Barry Keoghan says he is ‘hiding away’ from public due to online hate after Sabrina Carpenter split

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Barry Keoghan recently opened up about the emotional toll of online hate, revealing he stepped away from public life after facing backlash following his split from Sabrina Carpenter.

Speaking on SiriusXM’s ‘The Morning Mash Up’ on Friday, March 20, the actor shared how the criticism, much of it targeting his appearance, began to affect both his personal life and career.

Online backlash pushed Barry Keoghan out of the spotlight

“There’s a lot of hate online. It’s a lot of abuse of how I look,” he said, making it clear that the negativity wasn’t just occasional, it was constant.

The actor explained that while he tried to distance himself from social media, it wasn’t easy to completely disconnect.

“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 added.

That curiosity, he admitted, often brought him face-to-face with harsh comments that were difficult to ignore.

Keoghan says he started avoiding events and public appearances

The impact of the criticism went beyond just staying offline. Keoghan revealed that he began pulling back from public life altogether.

“It’s becoming a problem. 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,” he shared.

For someone in the spotlight, that kind of withdrawal signals just how deeply the comments have affected him.

What started as online trolling eventually spilled into his professional space as well.

“But when that starts leaking into your art, it becomes a problem because then you don’t even want to be on screen anymore,” he said, hinting at how the negativity has begun to affect his passion for acting.

Concerns grow over impact on Keoghan's young son

Beyond his own struggles, Keoghan also spoke about a more personal concern: how this wave of online hate might affect his child in the future.

The actor, who is a father to three-year-old Brando, said the situation feels especially unfair when he thinks about what lies ahead.

“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.

Barry Keoghan's breakup with Sabrina Carpenter triggered fan backlash

Keoghan’s comments come months after his split from Carpenter in December 2024, following a year-long relationship that had drawn plenty of public attention.

The two had been seen as inseparable during their time together, with Keoghan even appearing in her ‘Please Please Please’ music video, a project that further tied him to her fan base.

But once the relationship ended, the tone shifted quickly. 

According to Keoghan, many fans who once supported him turned critical almost overnight, fueling the wave of online abuse he now describes.