Sydney Sweeney’s “sex symbol” tag sometimes overshadows her roles, and now she’s sounding off about it … saying it’s not all it’s cracked up to be!

The actress says folks assume she’s out here purposely playing up her sexy image, but, apparently, that’s not the case — ’cause she tells told Variety she’s just feeling good and strong in her own skin, so all that sexy confidence people see is purely for her.

Sydney also said she hopes to inspire other women to own their confidence and flaunt what they’ve got — stressing she never wants anyone to feel like they have to apologize, hide or cover up in any room.

Of course, Sydney’s public persona has often overshadowed her career, but if there’s one project that’ll make people look past the headlines … it could be her new film “Christy,” which is already stirring some Oscar buzz.