“I say this being absolute pure and honest to you. It’s becoming a problem.”

Barry Keoghan is ‘hiding away’ after online ‘abuse’ over his looks: ‘You don’t want to even be on screen anymore’

"I say this being absolute pure and honest to you. It's becoming a problem."

By Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel is a news writer at **. He began writing for EW in 2022.

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March 21, 2026 6:18 p.m. ET

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Barry Keoghan at the 'Crime 101' screening at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square in London on Jan. 28, 2026. Credit:

Mike Marsland/WireImage

Barry Keoghan is reflecting on the vitriol he's dealt with online as his star has risen in Hollywood.

The *Saltburn* actor addressed the negativity he has faced throughout his career during a candid interview on Friday.

"There's a lot of hate online," Keoghan said on SiriusXM's *The Morning Mash Up*. "There's a lot of abuse of how I look, and it's kind of past the point of — you know, everyone goes through that… 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."

He continued, "I say this being absolute pure and honest to you. It's becoming a problem."

Barry Keoghan at the world premiere of 'Hurry Up Tomorrow' in New York on May 13, 2025.

ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty

Keoghan, who deactivated his Instagram account in 2024, explained that he "removed himself" from social media but still sometimes checks to see how his public appearances are being discussed. "I'm still a curious human being that wants to go on [the internet]," he said. "And if I attend an event or if I go somewhere, you want to see how it's received. And it's not nice, you know?"

In response to a question about finding time and space to enjoy his privacy, Keoghan said, "I don't have to hide away 'cause I *am* hiding away… I actually don't go to places because of these things."

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He also noted that he fears his retreat from public life could affect his acting. "When that starts leaking into your art, it becomes a problem," he said, "because then you don't want to even be on screen anymore."

The *Dunkirk* actor also worries how the cutting remarks he's endured will affect his young son, Brando, whom he welcomed with his former girlfriend Alyson Sandro in 2022. "It is disappointing for the fans," he said, "but it's also disappointing that my little boy has to read all of this stuff when he gets older."

Barry Keoghan. Arturo Holmes/FilmMagic

Keoghan's comments about the perils of fame came after he expressed appreciation for his fans. "I've been blessed that I've got an incredible fan base, and people are so lovely out there," he said. "It's really nice when you do Q&As and you talk to people and you can be there with them and answer their questions and give them all of you. And that is the good side of it."

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

The Oscar-nominated actor's latest project is *Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man*, the follow-up film to the hit crime series starring Cillian Murphy, which is streaming now on Netflix. He also recently starred in *Crime 101* opposite Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, and Halle Berry.

Keoghan is currently shooting four Beatles biopics directed by *American Beauty* filmmaker Sam Mendes. He will portray Ringo Starr alongside Harris Dickinson's John Lennon, Paul Mescal's Paul McCartney, and Joseph Quinn's George Harrison. The movies are set to premiere in theaters in April 2028.**

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Source: “EW Movies”