Harry Styles and Florence Pugh ‘KISSED on the set of Don’t Worry Darling’

Harry Styles and Florence Pugh reportedly shared an off-screen kiss after developing “instant chemistry” on the set of Don’t Worry Darling – weeks before the One Direction star began dating married director, Olivia Wilde.

The beleaguered film, in which Styles and Pugh play a married couple, was overshadowed by a series of controversies, both before and after its memorably awkward premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September.

Remarkably, Pugh Wilde failed to acknowledge on the red carpet after an on-set dispute — presumably sparked by the actress’ discomfort that her director entered into a very public relationship with Styles while shooting the film on location in Los Angeles.

And sources claim their fallout stems from the initial chemistry Pugh and her screen husband had before he got into a romantic relationship with Wilde.

An insider told The sun: ‘Harry and Florence had chemistry from the start, which translated incredibly well on screen. One night they had a bit of a kiss, all very light and a bit of fun, and that was that.

“It was gossiped about by a few members of the production, otherwise nobody would have known. Harry was very single at the time, and Florence was divorced from Zach Braff, though she’d kept the split quiet to – ironically – avoid the headlines.

“There was no cheating or misconduct by anyone. But later on, Harry and Olivia started spending more time together—sneaking out for coffee, hanging out in each other’s caravans, and sharing small, routine intimacies.’

Feud: Sources claim Pugh and Wilde’s fallout stems from the initial chemistry Pugh and her screen husband had before falling into a romantic relationship with Wilde (Olivia pictured at the September 2022 premiere of Dont Worry Darling)

The insider added that it was clear that Harry and Olivia had a real connection and Florence was reportedly unhappy when pictures of them holding hands surfaced.

Tension had been brewing between the two women, with Harry and Olivia’s budding romance making matters worse.

MailOnline has reached out to representatives for Styles, Pugh and Wilde for comment.

Pugh avoided promoting her lead role in Don’t Worry Darling amid rumors of a feud between her and Wilde.

The actress missed the photocall for the film during the Venice Film Festival and kept her distance from the director on the red carpet.

Others noted that the actress posted little about the film on her social media accounts, which has also fueled rumors of friction on set.

A source said: ‘Harry was very single at the time and Florence was separated from Zach Braff, although she kept the split quiet to avoid – ironically – the headlines’

A report from Page six claimed in late July that Pugh was angry with Wilde for interacting with lead actor Harry Styles during production – while still engaged to Jason Sudeikis – before breaking up in November.

“I can tell you that Flo seeing Olivia and Harry walking over each other on set didn’t go down well as Olivia was still with Jason when she first interacted with Harry,” the source said.

Pugh was asked by an Italian journalist at the event what she found “inspiring” in the film and was revealed to have a cunning count with Wilde.

She replied, “I find it very inspiring to see a woman pull back and say ‘no’ and question everything. It’s very exciting to see a woman do that on and off the camera.”

Asked when she says ‘no’ off-camera, Pugh jokingly replied, ‘When do I say ‘no’? If someone says I can’t have cake.’

Tension: The insider added that it was clear that Harry and Olivia had a real connection and that Florence was reportedly unhappy when photos of them turned up holding hands

Tension rumors mounted after Wilde suggested Pugh should have a wake-up call this month in a leaked video.

The video was leaked after Shia refuted Olivia’s claim that he was fired from the project, and the footage shows Wilde encouraging LaBeouf to stick with the film rather than leaving the film, while also hinting at some apparent tension with Florence.

Wilde indicated an interview Variety where she said Shia LaBeouf’s trial was “not conducive to the ethos I demand in my productions” after the role was eventually recast with her now-boyfriend Harry.

In response, Shia provided alleged evidence to refute Wilde’s claims, including an email he sent to the director and a video she allegedly sent to him showing that he was running away from the film rather than being fired. .

Shia claimed he “stopped the film due to lack of rehearsal time” on August 17, 2020, and forwarded it Variety two emails he says he recently sent to Wilde.

Some studio sources claimed in the publication that Shia had been fired, while another said his departure was due to a “collective acknowledgment that LaBeouf’s acting style did not fit well with Wilde’s approach as a director.”

Premiere: Florence (far right) missed the photocall for Don’t Worry Darling at the Venice Film Festival and kept her distance from Olivia (center right) on the red carpet