Sydney Sweeney on Learning to ‘Stand Up for Myself’ Through ‘Christy’ (Exclusive)

Sydney Sweeney was a fashion knockout in pink Miu Miu and was rocking a new blonde bob at the AFI Fest 2025 premiere of “Christy” in L.A. 

“Extra’s” Terri Seymour caught up with Sweeney, who talked about training hard for the film about real-life boxing champ Christy Martin — and even suffering concussions!

"It was exhilarating,” she said. "I felt so strong and so powerful just knowing that I was there with Christy and I was bringing Christy to life. It was just the most incredible experience."

As for meeting Christy for the first time, Sydney shared, "At first, I was [nervous] because you never know what you're going to get, and also you’re playing a real person so you don't know if they're going to like you or what they’re going to think, and you're just a little concerned.”

Sweeney continued, “The moment I met Christy, it all went out the door. She is the most amazing individual. She has gone through the craziest life, and she is here and she's kind and she is incredible and she's such a huge advocate for women and she inspires me every day.”

Sydney shared, "I got to spar with her. It was a very light sparring. I was terrified. I was like, ‘You're going to beat me up. Like, I don't know if I want to go too hard.’”

The star had to go through a major transformation for the role, and left no stone unturned in her preparation.

"I built my own Rocky gym in her garage,” she said. "It was like a shed and I put a floor ring in. I hung some boxing bags. I had a full gym in there and I brought my trainers up and we just lived up there and hid away and trained.”

She also packed on 35 lbs. for the role, saying, "I had to find this balance of bringing in enough nutrients and supplements to keep my weight up as I was training super hard. So, it was a lot of protein shakes, like protein shakes where you have to plug your nose and just down it. Creatine, so you're like holding in water and bloating, L-carnitine, just so many calories. It was a lot, but I was very happy."

Plus, she reflected on what she learned about herself through “Christy,” saying, "I can be

strong. I can stand up for myself and to lean on friends and have a big heart."