Olivia Wilde Partners With New Line Cinema For Next Film ‘Don’t Worry Darling’

Olivia Wilde made heads turn with her directorial debut Booksmart, a phenomenal coming of age story that made Wilde a director to watch.

Now, The Hollywood Reporter has learned that New Line Cinema is picking up Wilde’s next film, a thriller entitled Don’t Worry Darling. Wilde found herself in the middle of a bidding war between Netflix and New Line. The highlights of the why behind her choice include a theatrical release and a backend payment that is rarely seen in Hollywood these days.

While Booksmart didn’t make a ton of money at the box office, it was positively received by those who made it to the theater to see it. Wilde’s capitalized on the positive results, and she showed that by coming on board with Don’t Worry Darling. What’s known about the plot is slim, it’s set in the 1950s and is about a housewife who’s living a perfect life until she discovers the disturbing truth. The script is undergoing a rewrite with Katie Silberman but was originally written by Shane and Carey Van Dyke.

Wilde is also going to star in the picture and will produce with Silberman, Roy Lee and Miri Yoon. The meetings were held with studios over the last few weeks, with an asking budget of around 20 million dollars. One executive involved in discussions said the bidding war “speaks to the lack of good material out there. Anything that is unique will generate interest.”

New Line’s track record of thriller films recently also contributed to the decision process. The backend portion of the profit margin is what is a rare part of this deal. The filmmakers and producers stand to earn 50 percent of the profit participation. This will occur when the film breaks even. A deal such as this hasn’t been made since The Hangover. Todd Phillips, the director got a 30 percent backend deal.

What do you think of Wilde’s next project? Do you think she can follow-up Booksmart successfully? Let us know in the comments!