In a collaboration with men’s soap company Dr. Squatch, the 27-year-old star explained that bars of soap had been infused with “real” traces of her very own bathwater, “making every guy’s fantasy” come true.
Needless to say, the vast majority of people were left unimpressed by this venture, with many criticizing Sydney for capitalizing on misogyny. One tweet that summarizes the discourse reads: “capitalising off of patriarchy by making yourself the product is so dystopian.”
Since then, public favor toward Sydney has soured even more, with the star taking part in another controversial ad — this time, for American Eagle jeans. The campaign, which was unveiled last month, seemingly focuses on Sydney’s blonde hair and blue eyes in tandem with the tagline: “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans [genes],” which sparked fierce backlash.
Throughout all of this, Sydney was also being roasted for the video part of the campaign, where she speaks with a vocal fry so intense that she is almost incoherent, with many accusing the star of making this choice to both infantalize and sexualize herself for the male gaze.
American Eagle / Via Facebook: americaneagle
And while Sydney has not acknowledged the reaction to her American Eagle ad, she did comment on the response to her bathwater soap in a new interview with the Wall Street Journal.
Referencing the soap directly, Sydney added: “It was mainly the girls making comments about it, which I thought was really interesting. They all loved the idea of Jacob Elordi’s bathwater.”
Suffice to say, this take has not gone down well. For reference, Sydney’s comment about her Euphoria costar Jacob Elordi is in relation to his 2023 movie Saltburn, which includes a very specific — and infamous — bathwater scene.
While joke products, namely candles, referencing Jacob’s bathwater became available online after the movie’s release, Jacob himself was not involved in any of them — nor did he promote them. Needless to say, his actual, real-life bathwater was absolutely not in any of the products either.
With all of this in mind, the two instances aren’t at all comparable — especially as the general reaction to the Jacob Elordi products at the time was mostly bewilderment and disgust. And people have been quick to react to Sydney’s latest comments on X, with many questioning her apparent decision to alienate women.
What do you make of Sydney’s response? Let me know in the comments below!