A dinner party, a marriage on thin ice, and neighbors who clearly are not coming over just for small talk — that is the setup for “The Invite,” the new film from Olivia Wilde, who directs and stars alongside Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton. A24 has set the film for a June 26 release, with the movie arriving after a buzzy Sundance premiere and a post-festival bidding war that ended with the distributor landing North American rights.
READ MORE: 15 Must-See April TV Shows: ‘Beef,’ ‘Euphoria,’ ‘Margo’s Got Money Troubles’ & More
Written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones, the film follows Joe and Angela, a couple whose strained marriage is pushed into even trickier territory when they invite their enigmatic upstairs neighbors over for dinner, and the night starts veering into far messier emotional and sexual terrain. That premise alone gives Wilde plenty to work with: one apartment, four movie stars, and a setup built to turn relationship anxiety into uncomfortable, adult comedy.
If there is a clean way to sell the movie now, it is probably through the cast chemistry. In our Sundance review, Marshall Shaffer wrote that “Wilde and Rogan are game for the comedic beats and bickering, while Norton and Cruz can shade their underwritten characters with some mystery and gravitas.” That is about as good a pull quote as any for a trailer trying to promise combustible grown-up friction instead of just another ironic chamber-piece exercise.
“The Invite” opens in limited release on June 26. Watch the trailer below.
