The Invite Review: Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz Deliver a Sharp Dinner Party Farce

A dinner party gone wrong is one of cinema's most reliable premises, and Olivia Wilde's third feature makes a strong case for why the format still works.

The Invite expanded to nationwide theatrical release on July 10, 2026, after an initial run in select cities, and critics are largely calling it Wilde's most confident directorial work since her 2019 debut Booksmart.

Directed by and starring Olivia Wilde, The Invite is a remake of Cesc Gay's Spanish stage-to-screen adaptation The People Upstairs, a premise that has already been adapted into films across Spain, Italy, Switzerland, France, and South Korea. The English language version, written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack, relocates the story to San Francisco's Bay Area and unfolds entirely over a single fraught evening.

Wilde plays Angela, an anxious woman living with her husband Joe, played by Seth Rogen, whose 12-year-old daughter is conveniently away at a sleepover. Angela has secretly invited their upstairs neighbors Pina and Hawk, played by Penelope Cruz and Edward Norton, over for wine and charcuterie without fully clearing it with Joe first, who has his own grievance against the couple over their notoriously noisy sex life keeping him and Angela awake at odd hours. What begins as passive-aggressive small talk gradually spirals into an evening of painful confessions, bruised egos, and revelations that neither couple saw coming.

Critics have been consistent in praising the film's central performances, particularly the dynamic between the two couples. NPR's review noted that Wilde and Rogen are all too persuasive as a long-married couple who know exactly how to push each other's buttons, singling out Rogen for channeling the boisterous energy of his earlier comedic work into something that has hardened into middle-aged discontent. Norton and Cruz fare just as well playing the seemingly perfect neighbors, with Cruz in particular drawing praise for resisting a hot-blooded stereotype and instead grounding her therapist and sexologist character, Pina, in something far more emotionally precise.

Rotten Tomatoes reviews describe the film as a sophisticated farce that reaffirms Wilde as one of the most exciting filmmakers working today, with one critic comparing it favorably to a modern Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, albeit with considerably more kink involved. The Federal's review went further, calling it Wilde's strongest work yet after the disappointment of her 2022 psychological thriller Don't Worry Darling, describing The Invite as an astute dissection of long-term relationships that matches the sharpness of some of the year's best relationship dramas.

Not every review has been unreserved. WBUR's critic praised the film's cast while noting Rogen struggles to find a second gear beyond his established comic persona, and NPR's review, while broadly positive, described the film's third act as playing it a little too safe, pulling back from a more audacious outcome the setup seems to be building toward. Several critics agree the film's middle stretch, roughly forty minutes where all four actors are working at full intensity together, is where the film is at its strongest, with the tension occasionally softening once the story moves toward resolution.

As a remake of material that has already been adapted five times across different countries, The Invite's success ultimately hinges on execution rather than novelty, and on that front the consensus is largely favorable. Wilde's direction has been specifically praised for pulling the camera back once Norton and Cruz arrive, allowing the four leads to carry scenes through performance rather than visual flourish, a restraint that critics have contrasted with the more frenetic energy of her earlier work on Booksmart.

The film is distributed by Universal Pictures and had previously enjoyed a limited release in select cities before today's wide nationwide expansion, giving it a head start in critical buzz compared to films opening cold. That staggered rollout strategy has become increasingly common for adult-skewing dramedies looking to build word of mouth ahead of a full theatrical push, and early reviews suggest it has worked in The Invite's favor.

For audiences who enjoy dialogue-driven relationship dramas anchored by strong ensemble casts, The Invite looks like one of the stronger adult counterprogramming options in theatres this summer, offering genuine star power across all four leads and a director who appears to have found her footing again after a rocky previous outing.

The Invite's marketplace of adaptations is itself worth noting for cinephiles. Cesc Gay's original stage-to-screen version, The People Upstairs, has now been remade in six different countries, an unusually high number for a single premise that speaks to how universally the central setup, two couples forced into uncomfortable honesty over one evening, translates across cultures. Wilde's version is the first English language adaptation with a genuinely starry Hollywood cast, giving it a visibility the earlier international versions never had.

Given the film's counterprogramming positioning against bigger event releases opening the same weekend, including Moana and Evil Dead Burn, The Invite is unlikely to top box office charts, but adult-skewing dramedies with strong reviews and recognizable stars have historically shown better per-screen averages and longer theatrical legs than their opening numbers alone would suggest. That pattern, combined with the reviews rolling in this week, points to a film built for steady word of mouth rather than a single blockbuster opening weekend.

For UK audiences specifically, the film's ensemble carries added appeal given Edward Norton and Penelope Cruz's long standing international followings, and distributors are banking on that crossover star power to help The Invite find an audience beyond the arthouse crowd that typically gravitates toward remakes of European stage material. Whether that bet pays off will become clearer once opening weekend numbers from wider international markets are reported over the coming days.

Quick Facts

• Release Date: July 10, 2026 (nationwide expansion)

• Platform: Theatrical release (Universal Pictures)

• Director: Olivia Wilde

• Cast: Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, Edward Norton

• Genre: Comedy, Drama, Mystery

• Basis: Remake of Cesc Gay's The People Upstairs

FAQs

Is The Invite based on a true story?

No, it is a remake of Cesc Gay's Spanish stage-to-screen adaptation The People Upstairs, which has previously been adapted in several other countries.

Who stars in The Invite?

Olivia Wilde, who also directs, stars alongside Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton.

Is The Invite playing in theatres now?

Yes, the film expanded to nationwide theatrical release on July 10, 2026, after an earlier limited run in select cities.

How does The Invite compare to Olivia Wilde's other films?

Several critics have called it her strongest directorial work since her 2019 debut Booksmart, marking a rebound from the more mixed reception of 2022's Don't Worry Darling.