Barry Keoghan has finally addressed why he stepped away from the spotlight following his breakup with Sabrina Carpenter and the cheating rumors that followed.
In a candid interview on the Friends Keep Secrets podcast, the Banshees of Inisherin actor explained that he deleted social media, stopped attending events, and isolated himself after a “narrative” spread online that he had been unfaithful to the singer.
“I’ve been avoiding stuff,” Keoghan said. “I came off Instagram and social profiles. I stopped going to events. I stopped socializing.”
Although he never mentioned Carpenter by name, he referred repeatedly to a false story that he had never confirmed or denied. “A narrative that’s not true that I’ve never said anything about it,” he said. “I just disappeared.”
The 33-year-old father of one slammed the online backlash as “absolutely disgusting, vile.” He urged people to stop “assuming” and “jumping on this narrative.”
Keoghan emphasized that he does not want to involve his ex in the conversation. “Even if it is those people that I was in a relationship with, it’s not my place or their place to speak on my or their behalf,” he said. “It’s unfair to them. They’re also in the relationship. It’s both of us out there.”
Carpenter has also declined to publicly address the rumors, telling CBS Mornings that fans should “picture the person in their head” when listening to her music.
The couple, who dated for about a year before splitting in December 2024, were first linked in late 2023 and made their red carpet debut at the 2024 Vanity Fair Oscar Party.