Sydney Sweeney on Tuning Out the ‘Noise’: ‘You Just Know Who You Are’ (Exclusive)

Sydney Sweeney is playing boxing champ Christy Martin in “Christy,” and both women sat down with “Extra’s” Mona Kosar Abdi to talk about the new biographical sports drama. 

Sydney talked about why she wanted to take the role, saying, "Honestly, it was the fact that when I read the script, I didn't know who she was. And I was completely shocked that I had not heard of Christy Martin before. And I was like, ‘Everybody needs to know who she is, and everybody needs to know her story because it will save lives and it's very important.’"

Martin, who identifies as gay, was stabbed, shot, and left for dead by her manager husband James Martin in 2010. She survived, and he died in 2024 while serving his time for the heinous attack. Ben Foster plays him in “Christy."

Sweeney said of stepping into the role, "You have to completely hand yourself over to your character. You have to make sure that you are bringing every single piece of this person to life that you possibly can on a physical side, a mental side, an emotional side... It was intimidating because I knew how important, how heavy this was going to be, and I just wanted to make sure that I got it right.”

She also loved the boxing side of it, revealing, "I grew up kickboxing and grappling. So, I loved it. I felt like I came to life. I was having the best time ever. I didn't want to leave. I was like, ‘Should I throw it all away and just become a boxer?'"

For her part, Christy opened up about reliving her story, saying, “It's difficult at times. It was fun at times… like the smack talk scenes are a lot of fun. The boxing scenes are fun. Obviously, the dark scenes are dark and heavy. So, I would sometimes leave the set all happy and energized and sometimes, you know, you leave the set, ‘Wow, wow.’”

Martin said they are already seeing the film making an impact, sharing, “Everything in this movie is really going to affect people's lives, and we're getting that after every screening. We have people coming out talking to us, sharing their story of domestic violence that affected them, sexuality. They’re coming to us to share their story.”

She later added, “Sydney and Ben Foster was amazing, just bringing everything to life and making it so real that people can relate to my life and then that will give them strength. I'm certain that’s going to give them strength to get out of whatever situation they're in."

Plus, Sydney, who recently endured public backlash to her American Eagle jeans campaign, reflected on how she tunes out all the “noise.” 

She said, "You just know who you are. And the people who matter and are your friends and your family, they know who I am. And… to me, like, that's what’s most important. Everything else is just noise… none of it's real. And I’m just surrounded by really good people. And I love my job and I love my characters and I just stay focused."