American Eagle just dropped a statement about the whole Sydney Sweeney “great genes/jeans” mess after the campaign exploded online.
They’re standing their ground, saying it was always supposed to be about the jeans—nothing more. The company claims it’s Sweeney’s story, her life, and they’re not caving to the backlash.
Vice President JD Vance mocks Sydney Sweeney’s ad
Now, the drama’s even gotten the White House involved. Vice President JD Vance jumped into the conversation, taking shots at Democrats for what he called an over-the-top reaction.
This came right after American Eagle’s communications director, Steven Cheung, dismissed the outrage as “moronic” and “cancel culture run amok.”
A couple of days back, a brand exec tried to spin the campaign as something that supports domestic violence prevention, mentioning that proceeds would go to a nonprofit.
But in a press release to Page Six, the company insisted, “‘Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans’ is, and always was, about the jeans.
Her jeans. Her story.” They even cited an internal survey claiming about 70% of their customers actually liked the ad, and made it clear they’re not backing off. “We’ll keep celebrating everyone who rocks their AE jeans in their own way,” the statement read. They wrapped it up with: “Great jeans look good on everyone.”
Sydney Sweeney’s controversial “great jeans” ad
Still, the internet’s been on fire ever since Sweeney’s ad dropped. She said, “I have great jeans… now you can too @americaneagle #AEPartner #AEJeans,” and the pun set off a wave of criticism. People accused the brand of promoting a white supremacy narrative by calling out “genetic” features like blonde hair and blue eyes.
Some critics went as far as calling it Nazi propaganda, pointing out that praising those traits has a long, ugly history.
Meanwhile, JD Vance doubled down on Friday, backing American Eagle and mocking the outrage. On the “Ruthless” podcast, he sarcastically suggested Democrats were calling anyone who finds Sydney Sweeney attractive a Nazi.
He pointed out that no major Democrats had even commented, but still took the opportunity to slam the reaction. “It’s a normal, all-American, beautiful girl doing a normal jeans ad,” he said. “They’re just trying to sell jeans to kids in America, and somehow that’s enough to send the other side into a meltdown. Did you guys learn nothing from the November 2024 election?”
Vance defended Sweeney, calling her “beautiful,” and argued that the backlash says more about the critics than the campaign itself. In his view, “You have a pretty girl doing a jeans ad, and they can’t help but freak out.”
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