Sydney Sweeney breaks down how she got a black eye while filming Christy. Since debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival, reviews for Christy have been mixed, although Sweeney has been praised for her immersive performance as professional boxer Christy Martin.

Long before the film’s debut, there was already awards buzz surrounding the project, and speculation that this could be Sydney Sweeney’s best movie yet. Despite a Rotten Tomatoes debut score of 64%, the praise for Sweeney’s performance bodes well for her Academy Award chances, although it was a harrowing process behind the scenes.

While speaking with Variety at the Toronto International Film Festival, where ScreenRant is in attendance, Sweeney details how “I was getting pummeled” while filming scenes for the boxing drama. She also shared that the boxing sequences were filmed “back to back to back” during a single week, where she also had to train during off hours.

An especially grueling scene, in which she is recreating the iconic fight between Martin and Laila Ali, resulted in Sweeney getting “a crazy black eye.” Check out her additional comments below:

They were holding ice packs to my face in between takes. I was getting knocked up. I had some gnarly bruises after that.

I’d wrap after a 12-hour shoot and then I’d go train for another two hours. That whole week was grueling.

What This Means For Christy

The physical ordeal that Sweeney went through in order to bring the story of Christy to life may help with her chances of receiving an Academy Award nomination. Many Oscar-nominated and Oscar-winning performances come with harrowing behind-the-scenes narratives, and Sweeney has that with her black eye.

Such a narrative will likely help to market the movie ahead of its November 7 theatrical release date and emphasize the lengths Sweeney went to in order to fully immerse herself in such a physically demanding role.

While there is no denying how committed Sweeney is to this performance, other factors may get in the way of an Oscar nomination, though. ScreenRant‘s Rachel LaBonte notes in her review that the movie’s Christy feels “more like an archetype” than a nuanced individual and that there are toning and pacing issues as well. These elements could get in the way of Sweeney being recognized by the Academy Awards.

Our Take On Sydney Sweeney’s Comments

Despite mixed reviews, Christy is still an exciting Sydney Sweeney movie, and even more so after her comments. It is a role unlike any she has taken on before, and even critics who are frustrated by other aspects of the film are pointing out how far she went for this performance.

The black eye story could take on a life of its own and help generate further hype around the film. It is too early to tell whether this will help lead to an Academy Award nomination, but regardless, Christy seems like it will be worth the watch, if only to see Sweeney tackling such a challenging role.