Sydney Sweeney lands a knockout with Christy, stoking Oscar buzz

Sydney Sweeney came to the Toronto International Film Festival wanting to talk about her new film Christy, not her American Eagle ad campaign. After a rapturous response to the movie, she’s getting her wish. The 27-year-old, Emmy-nominated actor landed immediate Oscar buzz for her performance in David Michod’s biopic of the boxer Christy Salters Martin. For the role, Sweeney transforms into the female boxing trailblazer who emerged out of West Virginia as the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” to rise to the top of her then-nascent sport.

Following a rousing reception from the TIFF audience Friday, Sweeney stood beside Martin on the stage of the Princess of Wales Theatre, calling it the experience of her life. “It was a dream come true, as an actor, as a person,” Sweeney said. While Martin had a career decorated with belts and a Sports Illustrated cover, her story is defined by struggle. Sweeney’s performance alongside Ben Foster, who plays Jim Martin, was swiftly hailed as her best yet. TIFF has long been a launching pad for Oscar campaigns before, and the thunderous reception for Christy, and particularly Sweeney, seemed sure to add her to the awards conversation.

Christy will hit cinemas on November 7.

Genes? Just jeans

Going into the premiere, Sweeney deflected questions about her recent American Eagle ad campaign with the tagline “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” — a pun on having “great genes”. Critics accused the ad for glorifying whiteness. The retailer has said the campaign “is and always was about the jeans.” Ahead of the festival, Sweeney said in an interview that she was going to TIFF to support her movie. “I’m not there to talk about jeans,” she said. “The movie’s about Christy and that’s what I’ll be there to talk about.”