A proper explanation of why Sydney Sweeney is being dragged for a jeans ad

In case you’ve missed it, Sydney Sweeney is being dragged all over the internet for appearing in a controversial jeans advert. I mean, even Doja Cat made a TikTok mocking it. The conversation has already become very intense and very polarised. To help you make sense of the discourse, here’s an explanation of why people are arguing over Sydney Sweeney and the jeans advert in the first place.

Wait, why was Sydney Sweeney in a jeans ad?

So, Sydney Sweeney has done a collab with American Eagle. The clothing company is releasing an item called The Sydney Jean.

Proceeds from these jeans are actually being donated to a mental health charity called Crisis Text Line. But lots of people were disappointed the adverts did not focus more on this cause. An American Eagle press release explains: “a butterfly motif on the back pocket of the jean represents domestic violence awareness, which Sydney is passionate about.” But this isn’t a very prominent part of the ad campaign.

A lot of people are offended by the slogan of the campaign

The ad campaign’s slogan is “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.” On posters, “jeans” replaces the crossed-out word “genes”.

In one ad, Sydney wriggles about on a sofa while fiddling with her zip. The camera moves along her body, as she says: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality… even eye colour. My jeans are blue.” Then a voiceover says: Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.”

@dojacat

my jeans are blee

♬ original sound – Doja Cat

The general colour palette of these ads, by the way, is blue (like the denim and Sydney’s eyes) and a pale yellow (like Sydney’s hair).

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Lots of people find this advert to be very insensitive. They have argued that saying a blue-eyed blonde-haired white woman has “great genes”, while drawing attention to those features, could be interpreted as having connotations of eugenics and white supremacy.

american eagle needs to delete those sydney sweeney ads. they are genuinely scary.

— bambi ✿ chelandria defender (@bambied_) July 25, 2025

people not realizing the eugenics ideology behind sydney sweeney's jeans ad is like very terrifying you guys desperately need to grow a brain

— malu (@taymaisies) July 26, 2025

The videos on social media are also being slated

People have wondered if the promotional pics of Sydney writhing on the floor in her jeans are supposed to be a homage to a 1980 Calvin Klein ad starring a 15-year-old Brooke Shields. This ad was controversial even in 1980. Many people argued the ad was overly sexualised, and it deeply wrong for a literal child to be in it.

Others have also criticised the promotional videos for pandering to the male gaze. One video is captioned “Sydney Sweeney in her sensory era. Turn it up!”. The clip depicts Sydney panting, zipping up the jeans, and strutting away in slow-motion. Another ad includes zoomed-in shots of Sydney’s cleavage and crotch. Obviously, Sydney Sweeney is a grown adult who can pose however she likes. But some people feel the overall tone of the video is a bit outdated for 2025.

@nataliireynoldss

I’m never shopping at American eagle after watching this… #fyp #sydneysweeney #americaneagle #nataliereynolds

♬ original sound – Natalie Reynolds

Under an Instagram clip in which Sydney patted her buttocks, someone commented: “Are we selling jeans to women or selling women in jeans to men?”

Another Instagram user wrote underneath a pic of Sydney posing with a dog: “Blonde girl, blue eyes, denim, and a German Shepherd. So we’re just cosplaying 1939 now?”

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Featured image of Sydney Sweeney via American Eagle’s YouTube.