Sydney Sweeney says her 'silence' on American Eagle ad backlash 'widened the divide'

Sydney Sweeney is rethinking her approach to how she handled the controversy surrounding her American Eagle jeans ad.

Back in July, Sweeney came under scrutiny after appearing in an advertising campaign for the brand that focused on “Good Jeans.”

The focus on “genes” prompted polarized responses, with some people drawing parallels between Nazi propaganda prioritizing certain traits. The public debate reached all the way to the White House.

Now, Sweeney tells People, "I was honestly surprised by the reaction. I did it because I love the jeans and love the brand. I don’t support the views some people chose to connect to the campaign. Many have assigned motives and labels to me that just aren’t true."

She continued, "Anyone who knows me knows that I’m always trying to bring people together. I’m against hate and divisiveness.”

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The “Housemaid” star also addressed her past approach to addressing the media storm that surrounded the ad.

"In the past my stance has been to never respond to negative or positive press but recently I have come to realize that my silence regarding this issue has only widened the divide, not closed it,” she told the outlet. “So I hope this new year brings more focus on what connects us instead of what divides us."

In November, Sweeney seemed to brush off the controversy in an interview with GQ.

“I did a jean ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans. All I wear are jeans. I’m literally in jeans and a T-shirt every day of my life,” she said at the time.

Sweeney added she really wasn’t focusing on what was happening in the media while filming the third season of “Euphoria.”

“It’s not that I didn’t have that feeling, but I wasn’t thinking of it like that, of any of it,” she said when asked further about the potential support. “I kind of just put my phone away. I was filming every day. I’m filming ‘Euphoria,’ so I’m working 16-hour days and I don’t really bring my phone on set, so I work and then I go home and I go to sleep. So I didn’t really see a lot of it.”