Twinless creator James Sweeney addresses ‘perverts’ sharing leaked Dylan O’Brien sex scene
Dylan O’Brien and James Sweeney appear in Twinless (Sundance Institute/ Greg Cotten)
Star and creator of black comedy Twinless James Sweeney has reacted to the internet-wide leak of a sex scene between him and co-star Dylan O’Brien – and he thinks those involved are ‘perverts’.
Raunchy queer comedy Twinless is fast approaching, but after a gay sex scene between its two leads (James Sweeney and Teen Wolf‘s Dylan O’Brien) leaked online following its January 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere, the film wasn’t the only thing coming soon.
The film stars O’Brien and Sweeney as two lost souls, who meet at a support group for bereaved twins; as teased by the first trailer, their onscreen counterparts Roman and Dennis form an unlikely connection.
But that trailer dropped after a pretty explicit clip of Roman and Dennis going at it made the rounds on X as part of a wider piracy leak at Sundance.
Sweeney, who directed, wrote and produced the film alongside starring in it, has now addressed the “perverts” spreading the clip across the internet.
“On one hand… all press is good press, and you hope [the online discussion] garners goodwill and awareness of the project, and that it incentivises people to show up and then see the film in theaters — especially for all those perverts,” he told them.
“But in a macro sense, it is troubling. It feels like maybe there is an entitlement for modern audiences that everything needs to be immediately available to them and that they have the right to exploit images and art however they see fit. So I really don’t know.”
Sweeney continued of the Twinless sex scene: “But I’m reluctant to say that because I feel like I’ll just get vilified by people being like, ‘He thinks he’s so special and that his art is so important.’ But it is an invasion of my privacy and of my bodily autonomy. Obviously, I made the film and the scene is in there. It’s going to exist. But it’s supposed to be presented in a specific context. Also, it’s a spoiler!”
The out gay director added that he “lost sleep over” the leak. Twinless also stars Abbott Elementary‘s Chris Perfetti, Lauren Graham, Tasha Smith, François Arnaud, Susan Park and Cree Cicchino.
The queer comedy – which O’Brien described as “the most naked thing I’ve ever done” – received a 5 September US release date in April, via Roadside Attractions and Lionsgate.
No international release date has been given yet, though the film has been sold to Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions.
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