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After 2025 saw the actress wade into the culture wars due to her “controversial” American Eagle jeans campaign, those close to Sydney Sweeney are reportedly encouraging her to reshape her image as being less of a sex symbol and more of an actress.
Despite starring in four fils in 2025 — Echo Valley, Eden, Americana, Christy, and The Housemaid — the biggest headlines that Sydney Sweeney made their year were culture war-related, as the conservative media machine latched on to the minor outrage over her jeans commercials in order to position her as a young, hot face of the Republican party (she’s reportedly a registered Republican in the state of Florida) — with everyone from Fox News hosts to Donald Trump discussing her this year.
Sweeney likely doesn’t want to be a political firebrand, however, and more probably desires being an Academy Award winning actress (but who knows, truly). As such, her friends — who apparently doesn’t understand why she “reinforces an image of shock value” — are reportedly encouraging her to focus less on her looks and more on her talent.
Alleged source says that people close to actress Sydney Sweeney are encouraging her to “move beyond presenting herself as just a body”
“Now a source tells Star some people in The Housemaid star’s circle are advising her to move beyond presenting herself as just a body. While the source says no one is telling the actress to show up in a turtleneck, ‘Her friends don’t understand why she wants to reinforce this image that she’s all about shock value. Instead of stepping into her power, she’s acting like a no-name OnlyFans girl.'”
“’It’s sad to see how reliant she is on being known for her big boobs,’ says the source. ‘She’s actually a talented actress who’s making big moves behind the scenes too.’”
While Sweeney certainly hasn’t been shy about using her body to promote herself, her films, and other products, the recent roles she’s taken on — such as – Christy, American, Eden, Echo Valley, and Immaculate — have been anything but sex-appeal driven. This is likely contributing to her inability to have a true breakthrough at the box office, as the people she seemingly markets herself to are not the same ones that would go out to see the movies she’s making.
After a string of box office bombs that saw her last three movies make then less than $5 million combined at the box office, Sweeney’s newest film The Housemaid has been a much needed hit for the A-list actress, the film made $20 million domestically in its opening weekend, which nearly makes up the film’s entire $25 million budget.
Next up for Sweeney will be a role in The Devil Wears Prada 2 and returning as Cassie Howard in the third and final season of HBO’s Euphoria, the series that served as her major breakthrough in Hollywood.