Olivia Wilde willed herself not to cry during The Invite's standing ovation

Olivia Wilde urged herself not to cry when her latest directorial effort The Invite received a standing ovation at the Sundance Film Festival.

After stepping away from the spotlight for a few years following the media storm around her last feature, 2022's Don't Worry Darling, Wilde made her comeback at the film festival in January with the comedy, which she directed and stars in.

During the Sundance premiere, Wilde convinced herself that the audience hated her film and was stunned when they rose to their feet at the end of the movie and gave it a standing ovation.

"I white-knuckled my way through that screening. My inner monologue was like, They all hated it," she recalled in an interview with The Cut, before addressing the ovation: "That's when I started whispering to myself, Don't cry. Don't cry."

Wilde was unsuccessful on that front, as she was seen wiping away tears as she returned to the stage for a post-screening Q&A with her co-stars Seth Rogen and Edward Norton.

The Invite, which also stars Penélope Cruz, was one of the festival's biggest hits, sparking a heated bidding war between multiple studios. Even though Netflix offered more money, Wilde opted to go with A24 because a theatrical release was a "non-negotiable".

In a separate interview with IndieWire, the Booksmart director explained that she wants to push back against the idea that comedies should be relegated to streaming these days.

"Even in production, there was the assumption of, 'Well, I guess they'll probably just want to toss it on Netflix.' But the thing is, this is a kind of movie that you need to watch and listen to; if you have a phone in your hands, you won't get it," she shared. "And I think that's the thing about being in a theatre, not only is it the lovely collective experience of everyone enjoying something together, but you are forced to pay attention."

The Invite will be released in U.K. cinemas on 3 July.

Wilde already has two other directorial projects lined up - Naughty and Avengelyne - and will next be seen as an actress in the erotic comedy I Want Your Sex, in U.K. cinemas on 28 August.