Olivia Wilde Laughs Off Gollum Comparisons After Viral Red Carpet Clip

Olivia Wilde mocked herself after online critics likened her recent red carpet appearance to the Lord of the Rings character Gollum.

Last week, Wilde promoted her new film, The Invite, at the San Francisco Film Festival. She gave an on-camera interview with SFGATE, and the footage quickly went viral.

"The cameraman really doing a disservice here," one user commented on the post.

"She looks as if she had found the one ring," another said, referencing the Lord of the Rings franchise.

Over the weekend, Wilde addressed the criticism on social media. She captioned a clip, "Leave it to your little brother to give you the maximum amount of s---," according to People.

In the clip, her brother Charlie Cockburn asked, "Olivia Wilde, do you care to address recent rumors that you're a resurrected corpse?"

"Listen, that's a fish-eye lens. And I admit, is that my best angle? Was that my best-ever look? No. No, it's startling," she said. "It's a startling image."

"It was a fish-eye lens," she added while giggling. "I don't know why I was so close to the camera. I didn't have to be. That's not the truth."

"Do you have any more questions?" she asked jokingly. "I'm not dead."

Wilde has a history of confronting controversy. At the Red Sea International Film Festival in 2024, the actress and director said she rarely seeks approval from outside voices.

She said she enjoys pitching projects that people know she won't fear. "And I think part of that is being willing to not be accepted, being willing to not be celebrated by everyone, being willing to not be loved by everyone."

"I think a huge problem with our business – around the world, I imagine it's the same – when you conflate filmmaking or acting with fame or with large-scale acceptance, you immediately cut off every opportunity to do any risky work," she added. "And so I think that it was important to me to never become overly focused on being accepted or loved."