‘I’m the puppeteer’: Nick Kroll jokes he masterminded Don’t Worry Darling drama rumours to ‘create buzz’

Nick Kroll has joked that he’s the “puppeteer” behind the rumoured drama surrounding Don’t Worry Darling.

The comedian has a supporting role in Olivia Wilde’s psychological thriller, which stars Florence Pugh and Harry Styles.

However, the film, which was released last week, has been plagued with rumours of behind-the-scenes drama, which reportedly stems from an alleged “feud” between Wilde and Pugh.

Things reached a peak when Don’t Worry Darling premiered at Venice Film Festival earlier this month, during which a video circulated online claiming to show Styles spitting on co-star Chris Pine.

Both Pine and Styles’ representatives denied the validity of the clip, while Wilde said last week that it was “a perfect example of people [looking] for drama anywhere they can”.

Appearing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday (27 February), Kroll joked that he had started the drama – including “spitgate” – in order to generate “buzz” for the film.

“If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s a thriller, and I think the less you know about the movie going in, the better, so that when you’re watching it, it’s all new and surprising,” the Big Mouth creator explained.

“So I decided – let’s create a lot of buzz around the film, but not about the film itself.”

Fallon suggested that Kroll was the “mastermind” behind the operation, with the comedian responding: “You know, I’m the puppeteer.”

“I was like, ‘Hey Harry, you know what would be a great idea? When you walk into the premiere in Venice, spit on Chris Pine.” And he was like, ‘Got it.’ But then he was like, “I don’t know if that’s gonna work,’” he joked.

“So then I was like, ‘Maybe you should just give me a kiss.’ And then I asked him to spit in my mouth and he wouldn’t do that. The guy’s got boundaries.”

Kroll then joked that his plan had “ended up working”, as Don’t Worry Darling topped the US box office in its opening weekend.

Don’t Worry Darling is in cinemas now.