The relationship comedy-drama The Invite officially launched for subscription streaming in the United States on HBO Max on Friday, October 23, 2026. Directed by and starring Olivia Wilde, the A24 film features an ensemble cast including Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz, and Edward Norton, working from a screenplay written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack. Following a well-received theatrical run earlier this year, the adaptation of the 2020 Spanish comedy arrives on the streaming platform alongside a scheduled linear broadcast premiere on HBO on Saturday, October 24, at 8 p.m. Eastern, according to Cleveland.com.

Set in San Francisco, the 1-hour-and-47-minute film examines the friction within a stagnant marriage when a couple hosts their vocal, sexually liberated upstairs neighbors for an evening of drinks and conversation. Produced by David Permut, Ben Browning, and Megan Ellison, the project transitions from the Sundance Film Festival and multiplexes to the home viewing market as early awards-season discussions take shape.

A San Francisco Dinner Party Spirals Into Marital Chaos

The plot centers on Joe (Rogen) and Angela (Wilde), a long-married couple living in San Francisco whose relationship has deteriorated to the point of near collapse. As noted by Polygon, the pair has grown so distant that their shared affection for their child remains their only common ground. Decider details that with their 12-year-old daughter away at a sleepover, a weary, cynical Joe returns home from teaching classical music rehearsals to find an anxious Angela rolling out a new living-room rug and preparing a charcuterie board.

Against Joe's wishes, Angela extends a last-minute invitation to their upstairs neighbors, Piña (Cruz) and Hawk (Norton). Prior to the gathering, the neighbors have been a constant source of auditory tension in Joe and Angela's sexless apartment due to their loud, frequent intimate encounters at all hours. When Piña and Hawk arrive, their effortless confidence and progressive openness immediately clash with Joe's passive-aggressive sarcasm and Angela's frantic attempts to play the perfect host.

The evening shifts from awkward small talk to an interrogation when Piña and Hawk reveal that the noise coming from upstairs is the result of group sex parties. As the neighbors casually field questions and present boundary-pushing propositions, the conversation forces Joe and Angela to confront the lingering resentments and unspoken desires within their own home.

Adapting Cesc Gay's Spanish Film for American Audiences

The Invite serves as an English-language remake of filmmaker Cesc Gay's 2020 Spanish relationship comedy. Outlets refer to the original source material by different titles depending on regional release history: Yahoo Entertainment and ComingSoon note it was released internationally as The People Upstairs, while Decider refers to its original Spanish title, Sentimental.

For the American adaptation, screenwriters Will McCormack and Rashida Jones preserved the single-location stage mechanics of the original while tailoring the neurotic sensibilities to a contemporary California backdrop. The project marks a tonal pivot for Wilde as a filmmaker, moving from the psychological thriller elements of her previous directorial effort, Don't Worry Darling, into a dialogue-heavy, character-driven four-hander.

Box Office Performance, Critical Reception, and Awards Speculation

The film's path to HBO Max began at the start of 2026 at the Sundance Film Festival, where its premiere drew a standing ovation and ignited a multi-studio bidding war ultimately won by A24. According to figures reported by Yahoo Entertainment and ComingSoon, the comedy went on to gross more than $61 million worldwide during its theatrical run against a reported $15 million production budget.

Critical and audience responses have been largely favorable. ComingSoon reports that the movie holds a 96% critics score on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer alongside an 89% audience Popcornmeter rating. In a three-star review for The Boston Globe, film critic Odie Henderson described the picture as a "raucous, argumentative dark comedy." Meanwhile, Decider praised the ensemble's timing, singling out Wilde's agitated physical comedy and calling the film her strongest directing work to date.

While secondary coverage from outlets like Yahoo Entertainment has highlighted early "Oscar buzz" surrounding the screenplay and ensemble performances, no formal awards nominations have been established at this stage in the calendar, placing the film strictly in the category of early awards-season speculation.

What Viewers Should Expect on Streaming

For home audiences browsing weekend streaming options alongside major releases like Disney's live-action Moana and Netflix's Lupin, The Invite offers an adult-oriented alternative built on verbal sparring rather than visual spectacle.

Is 'The Invite' a broad farce or a serious drama?

The movie operates as a hybrid. While the premise relies on the comedic friction between an uptight married pair and their uninhibited neighbors, reviews indicate that the humor gradually gives way to a pointed examination of long-term partnership, middle-aged dissatisfaction, and emotional honesty.

Does the movie offer a neat resolution?

Viewers expecting a traditional comedic wrap-up should prepare for an open-ended conclusion. According to Decider, screenwriters Jones and McCormack discussed on the Scriptnotes podcast that they intentionally left the ending ambiguous, allowing the audience to decide whether the chaotic evening repairs or permanently fractures Joe and Angela's marriage.

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