Lili Reinhart Was Not Talking Cole Sprouse Breakup, Lashes Out at Media's 'Out of Context' Clickbait

Lili Reinhart may have thought she was opening up in an interview with Refinery29 that was published Tuesday, but the "Riverdale" star quickly found herself jumping on Twitter to add some clarification and context to her comments.

It probably doesn't help that the aforementioned interview was titled, "Lili Reinhart’s Been Through Heartbreak. She Wants To Tell You About It," because Reinhart says the media was getting things all wrong.

She did talk about what her therapist described as "withdrawal from love," which most definitely seemed to refer to her on-again, off-again relationship with co-star Cole Sprouse. That relationship was even mentioned in the paragraph prior.

It was other lines from the piece, though, that drew her ire.

"Quotes taken from my most recent interview are not about a 'breakup.' They are about the depression I’ve felt over these last few months," Reinhart explained via Twitter. "Tired of people taking my words out of context and piecing together their own story for clickbait."

"I would never speak so candidly about something as personal as a breakup. That’s incredibly private," she continued. "I was addressing my depression."

Reinhart has endeavored to keep her relationship with Sprouse very private, and his name is only mentioned that one time in the piece, but that didn't stop some outlets from extrapolating a connection from some of her other comments in the interview.

"This has been the first time in four years where I've been able to like stop and process the immense life changes that I've gone through," she said at one point, but it was in a paragraph discussing her mental health struggles and getting cast on The CW's "Riverdale."

She described that struggle as being like a "black tunnel [that] was never going to end."

"I couldn't see the light. I was like, 'I feel like I'm dying,' It was fucking rough, and there's no other way through it than just through it," she continued. "I've seen a lot of people when it comes to heartache and grief and breakups, and they try to get that void filled with sex, with coke, with food, with drinking, [but] the void is still there. I took the road less traveled and just dealt with my shit. I had to face my own pain head-on."

More than likely, it was the mention of "breakups" in that explanation that may have triggered the association, but Reinhart appears to be saying that this was just an example of what she's seen other people dealing with. For her, it was about living through her depression.

It is perhaps worth noting that Reinhart never comes out and says in the initial interview what she is referring to.

The word "depression" only comes up once in the piece and it is not in a direct quote from Reinhart, though it is in a line attributing "anxiety, depression, and rejection" as things that almost led to her quitting acting.

It's easy to see why she could be frustrated, though, as several media outlets quickly associated her talk of depression as being tied to her relationship, or possible breakup, with Sprouse. She did not talk about her clarify her current relationship status in the piece.

Reports that they are off again resurfaced in recent days, though neither of them have confirmed or denied anything. They have reportedly been quarantining separately throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

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