Olivia Wilde appreciates how wild auteur Gregg Araki can get.
Wilde, who leads Araki’s upcoming psychosexual thriller “I Want Your Sex,” told Variety that working with the filmmaker reinvigorated her love of cinema.
“He’s such a force,” Wilde said. “He’s so singular and authentic. I’ve never met someone less Hollywood. He is a filmmaker for all the right reasons. He is a freak in the best possible way. I’m so inspired by him.”
She continued, “I feel in many ways that movie reminded me of why I do this.”
“I Want Your Sex” co-stars Cooper Hoffman as Wilde’s onscreen paramour. Araki co-wrote the script with Karley Sciortino.
The official synopsis reads: “How far is too far? When fresh-faced Elliot (Hoffman) lands an exciting job for renowned artist, icon and provocateur Erika Tracy (Wilde), his fantasies come true as Erika taps him to become her sexual muse. But Elliot soon finds himself out of his depth as Erika takes him on a journey more profound than he ever could have imagined, into a world of sex, obsession, power, betrayal, and murder. Featuring outrageous characters and a playful sense of humor, ‘I Want Your Sex’ will upend expectations in a way that will both shock and delight!”
Charli xcx also appears in the film.
The feature wrapped principal photography in October 2024. Wilde took to social media to applaud the production, writing, “Congrats to the boss man Gregg Araki, the brilliant Cooper Hoffman, the entire kick-ass cast, and our incredible crew on wrapping this wild movie. I love you guys.”
Araki previously told IndieWire that “I Want Your Sex” is “a comedy, but it’s still one of my movies,” referencing his signature darkness.
“It’s about Gen Z, and it has a little bit of that old movie ‘Secretary,’ another ‘old indie movie’ from the ‘90s,” Araki said. “One thing that is striking about talking about the ‘90s and the current day is the current generation doesn’t have sex. I found that so shocking and strange. Looking back on my life, sex and sexuality and sexual identity have been key to my entire being and life and development as a person, and that’s why my films tend to always focus on those.”
Araki further teased, “Olivia plays an artist in the movie, and she says things in the movie that I have said in interviews about how sex and sexuality are kind of what make us human. They’re such an important part of growing up and figuring out who you are, so that’s part of the movie, the importance of sexuality, and Gen Z and how they’re not having sex.”
