Sydney Sweeney won’t let the backlash from her American Eagle ad overshadow her latest work.
The 27-year-old actress shut down questions surrounding the brand’s “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” campaign, instead keeping the focus on her upcoming biopic, “Christy,” which will make its world debut at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) this weekend.
Speaking to Vanity Fair about the film, in which she plays boxing champion Christy Martin, Sweeney made it clear she will not be addressing the clothing brand controversy when she shows up at TIFF.
“I am there to support my movie and the people involved in making it, and I’m not there to talk about jeans,” she told the outlet in a preview published Thursday, Sept. 4.
“The movie’s about Christy, and that’s what I’ll be there to talk about,” Sweeney concluded.
In July, American Eagle released its “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” ad. Many criticized the brand for its play on words, seemingly using “jeans” instead of “genes” to talk about the blonde-haired, blue-eyed starlet.
“Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color. My jeans are blue,” Sweeney said in a video for the campaign as she buttoned up her denim.
The pun immediately sparked a debate about society’s beauty standards, with online chatter accusing the brand of using a hint of eugenics, which the National Institute of Health describes as “the use of selective breeding to improve the human race,” in its ad.
Despite the backlash, American Eagle stood by its campaign.
“‘Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans’ is and always was about the jeans,” the company said in a statement obtained by The Post last month. “Her jeans. Her story.”
“We’ll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way,” the brand’s statement concluded. “Great jeans look good on everyone.”
The controversy has only spiked sales for the clothing company, with American Eagle’s stock soaring nearly 30% higher on Thursday.
Executives told Wall Street analysts that the campaign with Sweeney brought in record traffic and unprecedented new customers.
“Sweeney is a winner, and in just six weeks, the campaign has generated unprecedented new customer acquisition,” chief marketing officer Craig Brommers said.
It was also a success online, racking up more than 150 million social media views.
American Eagle also shared their jean collaboration with the “Euphoria” star sold out in a mere week, with several items disappearing in a day.
Still, some would say the controversy overshadowed two of Sweeney’s latest projects — “The Housemaid,” in theaters on Dec. 19, and the “Christy” biopic.
The actress briefly touched on online fodder following the ad’s release.
“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,” Sweeney told The Wall Street Journal about social media feedback in an interview published Wednesday, Aug. 20.
