Sydney Sweeney says stepping into a boxing ring changed her life, but she had to do it far away from Hollywood.
The actress, 28, opened up about why she avoided Los Angeles while training for her role as real-life boxing icon Christy Salters Martin in the 2025 film Christie.
For Sweeney, it was a chance to disappear, focus and shed the glamorous image that many fans assume defines her.
“The perception is that the media version of who you are is who you actually are,” she explained in a new Sports Illustrated interview published December 9.
Sweeney shared that she deeply relates to Salters Martin, who spent years struggling both in the ring and in her personal life while hiding the trauma of an abusive relationship from the world.
The actress has dealt with constant scrutiny over her appearance since becoming famous.
That pressure made it even more important for her to train privately.
“I knew if I kept working out in LA or anywhere else, people would start taking pictures of me,” she said.
Instead, she returned home to Idaho, where she trained in a boxing center built inside her grandmother’s shed.
“I wanted to go home. I could disappear, not worry about the outside world and just immerse myself completely in it.”
Sweeney gained 30 pounds through creatine, protein shakes and Uncrustables to authentically portray the fighter.
She learned kickboxing and MMA moves and performed most of her fight scenes herself.
“I actually wanted to wrestle,” she said, adding that she fell in love with the sport and has even considered walking away from acting to train directly with Salters Martin.
She laughed when she mentioned that idea, but admitted that boxing makes her feel strong.
“It feels like a superpower,” she added, describing the excitement that comes with never knowing what’s coming next in the ring.
While Christy only made $1.3 million in its opening weekend in November, Sweeney believes its impact is what matters.
The film explores Salters Martin’s near-death escape when her ex-husband and trainer, Jim Martin, shot her in 2010 and left her for dead. She survived and later committed herself to helping others tell their stories.
