Maybe You Should Worry Darling: Why Any Press is NOT Good Press

By now, you’ve probably heard something about the drama surrounding the film Don’t Worry Darling. However, if you haven’t, here’s a quick recap: 

Olivia Wilde, the director of the film, claims she fired Shia LaBeouf from the lead role in the film because his work ethic was not conducive to the film environment. In response to this, LaBeouf clapped back and said Wilde begged him to stay on the movie, while throwing co-star Florence Pugh under the bus. LaBeouf was even able to provide receipts to back up his story, from text messages to a video of Wilde begging LaBeouf to give the film another shot and calling out “Miss Flo”.

As a result of these allegations and other rumoured on-set conflicts between Pugh and Wilde, Florence Pugh has limited the amount of press she is doing for the film. Other drama has been built up around the film, with even an allegation coming forward of Harry Styles spitting on co-star Chris Pine.

You may be asking yourself, why am I getting a recap of this week’s pop culture news? I’ll tell you why. Because all these Don’t Worry Darling stories, from Pugh vs. Wilde to spit-gate, are taking away from the release of the film itself. By comparison, the film’s international debut at Venice Film Festival pales to all the drama being stirred up around the film. Some people are even beginning to speculate if this behind-the-scenes drama has been staged to create publicity for the film and get more eyes on the film. 

Except people aren’t really talking about the film. They’re talking about the drama.

And while this drama may be generating publicity around the cast of the film and keeping buzz around the film top of mind, positive press like reviews of the film, its performances or the standing ovation it received at the festival are clouded by the conflict. The drama is putting a negative spin on both Olivia Wilde and Harry Styles, as well as the film as a whole.

The Don’t Worry Darling drama is a great example of why not all press is good press. Despite the mantra that says the opposite, getting noticed publicly in a negative light can pave the way to disaster, no matter how much fame and notoriety it brings you.

Whether it be idle gossip or a huge scandal, negative press overshadows any important story or key messages you may be trying to put forward and sell. It takes control out of your hands and puts it into the hands of others who can manipulate and distort the story you are trying to tell—something that can create a big problem for PR teams, unless you don’t want people focusing on the real story you have to share. 

Anything can happen when press surrounding you runs wild. There is literally a debate online right now about if Harry Styles SPIT on Chris Pine. Anything can be seen on the internet and spun into publicity but even the smallest, most insignificant situations can quickly turn into a wild fire, consuming all media stories and any attempts you make to rein in the story. Just take a look at other celebrities like Taylor Swift or the Kardashians, both of whom have had consistent media presence in the last few years. Many of the stories surrounding them have fueled by the media landscape or public opinion running wild and do not provide good publicity for either party. 

So, if any press is not good press, how do we keep our stories top of mind and generating good publicity? While some crises and negative stories may be impossible to avoid, consistently pushing your important messages can help promote your own story when everything else is clouded by gossip. Another key is to make sure you acknowledge any controversy or gossip, instead of shrinking away from it, as it can seem you have something to hide. 

Now if only someone had told that to the publicity team of Don’t Worry Darling….