid off. With ‘The Invite’ now firmly established as one of 2026’s genuine box office surprises, Wilde’s insistence on the big screen looks increasingly justified.
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