United Kingdom, Aug. 1 -- American Eagle has defended Sydney Sweeney amid online criticism of the star's advertising campaign with the company.

The retailer revealed a series of adverts with the Euphoria actress with the tagline 'Sydney Sweeney has great jeans' last week but the pun was met with a fierce backlash on social media as the phrase "great genes" has a historical association with eugenicists - who claim that humanity can be improved genetically through selective breeding.

American Eagle wrote in a Instagram post on Friday (01.08.25): "'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 l...