"I love the '70s, and I've always loved the '70s - the music, the fashion. I'm inspired by it. I think I would've done well then," said Wilde.
In "Rush," Wilde plays supermodel Suzy Miller, who would one day marry actor Richard Burton. But before Burton, she had a relationship with Formula One star James Hunt, and that relationship is part of "Rush."
"I did a lot of background research. I did as much as I could about Suzy and James," said Wilde. "And it was fun because they were a really interesting couple. They were exciting. They were sort of like Johnny Depp and Kate Moss. They fill bathtubs full of champagne and go crazy in it?"
"There was something so wild about them, and yet they got married which was this incredibly insane, kind of optimistic thing to do. It was short-lived but powerful," said Wilde.
Death is definitely a possibility in the racing world, and in this movie, you see the danger spinning all over the track.
"I didn't know anything about racing before," said Wilde. "That's the thing, Americans don't know a lot about Formula One. We don't have to. We understand when we see it on film."
"Rush" is based on a true story of the intense rivalry between two famous Formula One drivers: James Hunt and Niki Lauda.
"I liken it to, as far as sports rivalries go, Magic [Johnson] and [Larry] Bird - two people whose rivalry drove them to greatness, and that made a lot of sense to me," said Wilde. "Watching it, I think, allows you to understand that's kind of a universal experience for people who are at the top of their game."
"Rush" is rated R and is in limited release this weekend.
