Sydney Sweeney opens up emotionally about the American Eagle denim ad controversy.
The 28-year-old actress was heavily criticized for allegedly reinforcing eugenics in the denim brand’s controversial campaign titled “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans”, which was released on July 23. The campaign sparked debates for its questionable usage of “jeans,” which semantically plays as a pun on “genes.” While the debates primarily underscored the racially charged undertones, hinting at genetic superiority, others pointed out how the ad catered to the male gaze, borrowing inspiration from Brooke Shields’ controversial 1980 denim campaign.
Speaking to PEOPLE in an exclusive interview, the Euphoria actress said, “I was honestly surprised by the reaction. I did it because I love the jeans and love the brand. I don’t support the views some people chose to connect to the campaign. Many have assigned motives and labels to me that just aren’t true.”
Clarifying her stance on the backlash, Sweeney affirmed to the news outlet that she’s someone who “leads with kindness”, adding, “Anyone who knows me knows that I’m always trying to bring people together. I’m against hate and divisiveness. In the past, my stance has been to never respond to negative or positive press, but recently I have come to realize that my silence regarding this issue has only widened the divide, not closed it. So I hope this new year brings more focus on what connects us instead of what divides us.”
Sweeney was compelled to break her silence on the hate simmering against her in an interview with GQ for its “Men of the Year” cover story that was published on November 4. When she was asked by the news outlet if the reaction caught her off guard, Sweeney responded quite forthrightly, “I did a jean ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans. All I wear are jeans. I’m literally in jeans and a T-shirt every day of my life.”
Back in July, when the denim brand found its brand caught in the mayhem, they took to social media to put their foot down. On August 1, they shared an Instagram post, stating, “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story. We’ll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone.”
View this post on Instagram
Although the campaign received an exponential amount of hate, American Eagle, which was founded in 1977, publicly shared that the denim Sweeney wore for the advertisement was sold out. According to PEOPLE, on July 23, that is just weeks after the launch of the campaign, a press email from the brand was shared announcing that their sales broke records, with a double-digit spike in men’s and women’s denim. Not just that, but the jacket the two-time Emmy-nominated actress wore in the campaign was sold out in one day, while her custom Dreamy Drape style jean, with 100% of proceeds benefiting the Crisis Text Line, was sold out in just one week.
Over the past few months, Sweeney has become a priority for a lot of advertisers. In May, the actress partnered with Dr. Squatch in May to create a new soap that’s been composed with a “touch” of her bathwater.
Not just advertisements, but the actress is set to have an upward career graph on the big screen as well with her upcoming film, The Housemaid, which she is currently promoting. The movie is directed by Paul Feig and adapted from Freida McFadden’s 2022 bestselling novel.
Sweeney’s acting prowess seems to be on an all-time high, having acted in two back-to-back critically acclaimed movies, including Tony Tost’s Americana, followed by Ron Howard’s period thriller Eden, where she shares the screen alongside Jude Law, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, and Daniel Brühl. To add to her portfolio is season 3 of Euphoria, which will reportedly hit the OTT sometime in 2026.
Appreciating the camaraderie she shared with the Mamma Mia! actress, Sweeney shared how they empowered each other by “showing up for one another” while “giving 100%” on the sets. She said, “We both are similar in that we always are giving positive energy to everyone, cast and crew. But most of all just having fun.”
Subtly hinting at the arrival of the possible sequel to The Housemaid, Sweeney hoped that the audience watching the film in theatres “leave completely shocked”, and “come back with friends for more.”