Sydney Sweeney walked away from the boxing scenes in Christy with bruises and concussions because she didn’t want a stunt double.

The Euphoria actress gained 30 pounds (13.6 kilograms) and spent several hours a day in boxing and weight training every day for three months to prepare for playing boxer Christy Martin in the new biopic.

When the time came to film the boxing scenes, Sweeney wanted to fight for real as Martin instead of faking hits or using a stunt double.

“Every single fight you see, we are actually punching each other. We are going full force. I always believed that you would not be able to make it feel real if it’s a stunt double or if it’s faking the hits,” she told Vanity Fair, admitting that she suffered bruises and concussions as a consequence of her decision.

The Anyone But You star revealed that the real Martin was often watching her shoot the scenes and giving her encouragement.

“She’s cheering you on and she’s yelling, ‘Hit him with the hook!’ as if she’s actually watching a fight,” she recalled. “And I’m like, ‘Christy, you know what’s going to happen.’ And she goes, ‘Yeah, but I’m still invested in this!’ It was such a fun experience.”

The 27-year-old learned jujitsu, grappling, and some kickboxing as a teenager, and while her experience gave her a solid foundation for the role, she admitted that learning to become a boxer like Martin was difficult.

“My stances and a lot of my technique is different than boxing,” she explained. “You square up differently, and of course, you don’t get brought to the ground – everything’s on your feet.”

Christy will have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on Friday.

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