While the internet went crazy this week over the news from Page Six that Olivia Wilde and Harry Styles are dating, one person wasn’t all that happy: Wilde’s former longtime fiancé, Jason Sudeikis.
In November, it was reported that Wilde and the “Ted Lasso” star, who had been together for seven years and share two young children, had split up.
But an insider told The Post that the relationship with Styles had actually started back in October, leaving “Saturday Night Live” vet Sudeikis distraught.
And while there have been reports that Wilde and Sudeikis broke up in early 2020, other sources close to the pair say they split in early November – citing Wilde’s relationship with Harry as the main reason for the split.
“Olivia and Jason had problems, just like any other couple, but Jason loves Olivia – he loves her, which is what makes this so sad. He has always been committed to making their family work, ‘the source close to the couple said.
The couple had even recently bought a house in the UK, where Sudeikis is currently filming. “People have been trying to understand that Harry and Olivia have only been dating for the past few weeks, but that’s not true,” the insider added. Jason discovered Harry and continued the conversation. Olivia then filed for a divorce and news of the split was made public. “
This week it was made abundantly clear that Wilde, 36, had indeed moved on when Page Six dropped photos of her holding hands with singer and former One Direction heartthrob Styles, 26, at the intimate wedding of his manager, Jeffrey Azoff, to Glenne Christiaansen in Montecito, California.
It was then reported that friendship had turned into romance on the set of the thriller “Don’t Worry Darling” directed by Wilde.
She had hired Styles in September to replace actor Shia LaBeouf, who is currently being charged by his ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs for alleged sexual assault and “brutal” abuse.
Styles, who first made an impression on Hollywood with his crackers in the 2017 war movie ‘Dunkirk’, plays the husband of a 1950s housewife who reveals a disturbing truth about her seemingly perfect life.
Wilde has admitted that she did a little “victory dance” after Styles joined the movie. In the December issue of Vogue, for which Styles donned a dress on the cover, she said, “… I hope this brand of self-confidence as a man that Harry has – really devoid of traces of toxic masculinity – is indicative of his generation. … It’s quite powerful and quite extraordinary to see someone in their position redefine what it can mean to be a confident man. ”
A source told Page Six that Wilde and Styles used his good friend James Corden’s house near Palm Springs during filming as a hideout to keep their relationship a secret. “They are two wonderful people and everyone is happy for them,” a friend of Harry’s told The Post.
An industry veteran who has worked with Styles frequently admitted, “Harry has a habit of flirting with older women, it’s no wonder Olivia fell for his charms.”
When he was only 17, Styles dated television host Caroline Flack after they met on the set of the British “X Factor”, Simon Cowell’s TV talent show, in which One Direction was forged and famous.
Flack was 31 at the time.
(The TV host committed suicide last February while on trial for domestic violence allegations. A devastated Styles wore a black ribbon in tribute to her at the BRIT Awards days later.)
At the age of 18, Styles was asked “how old” a woman “is too old” to consider dating. “Any woman older than my mother, Anne,” Styles replied. His mother is now 53.
His rather busy love life also included singer Nicole Scherzinger, who is 16 years older, as well as models Kendall Jenner, Sara Sampaio, Georgia Fowler and Camille Rowe, all in their 20s, and 30-year-old actress Kiko Mizuhara. Styles dated Taylor Swift, just five years his senior, in 2012 and 2013, and her hits “Out of the Woods” and “Style” are believed to be about him.
“I think he’s very smart,” a producer who has worked with Styles told The Post. “He is very creative and has a lot of business acumen and made many high profile friends when he was younger. He walks into a room and shakes hands with everyone from a CEO to the server, that’s how he was raised. He’s the same polite child he always was. “
Proof that he’s not just a pretty face, Styles – who wins three awards at the 2021 Grammys – launched his own record label, Erskine Records, under the Columbia umbrella and is a director of companies including HSA Publishing Ltd and Rollcall Touring Ltd., allowing him to become the owner of his publishing rights.
“This is due to ambition. It’s almost relentless ambition, but very polite. He had a very well-orchestrated plan for his solo career, ”said the producer. “Harry sees how people develop their image, like David Bowie and Madonna, and he knows all about the constant overhaul of your image to keep people talking and intrigued.
But you will never hear Styles talk too much about his private life. While he is aware that gossip is a territory, “Harry follows Kate Moss’ philosophy of ‘Never Complain, Never Explain’,” said the producer.
As for Wilde, she married director, photographer and quiet Italian prince, Tao Ruspoli, when she was just 19, in 2002, and they split up nine years later. During a show at Joe’s pub in NYC, she revealed, “I felt like my vagina was dying… shut down. Lights out … And you can lie to your relatives at Christmas dinner and tell them that everything back home is just peachy. But you can’t lie to your vagina. “
Meanwhile, Ruspoli made a documentary called “Monogamish” in which he said, “My wife just left me after almost 10 years together and my whole world has collapsed.”
Wilde met Sudeikis at an afterparty for “SNL”, on which he played for eight years. They became engaged in 2012, but never married.
Now, despite everything that has happened, the insider said, “Jason would still do anything for Olivia.”