Actress Sydney Sweeney has recently been in the headlines since she appeared in an American Eagle ad, which was marred by controversy. Now, she has gone viral again after “was Sydney Sweeney in the military” started trending on Google Trends. To clarify the question, it is to be noted that the actress has never served in the military.
While Sydney Sweeney was never enrolled in the military, her brother Trent Sweeney served in the US military. In August 2020, Trent took to Instagram and confirmed that he had completed his basic military training and that he had become a member of the United States Air Force.
Another connection that the actress has with the military is her portrayal of US Air Force veteran Reality Winner in the 2023 movie Reality. While Sweeney has never served in the US military, the question about the same first started trending around the time that a 2019 video of the actress shooting at a gun range resurfaced on the internet. At the time, several netizens reacted to it, with many praising her skills.
This viral trend recently resurfaced shortly after reports of her being registered as a Republican began going viral. The Guardian reported that Sweeney registered as a Republican in Florida a few months before Donald Trump won the presidential race last year. The registration was reportedly dated June 14, 2024, around the same time that Sydney Sweeney purchased a mansion in the Keys.
About two weeks before Sweeney‘s reported registration as a Republican voter, Trump received a conviction in New York City for criminal falsification of business records. The young actress had previously received criticism for apparently being a Trump supporter.
Exploring the controversial American Eagle campaign featuring actress Sydney Sweeney
American Eagle and Sweeney recently collaborated for a campaign, and it has been going viral since then. In the ad, the actress in her blue jeans stared into her camera and said,
“Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color. My jeans are blue.”
The ad soon began going viral and started receiving criticism as well for the message it was possibly passing across. The actress was seen talking about her jeans (pun for genes) in the campaign. Meanwhile, the ad was removed by American Eagle from their online platforms amid this controversy.
However, it can still be found on the internet. According to NPR, the ad had prompted many to believe that it was trying to promote eugenics. Overall, they have gained mixed reactions from netizens. While some criticized it, others accused the critics of overreacting and of being too woke.
American Eagle, too, chimed in and shared their statement on the entire controversy. According to the retailer, there was no underlining message in the dialogues that the actress said during the ad campaign. Their statement, available on social media platforms like Instagram, stated:
“‘Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans’ is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story. We’ll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone.”
Amid this controversy, Sweeney is yet to make a direct statement in response to the backlash. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has reacted to the campaign. According to HuffPost, Trump said that he really liked the campaign that featured the actress. In his statement, he further said:
“You’d be surprised at how many people are Republican. If Sydney Sweeney is a registered Republican, I think her ad is fantastic.”
The actress did not react to this remark by Donald Trump either.
What was the previous controversy surrounding Sydney Sweeney’s political ideologies?
This was not the first time that Sydney Sweeney came to the limelight for her political inclination. Back in August 2022, she threw a birthday party for her mother. Photos from the party soon began being circulated all across social media.
However, what caught attention was the presence of MAGA-styled hats and Lives Matter merch. The hats had “Make 60 Great Again” written on them. This sparked debates on social media, where netizens again started taking sides. This prompted Sweeney to take to X and address the situation.
The actress said:
“You guys this is wild. An innocent celebration for my moms milestone 60th birthday has turned into an absurd political statement, which was not the intention.”
She claimed that netizens were trying to turn an “innocent celebration” into an “absurd political statement.”
As for now, the resurfaced video of her shooting at a shooting range has prompted many netizens to connect Sydney Sweeney’s alleged political ideologies to her apparent skills.
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Edited by Somava
