A new ad campaign from American Eagle starring the US actor Sydney Sweeney is meeting backlash, with some critics alleging online that the advertisement’s punny use of the phrase “great jeans” is a coded promotion of eugenics.
In the campaign, the 27-year-old Euphoria and White Lotus star is dressed in American Eagle denim outfits, accompanied by the tagline “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans”.
In one video clip shared by American Eagle on Instagram, Sweeney – who is blond and blue-eyed – is standing in front of a poster of herself with text that reads “Sydney Sweeney has great genes”. In the video, the word “genes” gets crossed out and is replaced with the word “jeans”.
Another video from the campaign features Sweeney saying: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color. My jeans are blue.”
The campaign has drawn mixed reactions online.
Some social media users have dubbed the campaign as “tone deaf” and accused it of echoing rhetoric associated with eugenics and white supremacy.
On X, one user wrote that “getting a blue eyed, blonde, white women and focusing your campaign around her having perfect genetics feels weird, especially considering the current state of America,” where one of the dominant political stories has been the Trump administration’s push to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion – or DEI – initiatives.
One user on TikTok argued that “the words we use are never unintentional” and that “for American Eagle to say Sydney Sweeney has good genes is not an accident”.
“This is a dog whistle to the rise of conservatism in this country,” they said.
Meanwhile, others, including some on the US political right have praised the actor and the campaign for delivering a blow to “wokeness” and “woke” advertising.
“Woke advertising is dead, Sydney Sweeney killed it,” one X user wrote, invoking a term that some conservatives use to criticize DEI measures.
And some observers have described the backlash to the campaign as overblown and an exaggeration.
One TikTok user said: “I personally don’t see why it’s causing all this controversy – to me, it’s just an ad for jeans.”
As of Tuesday morning, neither Sweeney nor American Eagle had publicly addressed the criticism and backlash.
Neither American Eagle nor a representative for Sweeney immediately responded to a request for comment from the Guardian.
As part of the campaign, American Eagle is releasing “The Sydney Jean” made in collaboration with Sweeney, which features a butterfly motif on the back pocket.
In the announcement from the company, the brand said that the motif “represents domestic violence awareness, which Sydney is passionate about”. The brand also said that “100% of the purchase price from The Sydney Jean will be donated to Crisis Text Line, a nonprofit offering free, 24/7, confidential mental health support to anyone in need.”
In the press release, American Eagle described the “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” campaign as a “return to essential denim dressing and a celebration of what the beloved brand does best: making customers look and feel good in AE Jeans”.
The company added that “Sweeney’s girl next door charm and main character energy – paired with her ability to not take herself too seriously – is the hallmark of this bold, playful campaign.”
The American Eagle campaign is not the first time that Sweeney has been involved in political controversy. In 2022, she faced criticism after she was photographed at her mother’s birthday party where several of the guests were seen wearing hats that called to mind those which bear Trump’s Make America great again (Maga) slogan.
Meanwhile, in May, she achieved internet virality by having a hand in selling soap made with her bath water, which virtually sold out immediately after it was released on the Dr Squatch website.
