The director-actress bonds with Kelly Clarkson over redefining their family dynamics.
Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis may be going through a contentious custody battle, but they can both agree on at least one thing.
"My priority is them," Wilde says of the two children she shares with her former fiance, 8-year-old Otis and 5-year-old Daisy. "As long as they're happy and they're healthy then -- my ex and I, we agree on that. They are everything to us."
Wilde and Kelly Clarkson share a moment of bonding during the Don't Worry Darling director's Wednesday appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, addressing how they are both navigating their new roles as single mothers. Clarkson split from husband Brandon Blackstock in June of 2020 after seven years of marriage, while Wilde and Sudeikis called it quits in November of 2020 after nine years together.
"It's tough," Wilde admits. "I think, you know, reshaping a family is tricky, and the one benefit is it's allowed for some really deep conversations with my kids about emotions and about happiness and about what family means and love and it's actually allowed me to get to know them in a different way."
Referring to her personal experiences in both growing up herself and raising her own children today, Clarkson calls navigating a blended family "hard" but "doable."
"If you can surround them with so much love, then it's OK," Wilde agrees. "But, you know, it's tricky because we're not doing it in private."
Much of Wilde's personal and professional life has been on display in recent months, as she navigates both an escalating legal battle with Sudeikis over where their children will live and drama surrounding the promotional tour of her new film.
"At the end of the the day, I'm so lucky," she says, keeping her troubles in perspective. "There's people dealing with so many hard things. The people of Jackson, Mississippi, don't have water. There's people everywhere dealing with real health crises and, you know, my stuff is out there but I'm alive and my kids are alive, and that's what gets me through. I remind myself of that every single day."
Wilde also says she keeps her mental health in check by staying off the internet and not "trying to control the narrative."
"I think that really helps," she says of her decision to abstain from social media. "Focusing on what's really -- your trusted circle of friends, what's real, things that make you happy, people you love, people who love you."
Don't Worry Darling hits theaters on Sept. 23.
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