Sabrina Carpenter and Barry Keoghan were one of the most talked-about couples of recent years, with the A-listers separating in December 2024 after almost a year of dating.
And with the Espresso singer and the Saltburn actor being at the height of their careers, the online fallout from their respective fan bases was major.
Barry Keoghan in particular faced an extreme online backlash in the aftermath of their split, following rumours that the 33-year-old actor had cheated on Carpenter, 26, who is seven years his junior.
This is something Keoghan spoke out about this week, addressing the rumours around their break up during his recent appearance on Benny Blanco and Lil Dicky's podcast, Friends Keep Secrets.
"I feel in a safe space to say this, but I have been avoiding stuff," Keoghan explained in a rare statement. "I came off Instagram and social profiles. I’ve stopped going to events. I’ve stopped just socialising.
"It’s because there was a narrative out there that was never really sort of even spoken on," he continued. "A narrative that’s not true, and I never confirmed or said anything about it. And I just disappeared."
This, he confirmed, when asked by Lil Dicky (real name: David Burd) was in reference to the rumours that he had cheated on Carpenter.
"I’m not asking for people to become my fan and like me because that’s not normal," Keoghan continued. "I’m asking for people to stop assuming and also stop jumping on this narrative and attacking me and dragging me down in any way you can. I’m not saying this for pity. Why is it cool to hop on and beat someone up?"
This is not the first time that Keoghan has spoken out about the online abuse he has received, with the actor previously opening up about his decision to step away from the internet.
"People are so lovely out there [but] there’s also a nasty side of it," the Peaky Blinders star told SiriusXM earlier this year. "And I’ve 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, you know?
"There’s a lot of hate online," he added. "There’s a lot of abuse of how I look, and it’s kind of past the point of, ‘Everyone goes through that.’ And everyone does, but it’s made me shy away. It’s made me really go inside myself, not want to attend places, not want to go outside. And I say this being absolute pure and honest to you – it’s becoming a problem."
We will continue to update this story.
