At the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, actress and director Olivia Wilde showcased her latest project, "The Invite," alongside her role in Gregg Araki's film, "I Want Your Sex." The festival, known for its celebration of independent cinema, provided an apt platform for Wilde's unique storytelling approach, marking a significant milestone in her career as both an actress and filmmaker. "To bring both films to Sundance was like the greatest experience of my life. This has been the best weekend of my entire life—don’t tell my two children that," Wilde joked during a post-screening Q&A. Wilde, recognized for her previous directorial works such as "Booksmart" and the psychological thriller "Don’t Worry Darling," described "The Invite" as an ambitious experiment. "I had been looking for a piece of material for a long time that would allow for this experiment that I wanted to conduct, which was, can we make a movie the way we’ve always wanted to make a movie as actors, and that is to do it with rehearsal, on film, in order," she explained. The film is set in a single location—a couple’s newly renovated apartment in San Francisco—which Wilde believed was well-suited for this narrative exploration. The film, adapted from a Spanish screenplay titled "Sentimental," written by Cesc Gay, revolves around a seemingly simple dinner invitation that spirals into deeper themes of love, sex, and personal unhappiness. Wilde emphasized the need for the film to feel personal, stating, "What if we get the greatest actors ever, and we pull them together and we workshop this together to feel really specific and personal? Because it felt like a movie that really needed to be personal. It needed to be a chance for everyone to kind of confess. Like they say, great art is confession. It felt like a confessional." The ensemble cast, which includes notable actors such as Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton, contributed significantly to the film's authenticity. Wilde noted that the actors infused their own experiences into the script, enhancing the depth of their characters. "We added so much of our own lives to it. Each of these actors wrote a large chunk of their own material," she said. Cruz, in particular, made her mark with a poignant monologue on menopause, a subject she felt strongly should be included. Although the narrative captures a single evening in the lives of two couples, it delves into intricate themes surrounding relationships and personal agency. Wilde elaborated on the film's focus, stating, "We wanted to really tell the story of people, Joe and Angela, who had forgotten their own agency within their relationship, within their lives. They’ve come to the very common place of, ‘This person makes me miserable.’" This exploration of disconnection and the quest for fulfillment resonates throughout the film, culminating in moments of both humor and emotional gravity. Wilde also highlighted the significance of originality in storytelling, particularly in how "The Invite" reinterprets the dynamics of marriage. Reflecting on her background in journalism, she affirmed, "I think you get better as you get older and live through a lot more life, and you feel passionate about taking your failures, your heartbreaks, your everything, and having this catharsis." As the characters navigate their relationships, the interactions between the younger couple and the older couple illustrate contrasting paths to fulfillment, ultimately providing both hope and despair for the central couple. The film's production took place against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and industry strikes, which Wilde described as a challenging time for the crew. "Our crew had been through COVID, strikes, fire, and many of them hadn’t worked in a year. One day I walked in and everyone was dancing, and I was like, ‘Whoa, this is a happy crew,’" she recalled. This positive energy contributed to the film's overall vibe and execution. Musically, the film juxtaposes a lighthearted tone with underlying emotional stakes. Wilde explained, "I loved the idea of the music representing the high stakes emotional world versus this seemingly low stakes domestic situation." Following its premiere, audience reactions at the Rose Wagner Center in Salt Lake City reflected Wilde's aspirations for the film. "It always amazes me that a movie that is so silly for so long and kind of goes off this cliff into this sad place, and that audiences are with it," she remarked. In what is seen as a significant move for the film, "The Invite" was officially acquired by A24 after a competitive bidding war with other major distributors, including Netflix and Warner Bros. This acquisition ensures that the film will reach a wider audience beyond the festival circuit, making it accessible to viewers who may have missed its initial screenings. As the festival came to a close, Wilde expressed her gratitude for the connections made through her films. "I’m so glad people are connecting to them, but that happens because they’re offered within the context of this grand love letter to storytelling and filmmaking," she concluded. For those interested in catching "The Invite," additional screenings are scheduled, including 7:30 p.m. on January 28 at Megaplex Redstone 1 and 2:30 p.m. on January 30 at Eccles Theatre. With its poignant exploration of modern relationships, Wilde's latest project promises to leave a lasting impact on its audience.