Sydney Sweeney Responds To Body-Shamers With Topless Photos
As of this writing, the post made by Sweeney on Instagram in response to the aforementioned body-shamers has reached nearly 4.3 million likes. Of course, that's because Sweeney made the decision to flaunt her body with a topless outfit on a rooftop. The only thing covering her chest is an unbuttoned cardigan.
'rain rain go away,' she writes in a caption for the image, referring to those that have complained about some of her prior appearances and outfits. Many trolls have complained on Sweeney's previous images, either shaming the celebrity for exposing her body or simply criticizing her performances in movies like Madame Web or shows like Euphoria .
Here's the topless Sydney Sweeney photos:
It's definitely one way to throw shade on everything that's trying to put her down. Of course, with her career's continued growth and deals with brands that include the aforementioned American Eagle and Dr. Squatch labels, there isn't much left to put down. That'll only be further proved as Sweeney's other upcoming projects come to light like the long-awaited remake of Barbarella .
Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates regarding Sydney Sweeney and her career as we have them. It's certainly never easy dealing with vitriol or backlash on the internet, but Sweeney is clearly making the best of her situation, finding solace and support in her fans and ignoring the haters by doing whatever she wants. It's a strategy that clearly seems to be working, especially with the number of high-concept projects that Sweeney already has herself attached to.
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Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
5 Marketing Lessons From The Sydney Sweeney American Eagle Backlash
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 10: Sydney Sweeney attends the Variety Power Of Young Hollywood at ... More NeueHouse Los Angeles on August 10, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Monica Schipper/WireImage) The internet is buzzing with lots of thoughts and emotions on the newest campaign launched by retailer American Eagle featuring actress Sydney Sweeney. While there are definitely some consumers who love the campaign, the backlash from the campaign is what is dominating the narrative. There are several complaints with the campaign. Some consumers are troubled that an ad marketing women's jeans has a sexual tone that seems to be targeted for the 'straight male gaze.' Another issue, is that there seems to be a disconnect between the cause the brand is connecting to. A butterfly motif appears on the back pocket of 'The Sydney Jean," representing domestic violence awareness, a cause Sweeney is passionate about. In addition, 100% of the proceeds of The Sydney Jean"will be donated to Crisis Text Line, a non-profit offering 24-hour mental health support to anyone who needs it. However, the sexual nature of the ads in the campaign appear at odds with the community the brand is aiming to align with and support. However, the biggest controversy of the campaign, comes from messaging many are touting as being rooted in White supremacy. The text of the primary add includes a play on the words genes and jeans, which for many feels like it is a lot more than just selling jeans. The text of the voiceover says,"Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color. My genes are blue." The visual for the ad is a pan over of Sweeney wearing only blue jeans and flashing her blue eyes at the end. Another visual from the campaign shows a billboard of Sweeney in blue jeans, with the copy 'Sydney Sweeney has great genes.' Later in the ad, a Sydney lookalike crosses out the word 'genes' and writes 'jeans.' Critics of the ad feel that because of the play and usage of the word 'genes' – it is implying that the type of genes Sydney Sweeney have are great, superior, and preferred to other types of genes that aren't like Sydney's – a thin White woman with blonde hair and blue eyes. On one Reddit thread one commenter wrote, 'I mean it is a direct homage to a pretty vile Calvin Kline ad that sexualised a 14 year old Brooke Shields. But the main reason people don't like the ad is it has some pretty nasty racial implications. Are either of these Sweeney's fault no, but I can think the ad was in poor taste and blame the idiot marketing team.' Another wrote, 'It's a bad look for a classically attractive, blue eyed blonde haired woman to brag about how she has good genes, and 'good genes' implies the existance of bad genes.' On TikTok, commenters had even more pointed negative responses, including 'nobody is getting their pants from their parents. This is a direct eugenics ad. As in your face as you could get.' Another commentor added, 'I'm trying to work out whether or not the sexism is more prominent, or the white supremacy. Genuinely who let this happen.' And another added, 'In a normal situation, making the genes/jeans pun isn't a big deal. But when you add the 'genes are passed down, like eye color and hair" while the actress you're showing has BLUE EYES AND BLONDE HAIR it sounds like an advertisement for the aryan race." As marketers around the world are watching the backlash unfold, here are some important lessons to keep in mind from this sage that will help you increase your effectiveness. 1. Embrace this golden rule of marketing Inclusive marketing is all about acknowledging the many ways in which consumers are different, intentionally choosing who your brand will serve, and then incorporating those consumers throughout all areas of your marketing mix. Based on the ads in the campaign, American Eagle doesn't appear to be practicing inclusive marketing. That is totally their right to do so. No brand has an obligation to serve every identity. Like inclusive marketing, smart customer acquisition also requires a brand to to be judicious about choosing which types of consumers you will serve. From this Sydney Sweeney campaign, it appears that American Eagle chose who their were targeting: White men and women. While brands have every right to choose who they want to serve, they also need to be prepared for the reactions of people who are being excluded – intentionally or not. While American Eagle may win some new customers with this campaign, they are also losing a lot of customers. In response to some of the new campaign posts on Instagram, one consumer shared, 'My AE order just arrived today. I'm heading to the store tomorrow to return the whole thing. This campaign is abhorrent.' Another wrote, 'Y'all were my fav place to buy jeans…won't be shopping here anymore.' And another commented, 'I've been wearing nothing but AE jeans for 15+ years but this campaign is so off I'll find other jeans to wear now.' Key Lesson: Choose which identities your brand wants to feel like they belong with your brand. Accept that consumers you don't choose to focus on may decide to spend their money elsewhere. 2. Use your power for good Marketing has much more power than getting consumers to buy your product. Marketing also has the power to influence the way people feel about both themselves and other people. A few years back, Unilever recognized that power and decided to remove the word 'normal' from all packaging and campaigns for all their beauty and personal products. The brand recognized that people who needed products that weren't labeled 'normal' were negatively impacted by that experience. Thus, if you are a person looking at the new American Eagle campaign, and you don't have some of the genetically handed down 'good gene' traits of Sydney Sweeney, that could negatively impact the way you view yourself. Along those same lines, calling specific traits of genes good, could also cause people to look at other people who don't have those genes in a lesser light. Key Lesson: Marketing doesn't exist in a vacuum. The messages you communicate both directly and indirectly have power that goes well beyond how people respond to your product. Responsible marketing supports your brands growth. Lean into it. 3. Intent isn't the marker for success We do not know the intentions of the American Eagle team when they made this ad. I reached out to a spokesperson for comment, and have yet to hear back. We do know, from a post from Ashely Schapiro, American Eagle's vice president marketing, media, performance and engagement, that the campaign did have a double meaning behind it. In a LinkedIn post celebrating the team's efforts for what the created, and giving a peek into the creative process and decisions, Schapiro wrote, 'The star power of Sydney and the double meaning behind the campaign has a culture shaping power beyond anything I could have ever imagined being a part of - just check your social feeds.' We may never know with certainty what the intent was with the double meaning referenced unless American Eagle tells us. Generally. when campaigns have this level of backlash, an official apology comes, which often includes the sentiment, 'our intention wasn't to offend.' Whether or not that happens, it is important to remember that intention is never the marker of success. How the campaign is received is the true marker marketers should judge their effectiveness by. And while there are consumers who love and appreciate this campaign, there are many who hate it and feel it causes harm. Key takeaway: Focus on impact, not your intentions. If what you produce doesn't land the way you intend, then there is opportunity for improvement. 4. Don't guess about how your campaign will be received We do not know if American Eagle tested their campaign concept or any portion of the campaign with consumers before making such massive investment to make sure it gets seen. Most commentary and news about the campaign is entirely focused on the controversy surrounding it. There are questions swirling around wondering how a brand could have produced a campaign that would garner such strong negative reaction. Smart marketers don't leave the success of campaigns they are heavily investing in up to chance. Good marketers take the time to not only get feedback from a broad diversity of their ideal customers to get an understanding of how they respond to campaigns, but they also take the time to understand how the campaigns might be perceived overall, even outside of their ideal customer circle. If the intention of the campaign was not to offend, then included in the development process should have been voices to offer culturally intelligent insights, or at the very least to weigh in on how the campaign might be perceived once it is live. Key takeaway: Include people who have the identities of the ideal customers you are trying to reach in your creative process from start to finish. Test your campaigns with your intended audience before you launch it. 5. Responses in crisis situations should be thoughtful, rather than rushed In the midst of all the backlash around the Sydney Sweeney campaign, American Eagle published a post on Instagram showcasing a racially ambiguous model wearing a pair of jeans, with the caption, 'Denim on denim on denim…on denim. AE has great jeans.' The brand also has removed the video campaign that received the most complaints from their social media accounts. It is unclear if the brand posted this to appear as if including a model with different genes was a part of this campaign. But for many people, the move just feels rushed, and like the brand is trying to cover its tracks given the accusations around race with the core of its campaign. To make matters even more confusing, the caption features lyrics from a Beyonce song titled Levii's jeans. The entertainer currently has a campaign with American Eagle competitor Levi's. One consumer responded, 'does she have great jeans like Sydney Sweeney too or is this just damage control?' Another wrote, 'This move was actually worse…it looks like an after thought…putting a band-aid on a gushing wound," and another person added, "they really said ''HERE DAMN IT.' Key takeaway: Don't respond to crisis with hasty moves. You might make the situation worse, especially if your response appears inauthentic. Also, the use of racially ambiguous models often doesn't have the intended impact brands think it does.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
The next meme stock? Timothée Chalamet named Lucid's global brand ambassador
American Eagle (AEO) has Sydney Sweeney. And now EV upstart Lucid Motors (LCID) has its own superstar. Lucid Motors announced it has signed a "multi-year partnership" with Oscar-nominated actor and "culture icon" Timothée Chalamet as the company's first-ever global brand ambassador. As part of the deal, Chalamet will star in Lucid's marketing push for the EV maker's upcoming Gravity SUV. Lucid claims the Chalamet tie-up comes as the star was spotted driving a Lucid Air sedan in 2023. "We're excited to welcome Timothée as our first Global Brand Ambassador," Akerho Oghoghomeh, senior vice president of marketing at Lucid, said in a statement. "Together, we'll show what's possible when innovation and cultural relevance come together to move the world forward." Chalamet's stardom has soared in recent years thanks to movies like the "Dune" series, "A Complete Unknown," and "Wonka." Increasingly, however, his off-screen exploits have caught mainstream attention, including his outward New York Knicks fandom, head-to-toe Chrome Hearts outfits, and relationship with fellow celeb (and beauty entrepreneur) Kylie Jenner. Lucid's connection with Chalamet comes on the heels of Sydney Sweeney's deal with American Eagle, the teen brand that has been suffering of late. Sweeney's deal to star in the brand's fall campaign (dubbed "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans") sent social media abuzz and American Eagle stock soaring last Thursday, with shares jumping 20% in pre-market trading before closing up 4.3%. While the Sweeney images and accompanying ad copy caused some controversy, the ensuing coverage coming American Eagle's way is still seen as a positive. American Eagle's CMO likened the Sweeney partnership to the denim brand's "Super Bowl." As for Lucid stock, news of Chalamet's signing hasn't lifted shares higher. Perhaps the "Dune" actor just needs better jeans. Pras Subramanian is the lead auto reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on X and on Instagram. Sign in to access your portfolio
Fast Company
an hour ago
- Fast Company
The simple way American Eagle could have avoided the Sydney Sweeney situation
A big American brand partners with a young, beautiful celebrity in what it thinks is a clever and iconic piece of advertising. But as soon as the ad drops, the reaction is exactly the opposite of what the brand was hoping for. There is an immediate backlash against how the ad has casually, and ignorantly, waded into issues like identity politics, societal divisions, and systemic racism. Sound familiar? Of course, it sounds a helluva lot like the swamp of hot takes American Eagle and Sydney Sweeney currently find themselves wandering waist-deep in. But I was actually talking about the infamous Pepsi and Kendall Jenner ad from 2017. So much has changed since then, but oh, how any given brand's lack of cultural awareness can remain constant. Last week, American Eagle dropped a new campaign of ads featuring Sweeney. One has her sensually sliding into a pair of jeans while explaining what genes are. 'Jeans are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color,' she said. 'My jeans are blue.' Cut to a male voice-over and tagline: 'Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.' That double entendre between denim and genetic traits immediately raised the ire of the internet, with many pointing to the very blond hair and blue eyes of the campaign's star as a complicated and divisive ideal to be touting in 2025. Accusations hurled at the brand ranged from plain ignorance to full-on Nazi propaganda. On the other end are those finding fresh fodder for their screams against the 'woke mind virus.' Wherever you stand on that spectrum, there is no denying the fact that the campaign has gone much bigger than it ever would have as a result of this outsize negative reaction. No matter what anyone says, this was certainly not the brand's intention. Defining moment This was no one-off social post, but a full-throated brand extravaganza. American Eagle chief marketing officer Craig Brommers was hyping its scale on LinkedIn last week, about how it would hit the Sphere in Las Vegas, 3D billboards in Times Square and L.A., a Euphoria partnership with HBO Max, and more. 'A massive thank-you and CONGRATULATIONS to our internal teams and external partners—and SYDNEY herself—for this defining moment,' Brommers wrote. Ashley Schapiro, American Eagle's vice president of marketing, media, performance, and engagement, wrote a LinkedIn post outlining part of the process. She said that on a Zoom call with Sweeney, they asked her, 'How far do you want to push it?' 'Without hesitation, she smirked and said, 'Let's push it. I'm game.' Our response? 'Challenge Accepted,'' Schapiro wrote. 'From that moment on, Syd's sentiment guided every frame, every stitch and every unexpected twist of the 'Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans'👖campaign. Infusing our own personal cheeky energy and making us 😂 as we envisioned how the world would experience the launch. … The ⭐️ star power of Sydney and the double meaning behind the campaign has a culture-shaping power beyond anything I could have ever imagined being a part of—just check your social feeds.' There are any number of ways to talk about this ad and campaign overall—from whether it intentionally or not promotes outdated genetic ideals to whether the intended audience is people who buy jeans or those buying meme stocks. But let's look at these spots as creative advertising ideas. Reheated ideas The spot featuring Sweeney squeezing into a pair of jeans while lying down and doling out a genetics lesson is a remarkable facsimile of Calvin Klein's 1980 spot with Brooke Shields giving her own breakdown of genetics while … you guessed it … squeezing into a pair of jeans while lying down. Another Sweeney spot has her going all meta, insisting that she's not trying to get you to buy American Eagle jeans at all. This hews incredibly close to a 2017 Sprite ad starring LeBron James, in which the NBA star insists that he's not here to convince you to drink the soda at all. Just like the controversy itself, the ideas here aren't new. But there was a very simple way to feature the exact same work without all the negative baggage. Meaning over intent Marcus Collins, a consultant, author, and University of Michigan marketing professor, often writes about brands as vessels for meaning. Meaning is subjective, not objective, and that is something all brand marketers need to keep in mind. On Instagram, Collins said: 'Despite whatever the intentions the brand had in making this ad, what it communicates to people is that there is a prototypical standard for good genes: white, blonde hair, blue eyes. And of course, especially considering the political and social cultural backdrop that we're in right now, that could seem like some pretty bad dog whistling.' Collins goes on to outline how American Eagle could have done this campaign without the whistle. Why not feature other people, who may still be objectively beautiful, to illustrate a variety of good jeans? Collins points to stars like Idris Elba or Halle Berry, but American Eagle needn't even have looked outside their own brand roster. Last year, the brand launched a collab collection with tennis star Coco Gauff, as well as her second ad campaign for the slogan 'Live Your Life.' The 21-year-old is not only in the brand's ideal age bracket, she's also smart, stylish, beautiful, and just happens to have a collection of 19 professional tennis trophies, including the 2023 U.S. Open and 2025 French Open titles. Now, those are some pretty damn good jeans, too. The early-rate deadline for Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies Awards is Friday, September 5, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply today.
