Sydney Sweeney says American Eagle ad backlash ‘didn’t affect’ her

Sydney Sweeney was surprised by the backlash to her American Eagle jeans ad but says she remained unaffected by the controversy. Photo / Getty Images

Sydney Sweeney says she wasn’t affected by the American Eagle jeans controversy.

The Euphoria actor was at the centre of a furore this year after starring in the brand’s “Great Jeans” advertisements, which were accused of glorifying her white heritage and physique, and she admits the response caught her by “surprise” as she felt the campaign was innocuous.

Sydney told GQ magazine: “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... I knew at the end of the day what that ad was for, and it was great jeans, it didn’t affect me one way or the other.”

The 28-year-old star said she never considered addressing the backlash as she doesn’t want others to “define” her.

“I’ve always believed that I’m not here to tell people what to think,” Sweeney said.

“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.”

The Anyone But You actor did find it “surreal” when US President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance waded into the debate – although she ignored the controversy for the most part.

Sweeney said: “I kind of just put my phone away. I was filming every day. I’m filming Euphoria, so I’m working 16-hour days and I don’t really bring my phone on set, so I work and then I go home and I go to sleep. So I didn’t really see a lot of it.”

She has been promoting Christy, her new biopic about the female boxing trailblazer Christy Martin, and would be disappointed if people refused to watch the movie because of her involvement in the American Eagle campaign.

“I think that if somebody is closed off because of something they read online to a powerful story like Christy, then I hope that something else can open their eyes to being open to art and being open to learning, and I’m not going to be affected by that.”