What is the next step for Sydney Sweeney after the controversy American Eagle Jeans?

It’s Sydney Sweeney’s season. It is completely delivered with an asterisk.

The actress, producer, producer, Ford AFICIONADO and reserved and busy brand partner, reproduces for the most popular series of an even rising career. On the heels of a meat role in front of the winner of the Oscars Julianne Moore in the film Apple TV + Echo ValleySweeney has two films in theaters in consecutive weekends in August: Tony Tost Americana Followed a week later by Ron Howard’s period thriller Eden Faced with Jude Law, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby and Daniel Brühl.

September delivers a world premiere of the Toronto International Film International Film Festival for a big swing as a queer boxer in David Michod’s biopic Christythat she also produced, followed by Paul Feig’s psychological thriller The maid Faced with Amanda Seyfried. The first images of this last film electrified the Cinemacon public when he made his debut in Las Vegas in April. Oh, and the last season of EuphoriaThe show that made Sweeney a star, is on the horizon for the early 2026.

Who could have gone to guess that an apparently harmless denim campaign would force a footnote on what could have been a little month because of the way it sparked a surprise cultural war that extended Tiktok to the White House, with everyone from Lizzo to Donald Trump weighing with an opinion. But that’s what happened after American Eagle abandoned his campaign “Sydney Has Great Jeans” on July 23. It was designed as an ambitious partnership that included printed advertisements, 3D display panels (including one on the sphere in Las Vegas), a Snapchat lens technology that allowed users to interact with a digital sweeney, and a limited series of the “Sydney Jean” with 100% of the net product of the net was given for a non-war.

In a few days, a handful of Tiktok users have offended themselves to a campaign clip that presents Sweeney Saying (with a unique inflection), “genes are transmitted from parents to offspring, often determining features like hair color, personality and even eye color. My jeans are blue. ” Users said he promoted eugenics or was a form of Nazi propaganda because Sweeney is white, blond hair and blue eyes. While countless users have rejected theories as a nonsense, the pile of dogs had started to cause hot catches to become viral. The consumer media resumed the whirlwind and the coverage helped spread the controversy from afar, from the end of the night to the White House. President Donald Trump timed after The guardian reported that Sweeney had registered as a republican in Florida before the 2024 elections.

“Sydney Sweeney, a registered republican, has the” hottest “announcement. It is for American Eagle, and the jeans “fly shelves”. Go get them Sydney! “Trump posted on Truth Social.” The tide has seriously turned – being awake is for the losers, being a republican is what you want to be. “His article came hot in the heels of the American Eagle defending his campaign while pushing the story that there was another message to the pun.” Sydney Sweeney has an excellent Jean is always on the brand ” August 1.

Sweeney remained silent. She has still not said a word on the campaign or her counterpoup – allowing American Eagle’s statement to stand alone while the brand reiterated that it was just a slogan on jeans and nothing more – but it returned to Instagram on Wednesday to promote on Wednesday to promote Americana With a carousel of artistic images behind the scenes for its 25.3 million followers. “A few years ago, I filmed this little film with friends and now you meet Penny Jo,” posted Sweeney, seen in many images that also showcase Paul Walter Hauser and the pop star that has become actress Halsey. This is the only recent promotion for the film that Sweeney made apart from hitting the red carpet for a first in place of the Derst 5 on August 3. But that night, she posed only for photos before hiding quickly inside without talking to journalists.

That asks a question: what should Sweeney do now?

He does not say much Nathan Miller, CEO and founder of the strategic communication and crisis at full service Miller Ink, which represents the companies and celebrities of fortune 500. “American Eagle played it very well,” he explained, adding that the brand’s response reflects the current culture. “The same brand five years ago would have apologized abundantly and tried to exceed it quickly. Instead, they stuck to their arms and kept the countryside. It was quite irreverent without being offensive. What was great about this subject for Sweeney, is that even if everyone spoke, she was not. Everyone was talking about her, and she did nothing.”

But with an occupied affair, she will surely have to speak at some point of her new films even if the first time she has made questions about the press, it was during a Tiff press conference. When asked how she had to react to the revelation on her voting file as a republican, Miller said, once again, she does not need to get involved. “If it is authentic for her and that she wants to be public on this subject, awesome, but she should not feel obliged to do it simply because someone has unearthed her party inscription. It is quite suitable for her to say:” I do not discuss my policy, it’s personal. I’m only to talk about my film. “And she does not lose. Reaching the aisle today only expands her call,” said Miller.

Lucy Robertson, brand marketing manager at Buttermilk, an agency specializing in creators’ marketing, said that the American Eagle campaign felt like a “false step” for Sweeney because rather than taking advantage of it as a creative partner who helped shape the story. “He uses it as a practical” hook “to hang the countryside, in this case, with a message of deaf” good genes “which quietly strengthens Eurocentric beauty ideals such as white skin, blond hair, blue eyes.”

Robertson said that the “real influence” on today’s market comes from “integrated into the long -term creative ecosystem” rather than simply making punctual approval agreements. Sweeney has a long history of brand transactions after establishing a partnership with Laneige, Miu Miu, Armani Beauty, Kérastase, Heydude, Dr Squatch and Baskin-Robbins.

“Zendaya’s partnership with ON, for example, establishes the reference. In this 14 -month collaboration – which was to be the first chapter of a multi -year partnership – it has not only played in advertisements – it co -conceived the Sneaker Cloudzone, helped develop visual history in the Evocative product, the campaign and driving, and the way in which identity explains in the way its identity is explained in both products and driving ” Euphoria CO-STAR. “This level of integration deepens the cultural currency where we have seen Sydney Front several brand campaigns in a short time, the result may seem more transactional than transformer.”

A well-placed legal source familiar with the negotiation of A-List brand agreements indicates that it could be too early to say if the whirlwind of social media will affect future partnerships in Sweeney and actor concerts. Companies might prefer not to work with it if they believe that consumers have the fatigue of Sweeney or if its exhibition could tarnish their image. (In the midst of the American Eagle reaction, Baskin-Robbins disabled comments on his Tiktok videos featuring Sweeney.) The expert notes that their advice to customers vary according to star joy and that there is a science to measure celebrity. At a certain level of renown, too many product recommendations could mitigate its image of list A, added the source, while others turn to international markets to maintain cash flow while avoiding being “everywhere” on their domestic lawn. Meanwhile, brand offers become a necessity for players in the middle of the road who feel the pressure of studio consolidation with fewer available concerts.

Matt Herbert, commercial director of the brand monitoring platform, says The Hollywood Reporter That the reaction to the AE campaign “does not necessarily need to define AE, but it is the way they react from now on.” He quotes the controversial announcement of 2017 of Pepsi with Kendall Jenner that some called the deaf for having used themes surprisingly similar to the Matter Black Lives demonstrations. (The company then removed online advertising.)

The tracksuit has also noted that the notoriety of the brand for another Sweeney brand partnerships for Dr Squatch saw this company increased by three percentage points from August 2024 to July 2025. (Recall that the male soap brand has sold bars made with its real bathing water due to popular demand.) The company is already that “Trendy” is already a common theme Associated with Laneige, Dr. Squatch and Miu Miu among the respondents to the show. Regarding the results of the AE, the next report on the results of the company is on September 4, which could offer an overview of the impact, positive or negative, the controversy had on sales.

Herbert notes that Ee “faced very major challenges in the last 18 months”, with a notoriety of the brand of 6 percentage points from January 2024 to June 2025; And consideration, preference and use decreased by 5 percentage points. … Any activation of celebrities (approval or brand) is an attempt at relevance, which we know by examining all our monitoring data. »»

In the case of AE, “the news is so cool, the conversation is so cool, and we will keep an eye (on the outcome of the campaign) in the coming months,” explains Herbert. This could mean even more eyes on Sweeney and her upcoming projects, which in Hollywood is always a good thing.