Sydney Sweeney Faces Backlash as SYRN Lingerie Ad Gives Child Character Cindy Lou Who a Provocative Makeover

Sydney Sweeney has drawn online criticism for appearing as Cindy Lou Who from How the Grinch Stole Christmas in a Christmas advertisement for her lingerie brand SYRN.

The campaign places the character-inspired scenes alongside more revealing lingerie sequences. However, Sweeney wears plaid nightwear in the Cindy Lou Who scenes, not the black bra-and-garter ensemble featured elsewhere in the video.

The distinction matters to how the advertisement is described: the child character's inclusion in a lingerie brand's promotion is separate from what Sweeney wears while portraying her.

Online Reaction to the Christmas Campaign

The advertisement prompted comments about Sweeney's outfits, with X user Brandon Gomez (@Brandon12787) writing: 'Eww she's exposing alot.'

His comment does not specify whether he was referring to the Cindy Lou Who-inspired clothing or the more revealing outfits elsewhere in the advertisement.

The campaign moves between several film-inspired appearances rather than keeping Sweeney in one character throughout. Its different costumes include both nightwear and lingerie, making the sequence of the scenes important to understanding the promotion.

Sweeney's Cindy Lou Who-Inspired Outfits

The advertisement shows Sweeney carrying a tower of presents while styled as Cindy Lou Who, the character played by Taylor Momsen in How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

She wears a plunging plaid tank with matching shorts before changing into flannel pyjamas with prominent buttons.

Those outfits differ from the black and red lingerie sets shown later. The Cindy Lou Who-inspired scenes draw on the character's recognisable styling while promoting items from SYRN's holiday collection.

Christmas Film References

The video opens with Sweeney wearing a cosy jumper, eating a large ice-cream sundae and watching television. The scene recalls Kevin McCallister's hotel stay in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, in which Macaulay Culkin's character enjoys similar indulgences at the Plaza Hotel.

Sweeney's film-inspired appearances then unfold on the television screen, allowing the promotion to move between costumes and settings.

Alongside How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the campaign references The Nightmare Before Christmas. The television-viewing format links the different fictional influences within a single holiday advertisement.

SYRN's Fantasy-Inspired Lingerie

Later sequences feature Sweeney wearing a black bra, knickers, garter belt and tights with a ghostly veil, followed by a red version of the lingerie set.

The styling appears to reference Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas and Emily from Corpse Bride. Those looks appear in separate sequences from Sweeney's Cindy Lou Who-inspired nightwear.

Together, the scenes promote nightwear and lingerie through a television-viewing format, with the changing screen providing the transition between the campaign's different fictional influences.

Those references remain interpretations of the styling, not confirmed explanations from SYRN, and the looks belong to separate sections of the advertisement.

The Separate Novig Controversy

Sweeney previously attracted criticism for a Novig advertisement in which sports equipment covered parts of her otherwise largely unclothed body. The promotion prompted objections about its portrayal of women in sport.

Sprinter Amy Hunt and gymnast Gracie Kramer were among those who challenged that advertisement. Sharon Stone also criticised the campaign, saying Sweeney should 'take responsibility for her actions' and objecting to its treatment of female athletes.

Stone, Hunt and Kramer were responding to the Novig advertisement, not the SYRN Christmas campaign. Their comments concern a separate promotion and should not be presented as reactions to Sweeney's Cindy Lou Who-inspired appearance.