SYDNEY SWEENEY HAS come under fire for her ‘great genes’ advertisement for the clothing brand American Eagle, which was designed to raise awareness about domestic violence but has been criticised for having racist undertones.

The jean campaign features Sweeney, a 27-year-old actor best known for roles in the series Euphoria, wearing denim on denim, with the slogan “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans”.

Some social media users are saying the wordplay of the tagline, coupled with the actor’s blue eyes and blonde hair, has racial undertones. Others are praising it as being a revolt against “woke” politics.

“Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color. My genes are blue,” Sweeney, wearing denim on denim, says in one video.

People across social media have said the campaign promotes “white supremacy” and “eugenics” while others have called it “sterile,” a sign of “regression” or simply “rage bait.”

A Twitter user said: “This is just clear eugenicist propaganda. Y’all weren’t kidding at all. Fuck Sydney Sweeney, American Eagle, and America in general.”

Other online commentators have begun calling the brand ‘Aryan Eagle’ instead of ‘American Eagle’.

One Reddit user said: “The double meaning being eugenics and white supremacy propaganda, for a literal domestic violence campaign! Also crazy, their stock went up 10% adding 200 million to the company value”.

“American eagle needs to delete those sydney sweeney ads. They are genuinely scary,” a Twitter user said.

But many others have applauded the campaign, particularly right-wing commentators who appear to be celebrating the end of wokeness, posting comments like “woke is broke!” and “culture shift!”

Conservative Republican senator Ted Cruz of Texas posted a photo of Sweeney on X and wrote, “Wow. Now the crazy Left has come out against beautiful women. I’m sure that will poll well.”

Many commentators, such as Canadian Nicole Arbour, are praising the return of “hot girls” featuring in advertisements, rather than companies focusing on inclusive campaigns.

One Twitter user said the brand “got it right”: “Sydney Sweeney embodies old school Americana. What’s not to love?”

Neither American Eagle nor Sweeney have publicly responded to the backlash.

“Sweeney’s girl next door charm and main character energy – paired with her ability to not take herself too seriously – is the hallmark of this bold, playful campaign,” American Eagle said in a statement last week when the advertisements launched.

The company said its collaboration with Sweeney was meant to “further elevate its position as the #1 jeans brand for Gen Z.”

As part of the campaign, the brand said it was launching a limited-run ‘Sydney Jean’ that retails for $79.95 (€69.36) and features a butterfly motif on the back pocket, which the brand said is meant to represent domestic violence awareness.

Proceeds from the jeans will go to Crisis Text Line, a nonprofit offering mental health support.

In the wake of the chatter triggered by the campaign, Washington Post fashion critic Rachel Tashjian wrote that whether or not the ad had racial undertones or anything intentional to say beyond selling jeans, it “is part of a wave of imagery of influencers, pop stars and musicians that feels tethered to the values of another time.”

“For the past five or six years, it seemed like fashion and pop culture were very interested in — even dedicated to — body positivity. Now we’re being fed a lot of images of thinness, whiteness and unapologetic wealth porn,” Tashjian said.