Sydney Sweeney is facing fresh backlash following the underwhelming opening of Christy, with Ruby Rose publicly criticizing the Euphoria star’s performance and the film’s direction after its release.
The Orange Is the New Black alum took to Threads on Monday night to call out Sweeney, labeling her a “cretin” and alleging the project lost authenticity when the actress boarded the movie. Christy, directed by David Michôd, opened last Friday to a soft $1.3 million at the domestic box office.
Ruby Rose Calls Out Sweeney Over Christy
In a series of posts, Rose, 39, said she had previously been attached to the biopic during an earlier iteration and suggested the film shifted significantly before release. “The original Christy Martin script was incredible. Life changing. I was attached to play Cherry,” she wrote. “Everyone had experience with the core material. Most of us were actually gay,” she added, implying a creative pivot occurred after Sweeney took the lead role.
Rose argued the film missed an opportunity to tell Christy Martin’s story with greater authenticity, and she criticized recent PR defense of the movie’s performance. Without naming Sweeney at first, she wrote, “None of ‘the people’ want to see someone who hates them, parading around pretending to be us.” Rose then made her target explicit: “You’re a cretin and you ruined the film. Period. Christy deserved better.”
Her remarks sparked immediate debate on social media, with users weighing in on representation, authorship, and responsibility when adapting real-life LGBTQ+ stories. Rose’s comments center on Hollywood’s long-running conversation about who gets to tell which stories — and how those choices impact the final film.
Sweeney Responds: “We Make Art For Impact”
Sweeney addressed Christy’s muted box office in an Instagram post earlier this week, standing by the film and its intentions. “I am so deeply proud of this movie. Proud of the story we told. Proud to represent someone as strong and resilient as Christy Martin,” she wrote. “If Christy gave even one woman the courage to take her first step toward safety, then we will have succeeded.”
“So yes, I’m proud,” Sweeney continued. “Why? Because we don’t always just make art for numbers, we make it for impact. And Christy has been the most impactful project of my life.”
Christy dramatizes the life of boxing legend Christy Martin, who shattered barriers in the sport throughout the 1990s while enduring years of domestic abuse by her trainer and husband, Jim Martin. The film follows her survival, escape, and eventual path forward, including finding love with former rival Lisa Holewyne.
As the conversation around the film intensifies, Sweeney’s statement underscores the creative team’s focus on the story’s social resonance over its financial start. While the opening weekend tally was low for a wide-release sports biopic, the movie’s themes of resilience and survival remain at the forefront of its messaging.
Why This Biopic — And The Backlash — Matters
Christy’s subject is notable not only for her accomplishments in the ring, but for her visibility as a pioneer in a male-dominated sport and a survivor who later rebuilt her life. That reality adds weight to the questions Rose raised — especially around authenticity and representation — which frequently arise when a film tackles queer identity and lived trauma.
Rose’s claim that she was once attached to play a character named Cherry and that “most of us were actually gay” during an earlier phase points to a version of Christy that, in her view, might have emphasized different perspectives. Her critique lands in the middle of an ongoing industry discourse about the makeup of creative teams and casts when telling real LGBTQ+ stories.
At the same time, Sweeney’s response frames Christy as an impact-driven project — one that measures success in awareness and empathy, particularly for survivors of domestic violence. That duality has become familiar terrain for prestige-leaning biopics: awards-season ambition and box office metrics often share the stage with conversations about who gets to tell difficult, deeply personal stories.
Sweeney’s Recent Controversies Add More Heat
The renewed scrutiny arrives amid a string of headlines surrounding Sweeney, 28, beyond her film work. Earlier this year, the Anyone But You star faced criticism over an American Eagle ad campaign featuring the slogan “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans,” a wordplay some online accused of evoking eugenics undertones. Sweeney downplayed the backlash in a GQ interview: “I did a jean ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans. All I wear are jeans.”
That episode, coupled with Christy’s slow start, has kept Sweeney squarely in the social media crosshairs. Still, her comments about Christy suggest she intends to let the film’s message speak louder than its opening weekend, emphasizing that stories about survival and self-determination can reach audiences beyond initial box office numbers.
Whether Rose’s criticism shifts the conversation around Christy remains to be seen, but the exchange has already amplified discussion around the biopic’s approach and the industry’s responsibility to the communities whose stories it adapts. For now, both the film and the discourse around it are likely to continue drawing attention as more viewers discover Christy in the weeks ahead.
