Sydney Sweeney Says People Try to Purposely Piss Her off on Instagram
Sydney Sweeney’s social media following has skyrocketed in the past few months. In the past five weeks alone, the actor’s Instagram has grown from 5.5 million followers to 10.2 million followers. And since Sweeney has plenty of projects in the works, that number will likely continue to increase. However, having a massive social media following isn’t always the easiest thing for Sweeney to navigate.
Sydney Sweeney was trending on Twitter after she was called ugly
Fans of Sweeney may recall that back in May of 2021, she was the victim of some pretty hateful comments on social media. People on Twitter called the Sharp Objects actor “ugly” and compared her to a muppet. In response, Sweeney (who has a long history of being bullied) went live on Instagram. In tears, she urged people on the Internet to be nicer to one another.
The ‘Euphoria’ actor explains how her relationship with social media has changed
Of course, Sweeney’s impassioned plea only led to more eyeballs on her. Suddenly, her video was everywhere, finding people who weren’t even fans. This response, coupled with Sweeney’s ever-increasing fame, has shifted the way that she engages with social media. In an interview with Story + Rain, the producer shared that her relationship with social media has changed.
“It’s definitely not as fun as it used to be, unfortunately,” Sweeney explained. “I used to feel very free with posting whatever. Most of my family follows me, so a lot of what I post is for them to be able to follow my life. Then I forget that there are way more people than them looking at what I’m doing. I definitely second-guess myself a lot when posting. It almost feels disgusting that I’m having to second guess posting something so stupid like that. And I’ve definitely noticed people just like trying to piss you off…”
How people on Instagram have deliberately pissed Sweeney off
Since Sweeney has admitted to reading her comments, there are plenty of opportunities for her to get upset. Internet trolls have attacked everything from the actor’s body to her acting skills. But one thing they did that truly crossed the line involved Sweeney’s younger brother. Some people took screengrabs of Sweeney’s nude scenes in Euphoria and tagged her little brother in them. This was extremely “disrespectful and distressing” for the young actor.
RELATED: Sydney Sweeney on the Nude Scenes in ‘Euphoria’; ‘I Feel Like Nobody Can Judge Me’
As a way to protect her peace, Sweeney has learned to be extremely selective about what she shares on social media and in interviews. So while the actor’s Instagram followers may feel as if they know who she is, in reality, they’re only getting a tiny glimpse of her.
“And like, no one truly knows me,” Sweeney admitted. “I only say what I want everyone to hear. They don’t know how I grew up, or where I came from, or the struggles that I had to go through. Sometimes when people say things, it feels really shallow. And that’s difficult.” Navigating fame has presented Sweeney with a number of difficult moments, but she’s learning to cope with them in her own way.
