Sydney Sweeney: Jeans advertising campaign ensures outrage

Sydney Sweeney (27) is currently exposed to massive criticism: her new advertising campaign for the fashion label American Eagle ensures violent reactions online. Under the winking motto “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” (German Sydney Sweeney has great jeans) – a pun with “Genes” (German) and “Jeans” – the actress advertises for the label’s denim products. But many users accuse the campaign of reproducing racist codes with the representation.

In a clip you can see the “Euphoria” actress entirely in Denim to get dressed in Denim. There she strokes the word “genes” with white color and replaces it with “jeans”. P lies SWEENEY on the back and lasciviously attracts her jeans, while a voiceover talks about inheritable features such as hair color, personality and eye color. In the end, Sweeney says with a smile in the camera: “My Jeans are blue.” (Dt. My jeans are blue).

What looks like a clever marketing stunt at first glance was quickly referred to as a coded racist message on social media. Numerous Tikok users criticize that blonde hair and blue eyes – characteristics that were historically charged with racist ideology – are presented uncommented as ideal.

“When these characteristics are repeatedly staged as genetic excellence, we know from the story where it leads,” wrote a user on Tikkok. “This is nothing more than a new edition of pseudo -scientific language about ‘racial’ superiority.”

Angry comments are also increasing among the official social media posts of American Eagle. “Who has approved this campaign?”, It says. “This is exactly what happens when there are no people with a different skin color in the room. Everyone focused on the clever pun, but nobody noticed the racist connotation,” explains one person. Another comment comes to the point: “It is reminiscent of subtle-dangerous visual language of the 1930s in Germany.”

Despite all the criticism, the campaign for American Eagle is already causing financial success. Last week, the stocks of the fashion company increased by more than four percent – shortly after the announcement that the “White Lotus” actress would be the face of the new autumn campaign. Analysts attribute the increase to SWEENEYS popularity as Hollywood “IT girl” and the enormous viral sensation that the campaign triggered.

It remains open for the time being whether the campaign is an unfortunate PR malfunction or conscious provocation. Neither American Eagle nor Sydney Sweeney have publicly commented on the allegations.

It was not until May 2025 that Sydney Sweeney was massively criticized for a PR stunt: with a soap company, she launched a soap that is supposed to contain the bathing water of the actress. The 27-year-old was then accused of marketing himself as a sexual object.