Sydney Sweeney Posts Topless Video to Mock Backlash
The “Euphoria” star’s racy follow-up probably won’t win over her critics.
Mario Anzuoni/REUTERS
Sydney Sweeney has debuted the sequel to her highly controversial nude sports app ad, and it’s unlikely to win over critics of the original.
The 29-year-old Euphoria bombshell went viral in September for appearing sans clothing in a campaign for the sports prediction market app Novig, where Sweeney is also a strategic partner and equity holder. In the video, she posed naked with various sports equipment, quickly drawing heaps of backlash, particularly from professional athletes who thought the ads were sexualizing women’s sports.
On Sunday, the actress doubled down on the polarizing campaign by posting a new Instagram video that left little to the imagination.
Sydney Sweeney spent most of the 30-second ad topless in white underwear, her hair covering her breasts.
Instagram/Sydney Sweeney
The video begins with Sweeney, also a strategic partner and equity holder at Novig, walking away from the camera topless, wearing only a pair of white underwear that reads the brand’s name.
“There are grown men making spreadsheets to bet on what color underwear I’m wearing,” Sweeney says to the camera, only her hair strategically covering her breasts. “I mean… I’m flattered?”
Sydney Sweeney ignored the criticism that she was “sexualizing women’s sports” and again used footballs to cover her breasts.
Sydney Sweeney/Novig
“There’s insider trading on dictators dying and armies of bots manipulating it all. There’s someone sitting in a bathroom stall betting their 401K on a war,” she continues.
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“And then, there are people who just trade on sports.”
Next, the video cuts to a close-up of Sweeney looking into the camera, covering her breasts with two footballs, as she says the brand’s tagline: “Novig is just sports.”
In the comments section, some people questioned the need for nudity in the ad.
“Why do you have to be naked to market sports? What’s the correlation?” One person asked.
But most comments supported the star.
“Love that she doubles down on the hate,” one comment with over 30,000 likes read.
Sydney Sweeney’s first Novig ad sparked widespread controversy.
Novig
Despite facing backlash from several prominent athletes and an initial loss of over 200,000 followers, Sweeney’s first Novig ad, accompanied by multiple racy photos blasted on billboards, proved successful for the company.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the first ads helped Novig quadruple its valuation from $500 million to $2 billion by the end of September.
Sydney Sweeney also makes risqué ads for her underwear brand, Syrn.
Instagram/Sydney Sweeney
In addition to posing nearly nude for Novig, Sweeney does similar risqué ads for her own lingerie line, Syrn.
In January, she defended her nearly nude photos for Syrn in an interview with Cosmopolitan: “This is me reclaiming my body and my narrative and using it to empower other women.”
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