Barry Keoghan Discusses Online Criticism After Sabrina Carpenter Breakup: “I Face a Lot of Negativity About My Appearance”
Barry Keoghan Discusses Online Hate Following Breakup
Barry Keoghan is candidly addressing the online abuse he has faced regarding his appearance after his breakup with Sabrina Carpenter.
In a recent appearance on SiriusXM’s The Morning Mash Up on March 20, the 33-year-old Irish actor revealed that he took a step back from public life after the couple’s breakup in December 2024.
“There’s a lot of hate online. It’s a lot of abuse of how I look,” Keoghan shared with host Ben Harlum. “I think I removed myself from online, but I’m still a curious human being that wants to go on and, if I attend an event or if I go somewhere, you want to see how it was received. And it’s not nice.”
He expressed that these experiences have made him reluctant to participate in public events, stating, “It’s made me shy away, it’s made me really go inside myself and not want to attend places, not want to go outside.”
The star of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man noted that harassment is affecting his public appearances. “It’s becoming a problem,” he said. “I don’t have to hide away because I am hiding away. I don’t have to go to places because I actually don’t go to places because of these things. But when that starts leaking into your art, it becomes a problem because then you don’t even want to be on screen anymore.”
Following his breakup with Carpenter, Keoghan deleted his Instagram account and subsequently posted a lengthy statement on X explaining his choice. “I can only sit and take so much,” he wrote. “My name has been dragged across the internet in ways I usually don’t respond to.”
He added, “I deactivated my account because I can no longer let this stuff distract me from my family and work. The messages I have received no person should ever have to read them. Absolute lies, hatred, disgusting commentary about my appearance, character, how I am as a parent and every other inhumane thing you can imagine.”
Keoghan and Carpenter dated for approximately a year, with rumors of their relationship beginning in late 2023. They made their public debut at the Vanity Fair Oscars afterparty, and Keoghan featured in Carpenter’s music video for her Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping single “Please Please Please” from her album Short n’ Sweet.
During his appearance, Keoghan expressed concern about the impact of online criticism on his 3-year-old son, Brando, whom he shares with former girlfriend Alyson Sandro. “It is disappointing for the fans, but it’s also disappointing that my little boy has to read all of this stuff when he gets older,” he said.
Keoghan is set to star as Ringo Starr in director Sam Mendes’ upcoming four-part Beatles biopic series, featuring Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, and Harris Dickinson portraying John Lennon. The Beatles — A Four-Film Cinematic Event is expected to premiere in theaters in April 2028.
