Sydney Sweeney revealed she gained 2st and was “pummelled” while shooting scenes for her new boxing film.
The actress, 27, said she received “gnarly bruises” during the production of Christy, a biopic of the female super-welterweight champion Christy Martin.
Discussing the challenges she faced on set, Sweeney told Variety: “I’d wrap after a 12-hour shoot and then I’d go train for another two hours. That whole week was gruelling.”
Sweeney’s appearance at the Toronto International Film Festival was the White Lotus star’s first since a public row over an American Eagle jeans advert that declared “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans”.
Sydney Sweeney in the American Eagle campaign, which was accompanied by a slogan saying actress ‘has great jeans’ – American Eagle
On social media, critics claimed the promotion was referencing Nazi propaganda and promoting white supremacy.
However, Ted Cruz, the Republican senator for Texas, said the furore showed the “crazy Left” had come out against beautiful women.
JD Vance, the US vice-president, said it revealed that Democrats had not learnt from their loss to Donald Trump in last year’s presidential election.
He said: “I actually thought that one of the lessons they might take is we’re going to be less crazy. The lesson they have apparently taken is ‘we’re going to attack people as Nazis for thinking Sydney Sweeney is beautiful’. Great strategy.”
American Eagle defended its campaign, saying: “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans is and always was about the jeans.” The company’s share price rose sharply on the back of the controversy.
Speaking in Toronto, Sweeney refused to discuss the spat, telling Vanity Fair: “I am there to support my movie and the people involved in making it, and I’m not there to talk about jeans. The movie’s about Christy, and that’s what I’ll be there to talk about.”
To prepare for the role, Sweeney boxed for several hours every day for three months. This was made easier as she had trained in jujitsu, grappling, and some kickboxing as a teenager.
“My stances and a lot of my technique is different than boxing. You square up differently, and of course you don’t get brought to the ground – everything’s on your feet,” she said.
Sweeney added: “Every single fight you see, we are actually punching each other. We are going full force. I always believed that you would not be able to make it feel real if it’s a stunt double or if it’s faking the hits.”
The actress also worked with a nutritionist and weight trainer to ensure she was physically prepared for the role.
She said: “We upped my calorie intake and I started taking a lot of protein shakes and supplements and eating everything. I ate a lot of Smuckers, a lot of PB and J [peanut butter and jelly] sandwiches, milkshakes, kind of just constantly always eating because we were so active.
“I was constantly burning it all off at the same time. So keeping it all up was quite a challenge.”
Discussing his decision to cast Sweeney, director David Michôd told Variety: “I knew that she was already a fighter. I saw her in that HBO film Reality from a few years ago. So I knew she had acting chops, and I was excited by the prospect of taking those acting chops to a bigger audience.”
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