Sydney Sweeney slams Hollywood's 'women empowering other women' message as 'fake'
Sydney Sweeney is calling out Hollywood over the authenticity of its attitude toward female empowerment.
During a recent interview with Vanity Fair, the 27-year-old actress slammed the entertainment industry's mantra of "women empowering other women" as "fake."
While speaking with the outlet, Sweeney was asked about a previous incident in which a female producer disparaged the "Euphoria" star's physical appearance and talent.
"It’s very disheartening to see women tear other women down, especially when women who are successful in other avenues of their industry see younger talent working really hard — hoping to achieve whatever dreams that they may have — and then trying to bash and discredit any work that they’ve done," Sweeney said.
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"This entire industry, all people say is ‘women empowering other women.’ None of it’s happening. All of it is fake and a front for all the other s--- that they say behind everyone’s back."
The two-time Emmy Award nominee speculated about why she believes women might not genuinely support other women.
"I mean, there’s so many studies and different opinions on the reasoning behind it. I’ve read that our entire lives, we were raised — and it’s a generational problem — to believe only one woman can be at the top. There’s one woman who can get the man. There’s one woman who can be, I don’t know, anything," she explained.
"So, then all the others feel like they have to fight each other or take that one woman down instead of being like, ‘Let’s all lift each other up,’" the "White Lotus" actress added.
"I’m still trying to figure it out. I’m just trying my best over here. Why am I getting attacked?"
In April, longtime film producer Carol Baum attended a screening of her 1988 movie "Dead Ringers" at the Jacob Burns Film Center in New York and later criticized Sweeney's looks and acting ability, according to the Daily Mail.
During a panel discussion after the screening, Baum reportedly said, "There's an actress who everybody loves now — Sydney Sweeney. I don't get Sydney Sweeney."
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The producer recalled that she had watched Sweeney's hit movie "Anyone But You" when she was on a plane.
"I wanted to know who she is and why everybody's talking about her. I watched this unwatchable movie — sorry to people who love this movie — [this] romantic comedy where they hate each other," Baum said.
Baum, who also works as a professor at University of Southern California, added, "I said to my class, 'Explain this girl to me. She's not pretty. She can't act. Why is she so hot?'"
The producer told the crowd "nobody had an answer" to her question.
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When reached for comment about Baum's remarks, a representative for Sweeney gave a scathing statement on the matter to Fox News Digital.
"How sad that a woman in the position to share her expertise and experience chooses instead to attack another woman," the statement said. "If that’s what she’s learned in her decades in the industry and feels is appropriate to teach to her students, that’s shameful. To unjustly disparage a fellow female producer speaks volumes about Ms Baum’s character."
Baum has been producing films since the 1980s, with movies like "Father of the Bride," "Fly Away Home" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on her list of credits.
After making her acting breakthrough in 2019 with the success of "Euphoria," Sweeney founded her production company Fifty-Fifty Films in 2020. In addition to starring in "Anyone But You," Sweeney was the film's executive producer. She also produced and starred in the horror movie "Immaculate," which was released in March.