Sienna Miller apologized Friday for disparaging Pittsburgh in a magazine interview, saying her remarks were taken out of context and that she found the city and residents gracious.
The 24-year-old British actress, in town shooting the screen adaptation of Michael Chabon’s novel “The Mysteries of Pittsburgh,” called the city a profane name that rhymes Pittsburgh.
Miller, who starred in “Layer Cake,” “Casanova” and the remake of “Alfie,” told Rolling Stone, “Can you believe this is my life? Will you pity me when you’re back in your funky New York apartment and I’m still in Pittsburgh? I need to get more glamorous films and stop with my indie year.”
Her remarks touched a nerve in this fiercely loyal city. Miller’s comments appeared in the city’s two major daily newspapers, a television news anchor offered to show Miller around, and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said she should see the town: “If she would have, I think she would have found that Pittsburgh is a great place to live.”
On Friday, Miller apologized in a statement issued by her publicist, saying she was referring to the fact that the production was shooting mostly at night and she had not had a chance to fully explore the city.
“What I have seen of it is beautiful. I came once before to visit The Andy Warhol Museum whilst researching a film and found both the city and its inhabitants warm and gracious,” she said.
She said her father, who is from Meadville, about 85 miles north of Pittsburgh, planned to show her around the city this weekend.
Forbes magazine routinely lists Pittsburgh as one of the worst cities for singles. In 2003, the nationally syndicated cartoon “Get Fuzzy” lampooned Pittsburgh, and the strip’s creator said he received 300 to 400 e-mails, including death threats.
Earlier this year, Pittsburghers didn’t take kindly when Rocky Mountain News columnist Bill Johnson called the city “butt-ugly” in the run-up to the Super Bowl — which the hometown Steelers won.