Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 11, 2026

The Invite

The Invite is a 2026 American comedy film directed by Olivia Wilde, and written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones. It is an English language remake of the Spanish film The People Upstairs by Cesc Gay. It stars Wilde along with Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton.

Last revised
Jun 11, 2026
Read time
≈ 7 min
Length
1,536 w
Citations
33
Source
Wikipedia ↗
The Invite
Theatrical release poster
Directed byOlivia Wilde
Screenplay by
Based on
The People Upstairs
by Cesc Gay
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyAdam Newport-Berra
Edited by
Music byDevonté Hynes
Production
companies
Distributed byA24
Release dates
  • January 24, 2026 (2026-01-24) (Sundance)
  • June 26, 2026 (2026-06-26) (United States)
Running time
107 minutes2
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Invite is a 2026 American comedy film directed by Olivia Wilde, and written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones. It is an English language remake of the Spanish film The People Upstairs by Cesc Gay. It stars Wilde along with Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton.

The Invite premiered at the Eccles Theater as a part of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2026, receiving positive reviews from critics. The film is scheduled for a limited theatrical release in the United States on June 26, 2026, by A24.

Cast

Production

It was announced in March 2021 that a remake of the 2020 Spanish film The People Upstairs (Sentimental,3 an adaptation of Cesc Gay's stage play Els veïns de dalt (catalan) / Los vecinos de arriba (spanish).4) was in development from producer David Permut.5 In March 2022, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris were hired to direct the film, with Rashida Jones and Will McCormack set to write the screenplay.6 In May 2023, retitled The Invite, Amy Adams, Paul Rudd and Tessa Thompson were cast to star.7

Development stalled until April 2025, when it was announced Olivia Wilde was now directing, with herself, Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton cast to star. Filming began in Los Angeles.8 On May 21, 2025,9 it was reported that filming took place in San Francisco on Tuesday and Wednesday of that week, specifically at the auditorium3 in A.P. Giannini Middle School in the Sunset District, a BART train from Glen Park station to Balboa Park station, Make-Out Room10 nightclub in the Mission District,3 Castro District Farmers' Market,11 and Molinari Delicatessen.12 The film was ultimately shot in 23 days, in chronological order.13 The film is dedicated to Diane Keaton.14

Release

Norton, Wilde, and Rogen attending the premiere of The Invite at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival source ↗

The Invite premiered at the Eccles Theater as a part of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2026.15 Following its premiere, multiple studios were reported to be in talks for distribution rights to the film, including A24, Netflix, Searchlight Pictures, Focus Features, Sony Pictures, Black Bear Pictures (which subsequently acquired U.K. rights from FilmNation Entertainment), Neon, and Apple TV, with bids reaching as high as $10 million.16 The bidding war eventually narrowed down to A24 and Focus, with offers going over $12 million.17 Despite a last-minute bid from Warner Bros. Pictures' nascent specialty division (later christened Warner Bros. Clockwork), A24 ultimately acquired the film's U.S. distribution rights.1819 The film was also programmed in the main competition of the 73rd Sydney Film Festival.20

It is scheduled for a limited theatrical release in the United States on June 26, 2026,21 before expanding to a wide release on July 10, 2026.

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 92% of 36 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.5/10.22 Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 77 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.23

Owen Gleiberman of Variety deemed the film to be "marvelously entertaining" and compared it to Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?24 Similarly, Adam Chitwood of TheWrap compared the result to something like "the great-great-grandchild" of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, underscoring the film to be "endlessly relatable, sometimes uncomfortably so".25 Benjamin Lee of The Guardian rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, welcoming it as a "genuinely funny and uncommonly intelligent comedy for adults".26

Kate Erbland of IndieWire gave the film a B+ rating, assessing that, a bit of stumbling in the third act notwithstanding, the rest of the film is "such a treat, a truly adult comedy with plenty to say and even more laughs to share."27 David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter declared the film as "well worth RSVPing" in the bottom line.28 Glenn Garner of Deadline wrote that the film "explores dynamics of sex and relationships with raw and endearing honesty".14 Tim Grierson of Screen International described the film as an "uneven comedy-drama that ultimately has something fresh to say about sex, love and commitment".29

Bilge Ebiri of Vulture resented that the characters' "emotional twists don't feel fully earned", also pointing out that The Invite "feels at times like a film that could have benefited from more control", while giving a fully negative assessment about the use of the musical score.30

References

References

  1. Karoff, Timothy (May 20, 2025). "Major Hollywood movie appears to be shooting at a San Francisco bar tomorrow". SFGATE. Retrieved June 6, 2026.
  2. "The Invite (2026)". Irish Film Classification Office. March 27, 2026. Retrieved March 27, 2026.
  3. Irshad, Zara (May 21, 2025). "These celebrities hid among BART riders for S.F. film shoot: 'I've never seen anything like it'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 19, 2025.
  4. Vicente, Eduardo de (October 30, 2020). "Cesc Gay nos explica las anécdotas de rodaje de 'Sentimental'". El Periódico de Catalunya.
  5. Grater, Tom (March 2, 2021). "English-Language Remake Of Spanish Hit Comedy The People Upstairs In The Works From Hacksaw Ridge Producer David Permut". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  6. Fleming, Mike Jr. (March 14, 2022). "Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris To Helm FilmNation Remake The People Upstairs; Rashida Jones & Will McCormack Scripting". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  7. Grobar, Matt (May 3, 2023). "Amy Adams, Paul Rudd & Tessa Thompson Set For Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris' FilmNation Comedy The Invite". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  8. Lang, Brent (April 23, 2025). "Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton to Star in Olivia Wilde's Date Night Comedy The Invite (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved April 23, 2025.
  9. "Seth Rogen Movie Shoot Creating All Sorts of Hubbub Across San Francisco". SFist. May 21, 2025. Retrieved June 6, 2026.
  10. Dineen, J. K. (June 6, 2026). "For 30 years, these Mission bars nurtured S.F. musicians. Now they're for sale". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 6, 2026. Longtime owner Marty Rapalski is selling the Make-Out Room and the Latin American Club.
  11. "Castro Farmers' Market". PCFMA .org. Pacific Coast Farmers' Market Association. April 2, 2025. Retrieved October 19, 2025.
  12. Karoff, Timothy (May 22, 2025). "Here's where in San Francisco the Olivia Wilde and Seth Rogen movie shot this week". SFGate. Retrieved May 23, 2025.
  13. Olivia Wilde Sex Comedy 'The Invite' Ignites First Big Bidding War of Sundance
  14. Garner, Glenn (January 24, 2026). "'The Invite' Review: Director & Star Olivia Wilde Navigates Dinner Parties, Monogamy & Orgies In Whip-Smart Marital Comedy — Sundance Film Festival". Deadline. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  15. D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 24, 2026). "Olivia Wilde's 'The Invite' Gets Standing Ovation At Sundance World Premiere". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  16. D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 26, 2026). "Sundance Deals Looming For 'The Invite' & 'Leviticus' – The Dish". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  17. Rubin, Rebecca; Donnelly, Matt (January 26, 2026). "Olivia Wilde's Sundance Darling 'The Invite' Bidding War Narrows to A24, Focus Features as Offers Eclipse $12 Million". Variety. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  18. D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 27, 2026). "Battle For Olivia Wilde's 'The Invite' Heats Up As Warner Bros New Contemporary Film Label Joins Into Mix With A24 & Focus Features – Sundance". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
  19. Rubin, Rebecca (January 27, 2026). "Olivia Wilde's 'The Invite' Sells to A24 Following Sundance Premiere". Variety. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
  20. Stoilova, Mila (May 8, 2026). "Sydney Film Festival lines up 2026 competition". ScreenDaily.
  21. D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 19, 2026). "A24's Big Sundance Acquisition 'The Invite' From Olivia Wilde Sets Summer Release". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
  22. "The Invite". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
  23. "The Invite". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
  24. Gleiberman, Owen (January 24, 2026). "'The Invite' Review: Olivia Wilde Directs and Stars in a Bravura Dinner-Party Dramedy That's like 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?' Redone as Vintage Woody Allen". Variety. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  25. Chitwood, Adam (January 24, 2026). "'The Invite' Review: Olivia Wilde Scores With Hilarious, Sharp Relationship Dramedy". TheWrap. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  26. Lee, Benjamin (January 25, 2026). "The Invite review – A-list ensemble electrify hilarious couples night gone wrong comedy". The Guardian. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  27. Erbland, Kate (January 25, 2026). "'The Invite' Review: You're Going to Want to Attend Olivia Wilde's Crackling, Crazy Entertaining Dinner Party from Hell". IndieWire. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  28. Rooney, David (January 25, 2026). "'The Invite' Review: Starring Alongside MVP Seth Rogen, Director Olivia Wilde Steers a Tart Marital Comedy Into Occasionally Choppy Darker Waters". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  29. Grierson, Tim (January 25, 2026). "'The Invite' review: Olivia Wilde directs and stars in glossy, tense dinner party drama". ScreenDaily. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
  30. Ebiri, Bilge (January 25, 2026). "The Invite Is Occasionally Funny, But That's About It". Vulture. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
External links