Trending badgeTrendingPosted 2 hours agoSubscribe to BuzzFeed Daily NewsletterCaret DownSydney Sweeney's Brother Just Joked About Her "Great Jeans" Racism ScandalIt looks like Sydney's family are unfazed by her recent controversy.by Stephanie SoteriouBuzzFeed StaffFacebookPinterestLinkHot Topic🔥 Full coverage and conversation on Politics Sydney Sweeney's brother, Trent Sweeney, is the latest person to weigh in on the star's controversial American Eagle ad, and it looks like her family sees the funny side of the recent controversy. Gilbert Flores / Getty Images Now, I'm sure that you're across all of the drama, but just in case, here's the lowdown: On July 23, Sydney, 27, was unveiled as the face of American Eagle's new denim campaign, which had the tagline: "Sydney Sweeney has great jeans [genes]," with the video commercial seemingly focusing on the star's blonde hair and blue eyes.
Almost immediately, the campaign was accused of implicitly glorifying whiteness and promoting eugenics, which sparked a whole ton of backlash online. On August 1, American Eagle doubled down on the campaign in a statement that only triggered more criticism, and as if that wasn't enough, the White House spoke out in defense of the ad - with President Donald Trump even heaping praise on Sydney after BuzzFeed confirmed that she officially registered as a Republican in 2024. In short, the whole thing has been seriously messy - and Sydney was even heckled when she arrived at the premiere of her latest movie, Americana, on August 3, when someone yelled: "Stop the ad! That is being racist!" in a video that was obtained by TMZ. Stephane Cardinale - Corbis / Getty Images Notably, Sydney did not acknowledge the heckling, and remained straight-faced as she was quickly ushered into the event by security.
The Euphoria actor has also been defiantly posting as usual to her Instagram story throughout all of this, with Sydney still yet to publicly comment on the uproar her ad has caused. However, Trent hasn't been quite as reserved, with Syd's little brother directly referencing the ad on his Instagram story on Wednesday. For reference, Trent serves in the U.S. Air Force, completing basic training in August 2020, and he made the social media post after being promoted to staff sergeant. Dave Benett / Getty Images Sharing a photo of his official certification, Trent simply quipped: "It's them good jeans 🥸." Instagram @trent_sweeneyy / Via Instagram: @https://www.instagram.com/trent_sweeneyy/?hl=en BuzzFeed TrendingHot TopicLet's chat about all things PoliticsSee our Politics Discussions Trent also shared a photo of himself receiving the certificate to his main grid alongside the caption: "I'm excited for this next step in my career and thank everyone that's been a part of it so far," which Sydney liked. If you're wondering, the siblings have always been incredibly close, with Trent even joining Sydney at the European premiere of Echo Valley in London back in June. Dave Benett / Getty Images And Sydney previously reiterated how important her family is to her in a 2023 interview with Women's Health, where she said: "I love my family, and I love where I came from. Anything my family needs, I'm always there for them." As you may remember, Sydney's family first hit the headlines in 2022 after she shared photos from her mom's 60th birthday party that included MAGA-style hats and "Blue Lives Matter" shirts. View this photo on Instagram Instagram @trent_sweeneyy / Via instagram.com At the time, Sydney slammed claims that the party's dress code was a "political statement" as she called people out for "making assumptions" about her politics based on the bash.
In an interview with Variety the following year, Sydney laughed off the "misinterpretations" as she insisted that the MAGA-themed party was her mom's friends trying to be funny rather than a reflection of her or her family's political values. Fast-forward to 2025, and it's safe to say that there is little question over Sydney's politics. As always, let me know your thoughts in the comments below!