Olivia Wilde Responds to Claim She ‘Abandoned’ Her Kids

Olivia Wilde is shutting down critics of her parenting as she reflects on putting up boundaries while living in the spotlight. The Don’t Worry Darling director and star opened up in a new profile for Elle published Thursday, addressing critiques that she isn’t often photographed with her 8-year-old son Otis and 6-year-old daughter Daisy, whom she shares with her ex, Jason Sudeikis. 

“I share custody of my kids with my ex,” said Wilde. “If I’m photographed not with my kids, people assume I have abandoned them, like my kids are just somewhere in a hot car without me.” The actress continued of public assumptions about her role as a mother, “The suggestion is that I have abandoned my role as a mother.”

Wilde explained that the real reason people don’t often see her kids in paparazzi photos is because she works hard to keep them out of the public eye. “You know why you don’t see me with my kids? Because I don’t let them get photographed,” Wilde said. “Do you know the lengths that I go to to protect my kids from being seen by you?”

The Booksmart director also spoke out about the drama surrounding her most recent film and her frustration at the press’ concentration on the off-screen scandal involving Wilde, leading lady Florence Pugh and former leading man Shia LaBeouf, who was replaced with Harry Styles early on. “This film is trying to ask big questions, but [it’s] ‘Let’s just focus on this sideshow over here,’” she said. “Having been a known figure for a while…makes me well-equipped to have a Teflon exterior. But it also means that you’re under a different kind of microscope. It’s brought my attention to the media and how it pits women against one another.” 

“It is shocking to see so many untruths about yourself traded as fact,” she continued. “Florence had a really wise comment that we didn’t sign up for a reality show. And I love that she put it that way, because it’s as though the general public feels that if you are making something that you’re selling to the public, you somehow have accepted that your life will be torn to shreds by a pack of wolves.” Wilde added, “No, that’s actually not part of the job description. Never was.”