‘Please be respectful’: Barry Keoghan’s patience cracks in face of ‘disgusting commentary’ as Sabrina Carpentar fans harass his young son

Barry Keoghan is an Academy Award-nominated actor who already boasts an iconic role, an upcoming portrayal of the Joker, a son he clearly adores, and, until recently, Sabrina Carpenter by his side. But this is old news as right now, Keoghan’s personal life seems to have unraveled to the point where he had to break his silence to address his and his now ex’s fans.

The saga began, as many celebrity dramas do, on DeuxMoi. Normally, the platform’s unreliability would make its claims easy to dismiss, but this time, it played a pivotal role in the unfolding narrative. A post there, later amplified by Twitter aggregator Pop Flop, alleged that Carpenter broke up with Keoghan due to his inappropriate relationship with an unnamed influencer.

Soon, rumors took on a life of their own, with Breckie Hill named as the alleged influencer involved. With a name and a target, internet trolls seized the opportunity to escalate the situation to vitriolic extremes. They flooded Keoghan’s social media pages with disgusting commentary about his appearance and even targeted his family, including attempts to “intimidate” his young son who had just turned 3. The harassment became so overwhelming that Keoghan deactivated his Instagram and issued a statement via X, pleading for respect for both himself and his family, regardless of the rumors circulating.

One user on X, fed up with the mob mentality, pointed out the ridiculousness of tracking down Keoghan’s family to label him a “deadbeat father” without any real knowledge of his private life. 

Keoghan has previously been candid about his complex relationship with his former girlfriend and mother of his child, Alyson Sandro, making it all the more understandable why this situation has rattled him. Unfortunately, engaging with trolls often only emboldens them, as they interpret any response as validation. Still, enough is enough — no one should have to sit back and watch as their family is harassed.

Meanwhile, Breckie Hill took to TikTok to clear her name, stating that she had never even met Keoghan. She explained that she had visited a restaurant to review their drinks and mentioned her margarita was too salty. Coincidentally, Keoghan was staying at a nearby hotel, which fans interpreted as a sly suggestion that she was with him. Hill called the accusations “ridiculous” and revealed that she had been preoccupied with recovering from a skiing accident, showing her body brace to prove it and to stave off further conspiracies.

Look, we all know Sabrina Carpenter is a gem who gifted us one of the year’s best songs with “Please Please Please,” where she literally begged Keoghan not to embarrass her. If he did embarrass her — and we might never know the truth — breakups are already painful enough without the added torment of public stalking and online harassment. And this comes from huge Sabrina Carpenter fans. If Keoghan indeed was unfaithful, perhaps her Grammy nomination for Song of the Year has rightfully served as a poetic consolation. Either way, it’s high time we learn that being a loyal fan does not mean sentencing someone for a crime without any proof.