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Harry Styles and Olivia Wilde were spotted on a casual date night in New York City on Friday, amid ongoing controversy surrounding their new movie Don’t Worry Darling, which hit theaters that day.
The musician, 28, and the director, 38, still seemed very much in love as they stared into each other’s eyes over dinner at a Mexican restaurant.
Just the night before, they had been seen kissing passionately on the streets of New York, to allay rumors that their romance was on the rocks.
Look of love: Harry Styles and Olivia Wilde were spotted on a casual date night in New York City on Friday amid the ongoing controversy surrounding Don’t Worry Darling
Thursday marked the first time the couple acted affectionately towards each other in public after weeks of keeping their distance while promoting the drama-ridden project, which stars Harry opposite lead actress Florence Pugh.
Olivia has faced mounting controversy surrounding the film, amid new reports that she was arguing with Florence, 26, who was reportedly angry because Olivia’s relationship with Harry got in the way of making the film.
It also comes as the director continues her custody battle with ex Jason Sudeikis, with whom she shares two children; Otis, eight, and Daisy, five. Olivia’s daughter also appears in the film in a cameo role.
All that sweet affection: The musician, 28, and the director, 38, still seemed very much in love as they stared into each other’s eyes on their Friday dinner date
Look of love: Just the night before, they had been seen passionately kissing on the streets of New York, paying for rumors that their romance was on the rocks
With too much emphasis on Olivia’s romantic relationship with Harry, the pair had previously kept their distance in promoting the film – appearing only together in group photos at premieres in Venice and more recently in New York.
The One Direction alumnus, who has garnered attention for his gender-fluid photoshoots in the past, topped off his look Friday with a hair clip while he was out with Olivia.
Olivia has faced a spate of scandals surrounding Don’t Worry Darling, including persistent rumors that she was arguing with Florence on set.
Background: With too much focus on Olivia’s romantic relationship with Harry, the couple had previously kept their distance when promoting the film
A report in Page Six claimed that Florence disagreed with Olivia for supposedly recording with Harry while still engaged to Jason Sudeikis.
Olivia, who has two children with Jason, has adamantly denied cheating on him with Harry and has labeled rumors of her infidelity as ‘complete horses***’.
Now a source on set has told Vulture that Florence and Olivia burst into a ‘screaming match’ during filming because the director had a tendency to ‘just disappear’ with Harry.
Snappy: The One Direction alumnus, who has garnered attention for his gender-fluid photoshoots in the past, topped up his look on Friday with a hair clip while he was out with Olivia
Florence has barely done any media for Don’t Worry Darling, which resulted in the first round of rumors that she had split with her director.
She then kicked feud speculation when she suddenly pulled out of a press conference for Don’t Worry Darling at the Venice Film Festival this month.
Although Florence withdrew from the press at the last minute, she still managed to attend the film’s red carpet premiere at the film festival later that day.
Appearing on Stephen Colbert’s late-night show this week, Olivia denied doing any harm to her “sensational” lead actress, whom she hailed as a “superhero.”
The film is finally here: Thoroughly overshadowed by behind-the-scenes gossip, the film was rejected by the critics with a crushing rating of 37% on Rotten Tomatoes
She blamed sexism for the suspicion, arguing that her “male director colleagues” don’t “answer” questions about their comparison to their actors.
“I have nothing but respect for Florence’s talent. She’s fantastic,” Olivia insisted. “I have nothing against her for whatever reason.”
On the day of the film’s release, Florence posted an Instagram tribute to “you who helped make “Don’t Worry Darling.”
Although she failed to mention Olivia by name in her caption, she did include a photo of them together in her extensive Instagram album of the shoot.
Hand in hand: Olivia and Harry enjoy a romantic walk through London’s Soho in March
Another of Don’t Worry Darling’s scandals involved Shia LaBeouf, who was believed to be the film’s lead actor before Harry took over.
Olivia initially claimed she fired Shia for her ‘no a**hole policy’, saying the process was ‘not conducive to the ethos I demand in my productions’.
Shia, who is currently accused of assault by his ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs, fired back by declaring that he was quitting due to “lack of practice time.”
He told his side of the story by leaking an email he sent Olivia, as well as video footage of her trying to persuade him not to leave the film.
“I feel like I’m not ready to give up on this yet, and I’m heartbroken too and I want to figure this out,” the director said in the video.
Drama: Olivia has been dealing with a spate of scandals surrounding Don’t Worry Darling, including rumors of her feuding on set with her lead actress Florence Pugh (pictured)
“You know, I think this might be a bit of a wake-up call for Miss Flo, and I want to know if you’re open to trying this with me, with us,” Olivia added.
“If she’s really committed, if she’s really putting her heart and heart into it right now, and if you can make peace – and I respect your point of view, I respect hers – but if you can do it, what will you do? think? Is there hope? Will you let me know?’
On the Colbert show this week, Olivia doubled down on her claim that she fired Shia, saying he forced her to choose between him and Florence.
“We had to replace Shia. He’s a fantastic actor, but it wouldn’t work. When he gave me the ultimatum of, you know, him or Florence, I chose Florence,” she said.
‘Thank you’: On the day of the film’s release, Florence posted a tribute on Instagram to ‘you who helped’ Don’t Worry Darling
According to Olivia’s version of events, “He felt like he was giving up and I felt like we were moving on without him.”
The original screenplay of Don’t Worry Darling was written by Dick Van Dyke’s grandsons, Carey and Shane Van Dyke.
When Olivia took control of the project, she had it rewritten by Katie Silberman, one of the writers on her directorial debut Booksmart.
Harry and Florence star in the new film as a couple who lead a Stepfordesque existence in the 1950s – only for her to discover that her quiet life hides a dark secret.
Controversial: Another of Don’t Worry Darling’s scandals involved Shia LaBeouf, who was believed to be the film’s lead actor before Harry took over