Sharon Stone has voiced her support for Sydney Sweeney following the controversy surrounding Sweeney's American Eagle jeans ad campaign. The "Basic Instinct" star defended Sweeney at Variety's Power of Women event on Wednesday, October 29, in Los Angeles.
Sweeney's American Eagle campaign, which launched earlier this year, featured the tagline "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans". This sparked debate online, with some critics claiming the tagline's play on "jeans" and "genes" had racial undertones, suggesting genetic superiority related to Sweeney's white heritage. Others criticized the campaign for allegedly catering to the male gaze and drawing inspiration from Brooke Shields' controversial 1980s denim ads. In response to the backlash, American Eagle stated that the campaign "is and always was about the jeans" and that "great jeans look good on everyone".
Stone, who is joining Sweeney in the upcoming third season of HBO's "Euphoria," addressed the controversy directly. "It's okay to use what mama gave you. It's really fine," Stone said. She added, "It's hard to be hot, and I think we all know that. It's really okay to use every bit of hotness you have—right here, right now—and go for whatever that is, because everybody has their own certain kind of hotness, their own certain thing, and you're supposed to go for that. Because who are you not to be beautiful? You know, who you are isn't an accident".
Stone also shared a story about the late conservationist Jane Goodall to contextualize the situation. Stone, who was co-godparent with Goodall, recounted a time when Goodall was on the cover of Life Magazine for her work with gorillas. Stone said that other scientists dismissed Goodall's achievement, saying she "only got the cover of Life Magazine because she had good legs". Stone recalled Goodall responding, "Well, if I did, then that helped me get more money for my research".
Stone shared that Sweeney responded to this anecdote by saying, "Yeah, and I'm sure I made a billion dollars for the jeans company, and I'm good with that. Because, you know what? I'll get another job".
American Eagle CEO Jay Schottenstein said the ad campaign boosted brand awareness and profit.
Stone presented Sweeney with an award at the Variety Power of Women event. Sweeney expressed her appreciation for Stone, stating that Stone "means so much to me". Stone, in turn, praised Sweeney's self-assuredness, telling Variety that she is impressed by Sweeney's "understanding" of herself and that "she's comfortable and centered and safe within herself".
