- The Invite (2026) movie review summary: In this witty, incisive comedy-drama about the intricacies of human relationships and the workings of the human mind, Olivia Wilde proves herself as adroit – as an actress, director, and at eliciting laughs – as the younger Woody Allen.
The Invite (2026) movie review: Olivia Wilde proves herself as adept – as performer, director, and at eliciting laughs – as the younger Woody Allen
Directed by Olivia Wilde, and starring Wilde, Seth Rogen, Academy Award winner Penélope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona, 2008), and four-time nominee Edward Norton (Primal Fear, 1996; etc.), the witty psychological comedy-drama The Invite is an English-language remake of Cesc Gay’s 2020 Spanish feature The People Upstairs / Sentimental, itself an adaptation of Gay’s own 2015 Catalan-language play Els veïns de dalt (literally, “The Neighbors from Upstairs”).[1]
Gay’s 2020 movie delves into relationship dynamics, examining how long-term couples navigate various issues: Intimacy, mutual communication, the vicissitudes of life, the impact of outside influences. The Invite considers these matters as well, in much the same format, at times duplicating the same scenes to much the same effect – only in English. Both versions are remarkably effective, in much the same way and for the same reasons: The relationships are real, the drama sincere, and the humor wickedly funny.
Will McCormack and Rashida Jones wrote the American adaptation, which, like its source material, is full of dry, awkward humor that makes you laugh at the uncomfortable moments (of which there are many), while also offering a torrent of sly, sharp dialogue honed toward the stylings of the players, particularly Seth Rogen and Edward Norton, both of whom are exceptional.
Sex takes center stage
When we first meet Joe (Rogen) and Angela (Wilde), their marriage seems like an ordinary 20-year relationship, with the expected tensions and fissures. They have a child (whom we don’t see) and a history that had begun with passion and verve. But then we realize that their union has actually been turned into ongoing sniping, second-guessing, and simmering resentment. It’s also passionless.
Sex, in fact, is at the center of both movie versions of The People from Upstairs: Joe and Angela are not having it, but their upstairs neighbors are; loudly, with joy, and apparently, with friends, as they are swingers of a sort.
Angela, much to Joe’s chagrin, invites the couple upstairs, Piña (Cruz) and Hawk (Norton), for dinner. The low-boil resistance Joe engages in while attempting to convince Angela to cancel the dinner, juxtaposed with Angela’s peaked, nervous resistance to his resistance, carries the film through a strong first act that depicts a seriously strained relationship – yet one that is also very funny and very familiar.
Piña and Hawk arrive with flan and frankness. What starts out as an uncomfortable evening evolves into an uncomfortable, hilarious, and surprisingly emotional night consisting of brutally honest statements, unexpected revelations, and a proposition: Piña and Hawk invite Joe and Angela for a swing.
Genuinely awkward humor
The conversation around such an invitation adds to the awkward humor, allowing actress-director Wilde to work her way through a series of scenes with the dexterity of a young Woody Allen. Indeed, both Wilde and Allen have starred in and directed movies requiring deft performances and a steady hand in the filmmaker’s chair.[2]
The Invite’s wonderfully realistic dialogue is just as important here, as it features lots of cross-talk and fragments of questions and answers that ring true. “How does it work?” Angela asks. “Are there rules? Maybe there are no rules. Are there rules? Can anyone do anything to anyone?” Joe, for his part, mostly wants to know what happens if no one picks you – meaning him.
It’s all staggeringly funny. Yet the humor belies the fact that Joe and Angela believe the swing might be just what they need: Someone other than their spouse to adore them.
Rare film
With The Invite, Olivia Wilde manages to balance laugh-out-loud humor with complex emotions arising from deep within. In fact, this relationship dramedy is one of those rare films where everything works: The acting, direction, music, and writing are all pitch-perfect.
The Invite thus confirms that Wilde is a director of considerable talent, as her previous efforts had already suggested. Both the coming-of-age comedy Booksmart and the psychological thriller Don’t Worry Darling (a movie overshadowed by production drama) were notably well executed.
Also worth pointing out, although The Invite mostly takes place inside an apartment, it never feels confined. The filmmaker and director of photography Adam Newport-Berra find places for the camera in a manner that allows the viewer to feel like a guest – not a voyeur – at the dinner. Another plus: Anthony Boys and Yorgos Mavropsaridis’ fluid but never choppy editing.
In all, The Invite is the kind of bright, grown-up comedy that was the stock-in-trade of directors like Paul Mazursky, Susan Seidelman, Rob Reiner, and the previously mentioned Woody Allen. I love it as much as I love the Spanish-language original, which I also highly recommend.
The Invite (2026) cast & crew
Director: Olivia Wilde
Screenplay: Will McCormack & Rashida Jones
Source: Screenwriter-director Cesc Gay’s 2020 film The People Upstairs, itself based on Gay’s 2015 play Els veïns de daltCast:
Seth Rogen … Joe
Olivia Wilde … Angela
Penélope Cruz … Piña
Edward Norton … HawkCinematography: Adam Newport-Berra
Film Editing: Anthony Boys & Yorgos Mavropsaridis
Music: Devonté Hynes
Production Design: Jade Healy
Producers: Ben Browning, Megan Ellison & David Permut
Running Time: 107m
Country: United States
“The Invite (2026) Movie Review: Deft Olivia Wilde” notes
Els veïns de dalt, The People Upstairs & other big-screen versions
[1] Els veïns de dalt opened in March 2015 at the Teatro Romea in Barcelona. It was later staged, in Spanish, as Los vecinos de arriba (again, “The Neighbors from Upstairs”). Cesc Gay’s 2020 movie version stars Javier Cámara, Griselda Siciliani, Belén Cuesta, and Best Supporting Actor Goya Award winner Alberto San Juan.
Besides The Invite and The People Upstairs, other big-screen versions of Gay’s film/play include Paolo Costella’s Italian-language Neighbors / Vicini di casa (2022), Sabine Boss’ German-language The Neighbors from Upstairs / Die Nachbarn von oben (2023), and Olivier Ducray and Wilfried Méance’s French-language Maybe More / Et plus si affinités (2024).
Diane Keaton
[2] The Invite is dedicated to Diane Keaton, who died in October 2025.
Keaton was Woody Allen’s costar in most of his movies of the 1970s, among them Love and Death (1975), Annie Hall (1977), and Manhattan (1979). Based on her off-screen relationship with the filmmaker, Annie Hall earned her that year’s Best Actress Academy Award.
Also of note, Keaton and Olivia Wilde played mother and daughter in Jessie Nelson’s 2015 Christmas comedy-drama Love the Coopers.
The Invite (2026) movie credits via TMDb.org and other sources.
Penélope Cruz and Olivia Wilde The Invite images: A24.
“The Invite (2026) Movie Review: Deft Olivia Wilde” last modified in July 2026.