Olivia Wilde Stuns on Bold ‘Elle’ Cover, Reveals Plans For Future Projects About ‘Raw Determination of Women’

The actress-turned director did not hold back when discussing the future of Hollywood.

Olivia Wilde on the red carpet at the "Don't Worry Darling" photo call in New York City.Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

Olivia Wilde is wearing her heart on her… chest for Elle’s November 2022 issue. The Don’t Worry Darling director, who is one of the publication’s Women in Hollywood honorees alongside Michelle Yeoh, Issa Rae, Zoe Kravitz, Anne Hathaway, Ariana DeBose and Sydney Sweeney, wore a Gucci one-shoulder top with one of her breasts exposed and shielded by a heart-shaped pasty over her nipple for her cover. The 38-year-old also posed for photographer Cass Bird in a Prada mirror ball dress, oversized Balenciaga and Adidas tracksuits and a look from Celine.

Aside from the styles she wore, it is what she said during her interview that is making more of a statement. “It is shocking to see so many untruths about yourself traded as fact,” she told the magazine about the unwarranted attention of what did or didn’t happen on the set of Don’t Worry Darling, which stars boyfriend Harry Styles, Florence Pugh and Chris Pine. “Florence had a really wise comment that we didn’t sign up for a reality show. And I love that she put it that way, because it’s as though the general public feels that if you are making something that you’re selling to the public, you somehow have accepted that your life will be torn to shreds by a pack of wolves. No, that’s actually not part of the job description. Never was.”

The mom-of-two, whom she shares with ex Jason Sudeikis, also calls out how execs have loved to tear women apart and create narratives of nonexistent rivalries. However, she does feel a shift happening in Hollywood after the #MeToo movement. “There’s a much stronger sense of community,” she admitted. “We were kept in separate rooms for a long time.... [Women] could realize, ‘Wait a minute, why have I been told you’re my competitor? You’re not. You’re actually my partner. How convenient that they told us we were competitors.’” And as for her leading lady of DWD, Wilde is, well, wild, for 26-year-old Pugh. “She’s so generous in her acting in every scene. She makes everyone around her better,” she shared despite all the rumors swirling about their working relationship.

With herself in the director’s seat, Wilde’s focus is to highlight and promote more female stories, including developing and directing a Kerri Strug biopic with the working title Perfect. There are also talks that she reportedly has a deal with Sony to direct a super-secret female-centric Marvel movie. “A few of the things I have in development are about the raw determination of women,” the Booksmart director said. “Clearly, I idolize women who survive a system that they feel challenged by.”