Revisiting Sydney Sweeney's American Eagle controversy as Martha Stewart becomes the latest celebrity to be the face of the brand

American Eagle, that has stayed in the limelight over its controversial ad campaigns all year long, is back with a new campaign for this festive season, featuring Martha Stewart as its face this time.

In the new ad campaign dropped this week, American Eagle welcomes Martha's demin season, wherein the businesswoman is dressed in a washed out demin jacket and matching jeans, with a backdrop being a demin-covered set. 

Martha Stewart becomes latest face of American Eagle, after Sydney Sweeney campaign.

The 84 year old lifestyle guru has appeared in a holiday season ad campaign for the jeans brand, months after Sydney Sweeney’s ‘Good Jeans’ campaign.

Shares in the retailer jumped 4% after it… pic.twitter.com/3C1RylSHBN

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) November 26, 2025

In the video, the 84-year-old wraps a present using American Eagle's demin fabrics as both the wrapper and a bow, and addresses it both to and from herself. 

"This holiday season we're settling for nothing less than a perfect fit... This gift is giving. Giving generously during the holiday seasons is one of my greatest joys."

American Eagle's Martha Stewart-starrer ad campaign comes months after the jeans company featured actress Sydney Sweeney as the face of its campaign this summer. 

The wordplay tagline of the ad campaign - "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans" - became the center of widespread criticism, with netizens relating it to the racist language of the eugenicists. Meanwhile, another segnment of social media users complained about the lack of diversity displayed in the advertisement. 

The controversial wave surrounding Sweeney's campaign rode high, reaching as far as President Trump's notice, who complimented it for being the "hottest ad ever". Trump's comment also threw the actress's political perspective into question, which led to the findings that she was a registered Republican. 

While the Euphoria actress maintained her silence in the heat of the controversy, she did address the American Eagle ad later in a GQ interview, saying:

"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."

When asked about how closely she was following the controversy surrounding her ad, Sweeney confessed to not paying attention at all, adding:

"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."

Following Sweeney's campaign, American Eagle did another campaign featuring NFL star Travis Kelce, which failed to be the attention-grabber that the former was.

Martha Stewart calls the American Eagle ad campaign "playful, smart, and whimsical"

Following the release of her American Eagle holiday season ad campaign, Martha Stewart spoke about it in an exclusive PEOPLE interview, saying:

"I have spent decades helping people create beautiful holidays — from setting the perfect table to trimming the tree to finding that last-minute gift that saves the day. So when American Eagle approached me about being part of their holiday gifting campaign, I was immediately intrigued."

Stewart further complimented the demin company's ad concept, saying:

"The concept of an all denim world was playful, smart and whimsical: an entire gift-wrapping workshop constructed from denim, complete with bows, garlands and wrapping paper."

In the interview, Marths also approved denim as an acceptable wear in the upcoming holiday gatherings of the festive season.

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