Glen Powell has spoken about the affair rumours that were rife about him and his Anyone But You co-star Sydney Sweeney while they were promoting the rom-com.
In the film Powell and Sweeney play two people who hate each other but can’t escape one another while they’re holidaying in Sydney, Australia.
The way that the actors were pictured or filmed interacting with one another while on the press run for the film, which opens in cinemas next month, led to some fans speculating that they were romantically entwined in real life.
Powell was thought to be in a relationship with model Gigi Paris at the time, while Sweeney is engaged to businessman Jonathan Davino.
Now, in a new interview with Men’s Health, Powell has addressed the rumours for the first time, calling the speculation “unfair” but recognising it’s part of being in the public eye.
“When all that stuff happened, you know, publicly, it felt disorienting and unfair,” the American actor said. “But what I’m realising is that’s just a part of this gig now.”
His remarks follow Sweeney speaking to Variety in August about the rumours.
“It’s a romcom,” she said. “That’s what people want! Glen and I don’t really care. We have so much fun together, and we respect each other so much; he’s such a hard worker, and I’m a hard worker.”
She said of the media furore surrounding their relationship: “They want it. It’s fun to give it to ’em.”
Director Will Gluck added in the Variety interview: “Sydney is brilliant at a lot of things, including how to deal with social media; she didn’t emotionally internalise it. It was crazy, but after a while it became normal.”
Earlier this year Sweeney said that she can’t afford to take a six-month break from acting, claiming that industry bosses “don’t pay actors like they used to”.
Despite landing roles in hit HBO shows like Euphoria and The White Lotus, Sweeney told The Hollywood Reporter that she still has insecurities over her finances.
“If I wanted to take a six-month break, I don’t have income to cover that,” Sweeney said. “I don’t have someone supporting me, I don’t have anyone I can turn to, to pay my bills or call for help.”
When asked about the payments from HBO, Sweeney explained: “They don’t pay actors like they used to, and with streamers, you no longer get residuals. The established stars still get paid, but I have to give five per cent to my lawyer, 10 per cent to my agents, 3 per cent or something like that to my business manager. I have to pay my publicist every month, and that’s more than my mortgage.”
Anyone But You is released in US cinemas on December 15 and UK cinemas on December 26.