Sydney Sweeney’s Overlooked R-Rated Drama Quickly Climbing Streaming Charts After Box Office Bombing

Sydney Sweeney should be euphoric over her R-rated drama's new streaming success.

The star can currently be seen back in some old familiar haunts on HBO Max alongside Zendaya and Jacob Elordi in the predictably divisive Euphoria season 3. Sweeney has indeed been on a streaming heater lately, with her 2023 thriller Reality emerging as an HBO Max favorite back in April. Another of Sweeney’s recent projects is also delivering a solid beating to its competition on the service formerly known as Max, pushing it higher and higher in the streamer’s rankings.

Christy released in 2025 to huge controversy and disappointing box office returns, but the movie’s fortunes seem to have turned as it has become a streaming hit, sitting at #4 in the United States as of April 27, 2026. That’s several spots higher than yesterday, when it was at #8.

Critics were mildly positive about Christy, ushering it to a 67% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but a few solid reviews plus the presence of Sweeney could not save the biographical film at the box office, as it staggered to a gross of just $2.3 million on an estimated budget of $15 million.

ScreenRant’s Christy review from September 2025 is typical of the reception the film received. “Rather than being a well-rounded look at Martin's life, Christy offers a shallow, unbalanced perspective,” the review says. “It's light on its feet in some parts and heavy-handed in others, and though Sweeney gives a strong performance, I can't help but feel like she deserved a better showcase for her talents.”

A November 2025 ScreenRant article assessed the film’s boxing scenes, giving it high marks for capturing the sport’s physicality. “I did appreciate the way [David] Michôd's direction and Sweeney's performance (alongside the other boxers she faces off with) felt visceral in a way other boxing movies don't. It gives Christy a solid edge and a good understanding of what makes boxing such a compelling subject for film.”

Christy received no such charitable treatment from many in the LGBTQ+ community, who objected to the casting of Sweeney as real-life closeted lesbian boxer Christy Martin largely on political grounds. Orange is the New Black star Ruby Rose, who lost the lead in Christy to Sweeney, went farther than most in her public accusations. “For her PR to talk about it flopping and saying SS did it for 'the people'. None of 'the people' want to see someone who hates them, parading around and pretending to be us,” Rose posted in November 2025 on Threads.

Rose went on, “You're a cretin and you ruined the film. Period. Christy deserved better.” Whatever the validity of such statements, and whatever the reasons for Christy failing at the box office, the movie packs enough punch to be a hit on streaming, giving Sweeney’s acclaimed performance a new showcase.