'Newsies' actress says it's 'funny' fans wanted Christian Bale to end up with male lead instead of her character

• Ele Keats played Sarah, the love interest of Jack Kelly (Christian Bale) in 1992's "Newsies."
• But some "Newsies" fans wanted Jack Kelly to be romantically involved with Davey (David Moscow).

Actor Ele Keats said she knew a lot of fans hated her character in "Newsies." But she didn't understand all of the reasons behind the ire until she spoke to Insider.

Keats played Sarah Jacobs, the love interest of Jack Kelly (Christian Bale) and sister of Davey Jacobs (David Moscow), in the 1992 film. Although the actor theorized that viewers disliked her character because she got to kiss the suave Jack Kelly, other fans felt she got in the way of what could have been a queer love story.

Leads Jack and David famously have a lot of chemistry throughout the film, with some fans saying they have a "friendship that verges into the territory of romance." Others have speculated that Sarah, who has fewer than 20 lines in the two-hour film, was added as a "homosexual coverup plotline."

There are also hundreds of pieces of fan-fiction — stories written by fans that typically use characters from shows and movies — on Archive of Our Own and Wattpad that romantically pair Jack and Davey, or "Javid."

Upon learning of this pairing while speaking to Insider, she called it "fucking hilarious."

"'Cause David and Christian are the most heterosexual males, you know, it's funny," she said, adding she recently saw Moscow and his wife at her jewelry shop. "That is so freaking funny. I don't know if they know."

But she also called the fan-driven pairing "precious."

"If 'Newsies' is coming out today, there would be no problem whatsoever but it was the early 90s," she told Insider, adding, "I think that's sort of like a fan fantasy, you know?"

Keats said she dealt with a lot of negativity from 'Newsies' that went beyond dislike for her character

When speaking to Insider for the movie's 30th anniversary, the actor said she dealt with a lot of "negative energy" from critics and fans after the movie came out.

"It bombed. It was only in the theater for two weeks and the reviews are painfully mean," she said.

She told Insider Disney mailed her a "phone book of horrible reviews, including some personal-attack type of reviews" and it was "really hard" for her to read them.

"My character was hated," she said. "And there was just a lot of mean energy coming toward my character, but that correlates to 'I'm a human being and I feel those things.'"

She added that she felt "physically sick" right after "Newsies" and believes it has to do with all of the negativity.

But years later, she said, it's been "wonderful" to interact with "Newsies" fans.

"It's just such an amazing group of humans. I think if you love 'Newsies' you're just a good, openhearted loving person. It's not a scary fan group. It's definitely a love-filled, sweet group."