One of the biggest early deals to emerge from Sundance was A24’s acquisition of Olivia Wilde’s comedy, The Invite, after a heated bidding war that pushed offers over $10M. Wilde sought a full theatrical release and that took streamers such as Netflix out of the competition. Well, now A24 has set a date for it to hit theaters and that will be on June 26th, right in the thick of summer blockbuster season.
Is The Invite a blockbuster movie? I don’t know about that, but it certainly has the stuff to be a success. The buzzy comedy is a provocative one. Directed by Wilde from a script by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack, the film stars Wilde and Seth Rogen as a bored married couple who invite their new neighbors, played by Penelope Cruz and Edward Norton, over for an evening that explodes with sexual revelations.
There’s a ton of buzz surrounding The Invite. Personally, I had a blast with it. The script is light, funny, and the performances have that feeling of being off the cuff when you know they weren’t. Wilde shot the film in chronological order, tackling it as one would a stageplay. It currently sits at 91% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics. A24’s choice to release it in the summer is clearly an attempt to recoup on the investment, and that’s fine. They might just do that.
