Sydney Sweeney & Glen Powell Defend Their Fake Romance

Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney never had an affair like many fans thought — but they were happy to pretend. In new interviews for Vanity Fair’s 2025 Hollywood issue, published on Nov. 13, the Anyone But You stars talked about how they used the dating rumors that arose while they were filming to build buzz for the movie. Their fake romance eventually helped the rom-com gross more than $220 million at the global box office.

Speaking to the outlet, Sweeney said she never intended to admit that she and Powell played into dating rumors for marketing purposes, but she also didn’t want to lie when asked about it.

“Once it did become a success, a lot of the interviews were just questions about it, so I don’t know if we necessarily were planning on ever talking about the strategy behind any of it,” she said. “We just had very specific questions and when you say no to a question, people think that you’re a bitch, so.”

The Dating Strategy

In an April interview with the New York Times, the pair talked about the many components that made Anyone But You a success, which included not denying dating speculation. Powell had broken up with his longtime girlfriend after filming wrapped, and Sweeney was (and still is) engaged to Jonathan Davino, which started rumors of an affair when photos of them filming in Australia went viral.

This inspired the duo to play up their flirtations on the film’s press tour. “The two things that you have to sell a rom-com are fun and chemistry,” Powell told the Times. “Sydney and I have a ton of fun together, and we have a ton of effortless chemistry. That’s people wanting what’s on the screen off the screen, and sometimes you just have to lean into it a bit — and it worked wonderfully.”

Powell credited the “very smart” idea to Sweeney, who told the Times she was involved in every marketing decision as a producer on the film. “I wanted to make sure that we were actively having a conversation with the audience as we were promoting this film, because at the end of the day, they’re the ones who created the entire narrative,” she said.

In his own interview with VF, Powell said Anyone But You has inspired him to have fun with fan narratives and themed antics while promoting other films. “I think what people forget about with a press tour is that it’s its own sense of entertainment,” he explained. “I don’t think it’s duplicitous.”

He added, “If you’re not having fun with this job, then I think you get burnt out. We just had a really good time.”

Nowadays, the two are firmly good friends, and are even looking for more opportunities to work together again. “We watch and talk about each other’s projects all the time, or even if we’re both debating between projects, we’ll call each other up and ask for advice,” Sweeney told VF. “I just saw him last week and we were talking through some projects. We would absolutely love to work on something else together.”