Sydney Sweeney was dedicated to embodying pioneering female boxer Christy Martin for an upcoming biopic.
The actor shared that she gained more than 30 pounds and spent months training for the role, telling W Magazine, “My body was completely different.”
“I loved it,” she said. “I came onboard to play Christy, and I had about three and a half months of training. I started eating. I weight-trained in the morning for an hour, kickboxed midday for about two hours, and then weight-trained again at night for an hour.”
Amid her intense workout routine and weight gain, Sweeney shared that she went up four sizes and “didn’t fit in any of my clothes.”
“I’m usually a size 23 in jeans, and I was wearing a size 27. My boobs got bigger. And my butt got huge. It was crazy! I was like, Oh my God,” she reportedly laughed. “But it was amazing: I was so strong, like crazy strong.”
To become Martin, the “Anyone But You” star also had to wear brown contact lenses and a brown wig that was styled as a mullet.
What is the biopic about?
The untitled biopic is directed by David Michod, who co-wrote the script with Mirrah Foulkes. The story follows Martin’s rise to becoming one of the biggest female boxers in the ‘90s.
Martin made her boxing debut in 1989 and married Jim Martin who was also her manager. Jim Martin was 25 years older than Christy Martin and abusive throughout their marriage. In 2010, he stabbed her and shot her in the chest. He’s currently serving a 25-year prison sentence.
Martin is the only woman boxer to ever appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated, she’s the first to sign with famed promoter Don King, the first female inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and she earned the World Boxing female super welterweight title in 2009. She boxed until 2012.
Sweeney and Martin recently reunited in New York for the Parade of Champions on June 8.
How did Sydney Sweeney train to play Christy Martin?
In October 2024, Sweeney shared photos of her transformation on Instagram, showing off her toned and buff arms.
“Over the past few months, i’ve been immersed in training to bring to life the story of an incredible woman,” she wrote, in part, alongside snaps of her in character.
The actor later shared footage of her boxing workout routine in the gym following a montage of negative comments about her appearance. Start TODAY trainer Stephanie Mansour previously noted that the moves Sweeney was performing in the quick video are upper body boxing moves which work the shoulders, biceps, back and core.
According to her W Magazine interview, Sweeney later had to drop the weight in seven weeks for her next project. While it didn’t go into detail about how she shed the pounds, the actor did share that she’s always loved sports.
“I love being outside. I was on the ski team, and I wakeboarded. I slalom ski on water. I was on the soccer team and the softball team. And then my parents got me into grappling, which is like wrestling, and kickboxing,” she said. “I was the only girl at the dojo. I trained there from 13 until about 19. I fought all guys. I liked to think that if s— went down, I might be able to step up.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
Here are five things to know about actress Sydney Sweeney.
