Florence Pugh attends East of Eden screening in London

What happened

Florence Pugh attended a London screening of East of Eden, in which she plays Cathy Ames, one of the central characters in John Steinbeck’s story of two interconnected American families.

The 30-year-old actress appeared at BAFTA alongside fellow cast members Tom Sweet and Mike Faist. She wore an off-the-shoulder black gown with layers of ruffles, paired with a red necklace.

The screening brought attention to Pugh’s latest literary adaptation after her appearance in Little Women. Her new role places her within a family saga whose conflicts develop across generations, against the agricultural landscape of California.

During publicity for the production, Pugh also faced questions about her experience making Don’t Worry Darling with director Olivia Wilde. She chose not to revisit the alleged dispute in detail, instead directing the conversation towards her current work and career.

Wilde has previously rejected allegations that she shouted at Pugh during filming. The claims concern the production of a film released in 2022, rather than the making of East of Eden.

The background

East of Eden takes place in the Salinas Valley in the early 20th century. Its narrative connects the Trask and Hamilton families, following the relationships and conflicts that shape their lives over successive generations.

Cathy is a manipulative character who leaves her husband and turns away from the domestic responsibilities expected of her. Her departure from marriage and motherhood leads her to work in a brothel, placing her outside the social conventions governing women in the story’s setting.

The part involves more than a change in surroundings or costume. Cathy’s decisions have consequences for the family she leaves behind, making her actions central to the novel’s examination of parental influence, rejection and the inheritance of family conflict.

Steinbeck’s novel was published in 1952. It draws on the biblical account of Cain and Abel, using relationships between brothers and between parents and children to explore rivalry, favouritism and responsibility. Its title also comes from the Book of Genesis.

That biblical framework sits alongside a recognisable Californian landscape. Salinas Valley is an agricultural region on the state’s central coast, and Steinbeck grew up in Salinas. The area’s farms, communities and social divisions recur throughout his writing, giving the family drama a particular geographical foundation.

The novel’s concern with good and evil is closely connected to the question of choice. Characters struggle with the fear that their background or their parents’ behaviour will determine their own lives. The distinction between inherited circumstances and individual decisions runs through its treatment of family relationships.

East of Eden has a significant screen history. Elia Kazan directed the 1955 film adaptation starring James Dean, which concentrated on the later part of the novel rather than attempting to cover its entire multigenerational narrative. That film helped establish Dean as a major screen actor.

The difference between a feature film and a television adaptation is relevant to a book with this breadth. A serial format provides separate episodes in which to develop relationships and shifts across generations; the earlier film’s narrower focus demonstrates how differently the same novel can be approached for the screen.

The background to the questions about Wilde lies in another kind of story about domestic life. Don’t Worry Darling concerns women who are made, without their knowledge, to live as 1950s-style housewives through arrangements imposed by their partners.

Speculation about relations between its director and leading actress became part of the film’s publicity in 2022. Wilde’s relationship with co-star Harry Styles also attracted attention during that period. Their relationship lasted almost two years.

What people are saying

In her Vanity Fair interview, Pugh indicated that discussing the alleged difficulties with Wilde was not where she wanted to place the emphasis. She pointed instead to subjects already covered in the conversation that she considered more relevant to her life and professional direction.

Asked about Wilde’s new film, The Invite, Pugh said she had not watched it. She nevertheless spoke positively about its cast and said the comments she had heard about the production had been favourable.

Her remarks about working conditions came in a separate discussion of how she would approach directing. Pugh described a preference for an orderly working environment in which people could concentrate on their jobs and take pleasure in the opportunity to make a film.

She also linked changes in atmosphere on a production to people being prevented from doing that work. In her account, disruption can leave those on set feeling that their needs and wellbeing are being overlooked. She framed those observations around the kind of workplace she would want to oversee.

Those broader comments were not a detailed allegation about a particular incident involving Wilde. Keeping that distinction matters: Pugh discussed her expectations of a film set while declining to expand on the earlier claims about their relationship.

Wilde’s previous response was more specific. She denied having a shouting confrontation on the Don’t Worry Darling set and also rejected the suggestion that she had been unavailable during production. Her denial addressed both her conduct and her presence as director.

Wilde has also described her relationship with Styles in positive terms. That personal account is separate from the allegations about the film’s working environment, which she disputed. Public discussion of the production brought the two subjects together, although they concern different aspects of her life.

What happens next

Netflix will release East of Eden on 1 October. The adaptation comprises seven episodes, making the London event a screening ahead of its arrival on the streaming service rather than the start of a cinema release.

For audiences, the episodic structure means following the family narrative through a series rather than a single feature. Cathy’s rejection of her prescribed role as a wife and mother forms part of that wider story, alongside the connections between the Trasks and Hamiltons.

Pugh’s comments about directing concerned a possible future move behind the camera. They expressed how she would want to run a production, rather than setting out a directing project or a timetable for one.

Why this matters

For UK viewers interested in literary drama, the production brings an American family story to a subscription streaming platform. Its early-20th-century setting provides the context for conflicts over women’s independence, marriage and the obligations imposed by family life.

The accompanying discussion also concerns filmmaking as a workplace. Pugh’s emphasis was on allowing cast and crew to do their jobs in a supportive environment; Wilde’s response concerned her own conduct as a director. Neither should be confused with an assessment of the new adaptation.