Harry Styles and Olivia Wilde have called it quits on their two-year romance – and while it was put out there that the “amicable” split was simply down to their busy schedules, our insider says it was a lot more bitter behind the scenes.
It seems the 28-year-old singer found the pressures of a relationship with director Olivia, 38, just too much. Our insider says, “Harry had some wonderful times with Olivia – this was by far the most serious he’s ever been about anyone. He’s grateful that she gave him the gig in Don’t Worry Darling and introduced him to some very impressive players in Hollywood, plus he really sympathised with the huge pressures she had to suffer. But for all the positives, it wound up becoming way too intense and stressful for him.”
And while his connection with the director certainly did a world of good for the pop star’s blossoming film career, it appears the same can’t be said for his personal life, with their public romance fuelled by cheating rumours, fiery feuds, and drama that overshadowed their creative work…
Why did they split?
While, outwardly, it’s being portrayed that the split was very much a mutual decision, our source says Harry’s relationship with the Don’t Worry Darling director ended up being quite one-sided. Our source claims, “Harry tried to end it with Olivia multiple times, but she kept begging him not to and would get upset every time he did try to leave. He was so done with all the drama – her anxiety about other women, the toxic war with her ex [actor Jason Sudeikis], her failure to connect with his friends and family, plus the apparent pressure to get engaged. It all became too much in the end.”
Intense drama has followed the duo’s every step over the past two years, and with their ten-year age gap coming into play, our insider says a major factor in their breakup was mum-of-two Olivia’s “stifling” future plans.
“The way Olivia kept going on about getting married and buying a place together was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” reveals the source. “Harry felt smothered. It was like that go-with-the-flow type of vibe that made them so happy had been replaced with a needy streak, and it became a real turn-off. Harry had to walk away in the end. He wasn’t going to mess Olivia around by leading her on when his heart wasn’t in it.”
But while the As It Was singer is apparently relieved to have got his freedom back, our insider says Olivia is devastated – and not only over her single status. “Olivia has this hope that they’ll wind up together again, but there’s zero chance of that. Harry’s totally done with the drama,” we’re told. “For Olivia, this is both heartbreaking and embarrassing in equal measure. She’s all too aware that Jason might be laughing his head off at all of this. Harry was her everything, and she really believed he was in it for the long haul. She had her heart set on them marrying and building a long-term future together. Now, she’s wondering what she’s going to do next.”
Were the signs always there?
Mum-of-two Olivia hired Harry for the lead role in her movie Don’t Worry Darling back in 2020, then swiftly ended her six-year relationship with actor Jason, 47. Any talk of crossover has been denied, but sources have previously alleged Olivia was getting cosy with Harry during filming, before heading home to Jason. Since her split from the Ted Lass_o_ actor, Olivia has been embroiled in a bitter custody battle over their children – Otis, eight, and Daisy, six – and was even served legal papers while she was on stage earlier this year.
And when Olivia joined the Watermelon Sugar singer on his world tour, it appeared they were going from strength to strength – but sources close to the couple have insisted there were cracks under the surface. Harry apparently found it hard to put up with Olivia’s drama, with our insider saying, “All this negative energy is not what he’s about at all – Olivia’s a total magnet for it and Harry finds that tough.”
What happened in Venice?
It was never more obvious than at the Don’t Worry Darling premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September that things had started to go awry for the couple, after they were spotted looking uncomfortable at opposite ends of the red carpet.
While the whole cast appeared on edge, it didn’t go unnoticed by fans that Harry and Olivia refused to take any pictures together and were seated separately during the screening. Despite their distance, the two appeared to put on a united front during the days after, but fans were convinced that this was the first public sign that their whirlwind romance was unravelling.
How is Florence Pugh involved in all this?
It’s thought that another factor in the split is the intense drama surrounding Harry’s DWD co-star Florence, with rumours that the production was a hotbed of affairs, feuds, rumours and on-set fallouts.
At the height of the pandemic in 2020, Florence, 26, announced she’d be starring in the film, writing, “Olivia Wilde is my idol and allowed me to be a part of this incredible cast.”
But by the time filming wrapped in February 2021, her tune had changed. Olivia was then heard making an apparent dig at the star – calling her “Miss Flo” – in a leaked video.
Olivia has denied any feud, but it was clear to many during promotion for the film that the two women weren’t the best of friends. It’s since been reported Harry and Florence shared an off-screen kiss during filming, before he got together with Olivia, which could be the reason for the tension.
What’s Harry’s mum got to do with it?
Another reason why the two have called it quits might come be down to Harry’s mum, Anne Twist. Our insider says Anne didn’t warm to the relationship, a factor that the pop star’s fans have often speculated about online. And a source previously revealed that Mummy’s boy Harry was driving his girlfriend round the bend, saying, “Olivia’s well aware that Anne’s in the background, and Harry depends on her for advice about everything, including his love life.” Well, Mum does know best!
