Booksmart is one of the most entertaining movies to be released in 2019. It’s certainly one of our favorites, with a gleeful anarchy that not only proved there is still life in the R-rated teen anthem subgenre, but also announced Olivia Wilde as a major director to watch. And she’s following the movie up with another directing project that will bring her in front of the lens, this time as a woman in a marriage that is apparently anything but idyllic.
It has been announced that Wilde will direct and produce Don’t Worry, Darling, a psychological thriller set in the 1950s. Further, she is reteaming with Kate Silberman on the project. Silberman was one of several writers on Booksmart, who also produced that riotous comedy. She’s on board as a producer as well as a screenwriter with Don’t Worry, Darling, reworking a script already penned by Shane and Carey Van Dyke.
The film is described as a “psychological thriller for the Times Up era” and focuses on a ‘50s housewife who presumably will find out there is more than meets the eye with her husband, though that last bit is pure speculation based on the Gaslighting-esque title. (The setting also evokes a time for many popular thrillers from Alfred Hitchcock, a figure who himself may not have done well in the Times Up era.)
According to Deadline, six undisclosed studios are already circling the film in a bidding war, and this is for good reason. An actor who has always had range both on screen and stage, having done memorable work in Meadowland and Drinking Buddies, Wilde really came into her own as an exciting directorial voice once Booksmart wowed audiences at SXSW.
The film went on to become the critical darling of the summer, earning a current 97 per cent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and it seems destined to go on to become a dorm room classic. So her next project would instantly generate attention. The fact it is also a starring vehicle that seems ready to wade into the issues of today has made this one to keep an eye out for as it develops.
