There’s no doubt that Olivia Wilde is one of the great beauties of our time, and also one of the most talented actresses. Growing up in Washington D.C raised by non-actors, she was always encouraged to do her own thing. After establishing an acting career, she decided she wanted to try her hand at working behind the camera as a director. She was inspired by gender inequality in the industry, as there are very few female directors.
Wilde now juggles acting, directing, activism and being a mother. We don’t know how she does it! Let’s take a look at how this multi-faceted woman turned into the empowered celebrity she is today.
Parents with a reputation
Her father was a famous journalist and author while her mother is an investigative journalist. As a result, Olivia met many celebrities as a kid due to the people her family members interviewed. In her teen years, she attended prestigious schools thanks to her well-known parents. One of them was the Phillips Academy, a boarding school in Massachusetts that has an annual tuition of over $66,000. During high school, she changed her name from Cockburn to Wilde. This wasn’t an unusual decision since her family often used pen names.
She became a princess
After being accepted into Bard College in New York, she decided to skip college altogether and marry a prince. At the age of 19, she temporarily became a princess after her wedding to Tao Ruspoli, the Prince of Cerveteri’s son. Their initial wedding took place on a school bus, but later on, they had one at a property belonging to Wilde’s family.
She was embarrassed of “The OC”
Olivia was offered an internship in LA with casting director Mali Finn. She landed some surprisingly high-profile gigs, starting with “The Girl Next Door” in 2004. Then, she got a bigger role in “The O.C” where she played the bisexual character Alex Kelly. While Wilde looked back initially with embarrassment on doing a teen soap, she later on called that experienced “formative” to the “New York” Times in 2019.
Bigger and better roles
After landing a role as Remy “Thirteen” Hadley on the show “House” more of America got to see Olivia Wilde, exposing her to a larger mainstream audience. In a 2009 interview, she admitted that she seeks out unexpected parts that start conversations. Her time at “House” ended when she went to film the major Blockbuster “Cowboys & Aliens.”
Loving her 30s
When many starlets enter their 30s, they’re shunned from certain roles. Olivia, on the other hand, embraced turning 30 and leaving her 20s behind. In a piece for “Glamour” she wrote, “People assume actresses are afraid to get older; the truth is the roles get a whole lot more compelling once you’re too old to play dumb. So I’m welcoming this development with open arms, and so should you.”
Finding love with an SNL star
After meeting Jason Sudeikis at a “Saturday Night Live” finale party, it was love at first sight, though neither of them acted on it. Jason’s dancing was what drew the actress in, but even though they didn’t swap numbers at first, they did keep building a connection until her male BFF gave her number to Wilde. The couple went on to have a son, Otis Alexander Sudeikis, in 2014. Two years later, they had a second child, this time a daughter named Daisy. They never officially got married.
A jaw-dropping directorial debut
In 2019, she released the hilarious coming-of-age film “Booksmart” marking her directorial debut, which follows two high school girls as they go through senior year and a particularly rebellious last day after following the rules. She first discovered her love for directing on the set of “Tron: Legacy” when the film’s producer allowed her to have a say in her character and the storyline. She soon realized she needed more control on set.
The divorce
Just a year after “Booksmart” came out, she broke up with Jason Sudeikis, whom she had finally gotten engaged to. They kept quiet about the split until Sudeikis told GQ in 2021, You take some responsibility for it, hold yourself accountable for what you do, but then also endeavour to learn something beyond the obvious from it.”
Finding new love with Harry Styles
Her second film “Don’t Worry Darling” is about a 1950s housewife who discovers some dark secrets about her life with hubby Harry Styles. On set, sparks were flying, and Harry Styles soon became Olivia’s new boyfriend. Sources on set say that the two had instant chemistry on set and it was just a matter of time before they partnered up. Although they stay quiet about it, she told Vogue magazine that she was happier and healthier than she’s ever been.
