Olivia Colman has been in the acting business for decades, but she has never seen anything quite like the online reaction to her latest project.
Her new movie, Wicker, has taken social media by storm. It is already being called the weirdest romantic comedy of 2026. Long before its theatrical release, the film sparked a wave of viral memes, steamy jokes, and intense internet interest.
Speaking on the red carpet at the London Film Festival premiere, Colman admitted the frenzy caught her completely off guard. "No, literally this has never happened for anything I’ve done before," she told the BBC. "But you put Alexander Skarsgård in an interesting outfit, and everyone is looking."
An Unconventional Medieval Romance
The premise of the film, which is adapted from Ursula Wills-Jones’ short story The Wicker Husband, is certainly unconventional. Colman plays a lonely, shunned fisherwoman living in a medieval village. Fed up with the constant mockery over her single status, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She hires a local basket weaver—played by Peter Dinklage—to construct a life-sized male partner entirely out of wicker.
The resulting husband, played by Skarsgård, turns out to be a towering, handsome, and deeply devoted partner. He also proves to be a passionate lover, which quickly makes the other local women jealous. The film boasts a stellar supporting cast, including Elizabeth Debicki as the tailor’s wife and Richard E. Grant as the village doctor.
The Internet Goes Wild
Ever since the trailer dropped, the internet has been obsessed. On TikTok, users have swooned over the strange concept, while others cracked jokes about the potential splinter hazards of the film’s intimate scenes. Even the Swedish furniture giant Ikea joined the fun, posting a photo of its rattan furniture on Instagram with the cheeky caption "husband material."
Colman thinks the bizarre attraction makes perfect sense. "We all love a little bit of escapism," she said, noting that the sheer originality of the script drew her to the role. "You get a lot of scripts through the post, and you feel like you’ve seen a bit before. And this, I really hadn’t seen this before, so I was excited."
Her co-stars agree that Skarsgård’s unique look is driving the buzz. "I think it was a lot to do with Alex in a wicker man costume, really," Elizabeth Debicki said. Debicki urged audiences to look beyond the viral jokes. "It’s very funny and strange and wonderful, but I find it very moving. And it’s a good one to discover beyond the Ikea memes."
More Than Just a Joke
For Skarsgård, the physical reality of the role was a team effort. "All I had to do was get stuck into it," he said. He recalled filming scenes where the passion of the characters caused furniture to collapse. "We wanted those moments when the bed crashes and breaks… but they also have tender moments and sexy moments, it was great."
While the movie has split critics—The Guardian gave it a lukewarm two-star review after its Sundance premiere, while The Hollywood Reporter praised its poignant charm—the cast believes it has real substance. Beyond the memes, the story tackles social structures, marriage traditions, and community pressures.
"It touches on a lot of stuff. Hierarchy, social structure," Skarsgård said. Colman agreed, adding, "It’s about love, and it is funny, but it’s also a romance… I think it’s something that you will come out and discuss a lot."