American Eagle "great jeans" ad and its genes pun, 2025
In July 2025 Sweeney fronted American Eagle's "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans" campaign. Critics said its jeans/genes wordplay echoed eugenics and narrow beauty standards; others called the outrage overblown. After reports she is a registered Republican, Donald Trump praised the ad. Sweeney stayed silent for months, then said in December 2025 that she is against hate.
Editorial timeline of public reporting, not a legal finding.
- American Eagle launches "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans" campaign - AP and the Guardian reported that American Eagle's fall denim campaign, released July 23, 2025, showed Sweeney with the tagline "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans" and a clip in which she says genes "are passed down from parents to offspring" before adding "My jeans are blue." Coverage said some social media users called the genes pun tone deaf and an echo of eugenics, while others defended the ad. American Eagle faces backlash over 'Sydney Sweeney has great jeans' ad
- American Eagle says the ad "is and always was about the jeans" - AP, NBC News and NPR reported that on August 1, 2025, American Eagle said on Instagram that the campaign "is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story," adding that great jeans look good on everyone. NPR reported the genes video had been removed from the company's social channels, and that critics also objected to the sexualized framing of the ads. American Eagle responds to critics over ad with Sydney Sweeney
- Republican voter registration reported; Trump says "now I love her ad" - The Guardian reported public records showing Sweeney registered as a Republican voter in Florida on June 14, 2024. BBC and USA Today reported that on August 3, 2025, @realdonaldtrump told reporters that if she is a registered Republican, "I think her ad is fantastic," and the next day posted that she had "the HOTTEST ad out there." BBC said Sweeney had not commented on the backlash or her politics. Sydney Sweeney's Republican voter registration revealed amid jeans ad controversy
- In GQ interview, Sweeney declines to address the genes criticism - In a GQ Men of the Year interview published November 4, 2025, Sweeney said "I did a jean ad" and that the reaction was a surprise, and called the president's and vice president's comments "surreal." Asked about criticism that white people should not joke about genetic superiority, she replied: "I think that when I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear." Mediaite and EW reported the exchange. Sydney Sweeney on Life at the Center of the Conversation
- Sweeney tells People she is "against hate and divisiveness" - NBC News, Variety and Deadline reported that in a People interview published December 5, 2025, Sweeney said she was surprised by the reaction, did not support "the views some people chose to connect to the campaign," and was "against hate and divisiveness." She said she had come to realize her silence "only widened the divide, not closed it." Sydney Sweeney addresses American Eagle ad, says she's 'against hate'