Sydney Sweeney isn’t feeling euphoric about online commentary.
The “Housemaid” star, 28, came under fire following an American Eagle partnership in July.
The “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” campaign sparked a debate about race and beauty standards.
Critics focused on the use of the word “genes” instead of “jeans” when discussing the blonde-haired, blue-eyed star.
Many social media users felt that the ad promoted eugenics.
Now, Sweeney is getting candid on her ad’s reaction.
“I was honestly surprised by the reaction,” she confessed to People. “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.”
Sweeney said she “leads with kindness” in her life and doesn’t want to be associated with anything negative.
“Anyone who knows me knows that I’m always trying to bring people together,” she continued. “I’m against hate and divisiveness.”
Sweeney also cleared up why she chose to speak out now.
“In the past my stance has been to never respond to negative or positive press,” the “Anyone But You” actress detailed, “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.”
In November, Sweeney told GQ: “I’ve always believed that I’m not here to tell people what to think. I’m just here to kind of open their eyes to different ideas.”
The “Euphoria” star also explained why she doesn’t feel the need to address things publicly, stating, “I’ll vent to my girlfriends.”
“But other than that, no. I know who I am. I know what I value. I know that I’m a kind person. I know that I love a lot, and I know that I’m just excited to see what happens next. And so I don’t really let other people define who I am.”
“I did a jean ad,” Sweeney continued. “I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans,” she told the outlet. “All I wear are jeans. I’m literally in jeans and a T-shirt every day of my life.”
At the time, the “White Lotus” alum opted not to clarify any misconceptions.
“I think that when I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear,” she noted.
In September, while at the Toronto International Film Festival for her film “Christy,” Sweeney told Vanity Fair: “I am there to support my movie and the people involved in making it. I’m not there to talk about jeans.”
In the model’s American Eagle video, she says: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color. My jeans are blue.”
At the time, Marcus Collins, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, revealed how he felt the controversy should have been handled.
“You can either say this was ignorance, or this was laziness, or say that this is intentional. Either one of the three aren’t good,” he told the Associated Press.
American Eagle, however, quickly defended the company’s campaign.
“‘Sydney Sweeney has great jeans’ is and always was about the jeans,” the clothing brand wrote in an August Instagram statement. “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.”
Just one month earlier, in June, Sweeney faced backlash for her partnership with Dr. Squatch after selling a limited-edition line of bar soaps made from her bathwater.
In 2023, Jacob Elordi and Barry Keoghan starred in the movie “Saltburn” together. In one scene, the Irish actor’s character Oliver drinks bathwater after Elordi’s Felix had pleasured himself in the tub.
Fans created a “Bathwater Candle” inspired by the moment.
According to Sweeney, she saw the commentary on her soap, which wasn’t well received.
“I think it’s important to have a finger on the pulse of what people are saying, because everything is a conversation with the audience,” she told The Wall Street Journal about navigating internet feedback in August.
“It was mainly the girls making comments about it, which I thought was really interesting,” Sweeney mused. “They all loved the idea of Jacob Elordi’s bathwater.”
