Former WBC boxing champion Christy Martin has defended Sydney Sweeney — who portrays her in a new biopic — after the actor faced intense criticism from Ruby Rose.
In a statement shared on Threads Wednesday, Orange Is the New Black star Rose, 39, claimed she was originally attached to play Martin and called Sweeney a “cretin” who “ruined the film.”
Later that day, Martin, 57, shared a photo of herself and Sweeney, 28, together during the film’s production.
“I’ve always been a fighter. My life reflected that in every way and now I fight for others. The past few days I have seen some people attack my friend Sydney Sweeney,” Martin captioned the post.
“Syd not only worked her ass off for this film, she worked her ass off for me,” Martin wrote. “For my story. For so many others suffering in silence. So I want to be clear about who Syd is. She is my friend and ally!”
Directed by David Michôd and released in theaters last Friday, the sports drama stars Sweeney, 28, as boxing legend Martin, who competed in the ring from 1989 to 2012 and held the WBC female super welterweight title in 2009.
In her post on Threads, Rose — who, like Martin, is a lesbian — wrote: “None of ‘the people’ want to see someone who hates them, parading around pretending to be us. You’re a cretin and you ruined the film. Period. Christy deserved better.”
Sweeney’s representatives did not respond to The Independent’s request for comment.
Sweeney, who is often in the tabloid spotlight, has drawn particular scrutiny in recent months over the controversy surrounding her American Eagle ad campaign and her subsequent refusal to comment on it.
Titled “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans,” the ads featuring the Euphoria star in the brand’s denim were widely criticized, with people comparing the phrase to the racist language of eugenicists due to wordplay on “jeans” and “genes.”
“I did a jean ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans. All I wear are jeans. I’m literally in jeans and a T-shirt every day of my life,” Sweeney told GQ in an interview published last week.
When pressed further for her thoughts about President Donald Trump praising her, Sweeney responded that she was not monitoring the situation closely.
It was reported in August that Sweeney was a registered voter with the Republican Party.
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