I finally had a chance to watch The Invite with my HBO Max subscription, and as someone who went through a divorce a few years ago, it felt like Déjà Vu. So many similar arguments, so many conversations. I didn’t have to know about Olivia Wilde’s divorce from Jason Sudeikis to know it was all rooted in experience.
The only part that didn’t feel right for me was the ending. While there’s insistence that the ending is ambiguous, I’m not too sure I agree, having lived a similar version of those events. Here’s what I think, as well as what Wilde has said about the movie’s ending.
Why I Think Angela And Joe Reconciled After The Movie Ended
The decision to move forward with a divorce made sense, as did sleeping in separate rooms. Then it ended with a tender piano duet and a show of intimacy that, frankly, wasn’t there between my ex and me when we finally decided to end our marriage.
Obviously, there are tons of divorces every year, and many different scenarios. Maybe there were moments when people about to live separate lives indefinitely played the piano together and shared a tender cuddle before consulting a mediator or attorney, but that wasn’t my experience.
To me, it only makes sense that Angela and Joe ended up working on their marriage and didn’t split after all. I think for all the chaos of the trailer, seeing the ending with Joe finally playing his piano again shows that he’s willing to change and move forward. It’s the birth of a new stage of their relationship, and Angela joining him at the piano shows she’s ready to embrace it as well.
What Olivia Wilde Says About The Invite’s Ending
Olivia Wilde told USA Today that the ending is left up to the audience, but admitted she and Seth Rogen had different ideas about what happened. Rogen thought that Joe and Angela would be together forever, while Wilde believed that two people who break up can still love each other.
Seth Rogen’s optimistic take could come from the fact that he mainly does comedy movies, but I’d like to think he has the same takeaway I do about the final moment. Sure, people who divorce can still “have love” for each other without being in love, but I think that comes over time. Not in the instantaneous decision to divorce, but that’s just my thought.
Conversely, I think it would take a lot more for a couple who’s been together a decade plus to end their marriage. To make such a big decision in one night because the sex therapist who lives upstairs said your relationship is broken? To me, that feels like the most unrealistic part of The Invite, though again, it’s just my take.
The Invite is available to stream on HBO Max and is a great watch from earlier in the 2026 movie schedule for those who missed it. It’s considerably less funny than I was led to believe, but I am ultimately glad that I watched it.
