Craig Brommers, American Eagle’s chief marketing officer, said customers were “enthusiastic” about the new campaign.
Sidney Sweeney returns in new ad for American Eagle
After sparking controversy, Sidney Sweeney is back with another ad for American Eagle Jeans.
Provided by American Eagle
- Sidney Sweeney stars in American Eagle’s new campaign.
- Her previous collaboration with the brand, with its themes of “genes” and “jeans,” caused a backlash, but was also the most successful in the brand’s history.
- In this collaboration, a portion of all sales will be donated to Crisis Text Line.
It’s time to say hello to “Sid”.
Months after conversation and controversy erupted over Sidney Sweeney’s American Eagle jeans ad campaign, the star is back with the retailer to put a new spin on summer shorts.
“What brand am I wearing?” Sweeney asks in the commercial, smiling and playing with her hair as she poses in denim shorts against a blue sky. “Yes, that’s it,” she said, and the words “SYD FOR SHORT” flashed on the screen.
It’s a tongue-in-cheek nod to the craze of the original jeans campaign, which was “born out of the idea of collaborating with the No. 1 IT Girl on the No. 1 Jeans Campaign of 2025,” said Craig Blommers, chief marketing officer at American Eagle.
Blommers said Sid represents “her true self, a real person, a more casual version of Sidney Sweeney,” and the collaboration is part of a “throughline” that will “resonate” with consumers.
“American Eagle’s customer base really loved the dual nature of the 28-year-old ‘Euphoria’ star,” Blommers told USA TODAY. “Sure, there are actresses who hit the red carpet with box-office hits and Emmy-nominated performances on streaming shows. But there’s also a side that’s very easy-going, casual, and real — the girl-next-door side.”
Sidney Sweeney’s jeans ad sparks backlash and American Eagle’s success
Some retailers may have backed out after the initial collaboration sparked major controversy.
The fall campaign, released last July, played on the words “genes” and “jeans,” with Sweeney declaring that he “has great jeans.” “Genes are passed from parent to child and often determine traits such as hair color, personality, and even eye color,” Sweeney said in the commercial. “My jeans are blue.”
The internet swooped in. The commercial centered on a traditionally attractive, white, thin, blonde woman with blue eyes, and some said it upheld Sweeney as a standard of beauty. Some said the ad was retrograde, highlighting sexy blonde women and responding to the objectifying male gaze. Others claimed it had references to eugenics, or the belief that some genetic traits are better than others.
President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance also added comments. Sweeney is “running the ‘hottest’ ad. It’s from American Eagle and jeans are ‘disappearing from shelves.’ Go get Sidney!” Trump posted in August.
At the time, the company released its answer: “A great pair of jeans looks good on everyone.” “We stand behind what we did,” the company’s CEO said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
Now, Blommers reveals how excited the company was with the results. American Eagle Outfitters stock rose 22%. “The majority of Americans understood that this campaign was about jeans,” Blommers says. “It was a story, her story.”
“The reaction was definitely a surprise,” Sweeney said in an interview with GQ in November, echoing that sentiment in People magazine in December, adding, “I did it because I love jeans and I love the brand. I don’t support the opinions of some people who have chosen to associate themselves with the campaign. A lot of people have given me motives and labels that aren’t true.”
The campaign “definitely boosted jeans sales,” Blommers said. “American Eagle has stores in all 50 states, and every county in America saw an increase in new customer acquisition during that campaign. It’s true that this was the most successful campaign in the history of the American Eagle brand.”
Blommers said the ad had more than 55 billion impressions and was “the most talked about ad campaign of the year, probably of the last 10 years. ChatGPT sometimes tells me it’s the ad of the century.”
New American Eagle Sydney Sweeney campaign plans to ‘turn down the volume’
Given these results, Blomers said American Eagle consumers are “looking for a new chapter in this partnership,” noting the word “new.”
“When we thought about what we could do together next, it wasn’t about going backwards, it was about moving forward,” Blommers says.
“The world is curious and if we launch a campaign, the world will be talking about it,” Blommers said. “As we learned with our fall campaign, there’s noise but there’s also truth, and we’re excited to see where this campaign takes our brand.”
Blommers said the new ad aims to move away from previous campaigns and lean toward joy, but its language directly criticizes the controversy.
“The real world is so noisy right now, and sometimes you just want to turn it down, be yourself, and live your life in American Eagle jean shorts this summer,” Blommers says.
What exactly is that “noise”? “It could mean anything. It could be geopolitical. It could be the harsh realities of social media. Sometimes it could be the pain that someone is experiencing in their life or their mental health or whatever. I don’t think it’s for me to define someone’s noise,” Blommers says.
“This idea that you should know yourself, embrace yourself and your beliefs, and go out and live your life is a message that has been with the American Eagle brand for many years.…We hope this campaign brings that hope to our viewers during a particularly tumultuous moment in the real world.”
Sidney Sweeney ‘deeply involved’ in American Eagle campaign
Blommers seems to be hinting that this won’t be the last collaboration between American Eagle and “It Girl.”
In case you’re wondering, Sweeney is “very involved,” Blommers said.
“She’s there, choosing the shots, choosing the angles, choosing the storylines that she likes the most. So this isn’t about payday. This isn’t about someone showing up and cashing a check,” Blommers says. “This partnership is deep. He’s a genuine, very savvy businessman and someone who understands his brand very well.”
The new product, like the original product, supports Crisis Text Line. Crisis Text Line provides free, confidential mental health support 24/7 to those in need. 100% of the net proceeds from the shorts and jeans will be donated to nonprofit organizations. The limited edition denim style features a butterfly motif to commemorate philanthropic partnerships, a cause close to Sweeney’s heart.
“Working with Sweeney’s business in Sydney has been great for us,” Blommers said, adding that Sweeney “will always drive the conversation” in a “very culturally distinct partnership.”
Contributors: Anna Kaufman, Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY
