The Hollywood Sign with bras
IG /Sydney Sweeney

Sydney Sweeney climbed the Hollywood Sign in the dead of night, strung it with bras, and filmed the whole thing. Now she could be looking at criminal charges.

The Euphoria actress, 28, and a small crew hiked up Mount Lee on 22 January to drape dozens of bras across the famous white letters. Sweeney posted the footage to Instagram on Monday, tagging her new lingerie brand Syrn. The video has since gone viral, TMZ reported.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which owns the intellectual property rights to the sign, says nobody asked for permission. Steve Nissen, the Chamber's president and CEO, confirmed the stunt caught them completely by surprise. Commercial use of the landmark requires a licence, and Sweeney's team never applied for one.

The Chamber is still working out what happened. It told ABC News that investigators are trying to determine how and under what authority the production accessed the site. A police report has not been filed yet, but officials have not ruled it out.

Chamber Weighing Trespassing And Vandalism Charges

The Hollywood Sign sits on public land, but in a restricted zone. Climbing it is banned outright.

Trespassing is a misdemeanor in California. Penalties run up to six months in jail and fines as high as $1,000 (£810). Vandalism is treated more seriously. If prosecutors decide the damage exceeded $400 (£324), fines could reach $10,000 (£8,100).

Sweeney did have a filming permit from FilmLA, the nonprofit that handles location shoots in Los Angeles County. But that permit only allowed her to film the sign from a distance. It gave no one permission to touch, climb, or decorate it, The LA Times said.

Footage from the night shows Sweeney dressed head to toe in black, scrambling up what looks like the letter H. She can be heard joking that she might get caught. Her crew reportedly left four or five bras hanging on the sign after they packed up.

Similar Stunt Landed Artist In Court In 2017

Sweeney is not the first person to face consequences for messing with the Hollywood Sign.

In 2017, artist Zachary Cole Fernandez surrendered to police after changing the sign to read 'Hollyweed' on New Year's Day. He had used white tarps to cover parts of two letters. Police charged him with misdemeanor trespassing and set bail at $1,000 (£810). Because he had not physically damaged anything, prosecutors dropped any talk of vandalism.

Sweeney's case looks different. Her team attached items directly to the landmark instead of just covering letters. That distinction could matter if charges are filed.

Bezos-Backed Brand Set To Launch

The stunt was designed to drum up attention for Syrn, which officially goes on sale on 28 January. Sweeney has been working on the brand for over a year.

Backing comes from Coatue, a private equity firm. The company's Innovation Fund pulled in $1 billion (£810 million) from family offices tied to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and tech billionaire Michael Dell. That Bezos connection landed Sweeney an invite to his wedding to Lauren Sanchez in Venice last summer.

Syrn carries 44 sizes, from 30B to 42DDD, with most items priced under $100 (£81). The line splits into four style categories: Comfy, Playful, Romantic, and Seductress.

Sweeney has talked publicly about developing early and struggling for years to find bras that actually fit. She has said the experience shaped her decision to make sizing a priority for her own brand.

Not Her First Controversy

This is not the first time Sweeney has found herself at the centre of a backlash.

Last autumn, her American Eagle campaign drew fire. The tagline 'Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans' struck some critics as a coded reference to eugenics. Sweeney stayed quiet for months before addressing it in a December interview with People. She said the reaction surprised her and insisted she does not hold the views others tried to attach to the campaign.

Professionally, she is in a strong position. The Housemaid was a box office success late last year, and Syrn has already attracted significant media coverage.

Whether the Hollywood Sign stunt ends up helping or hurting her brand launch is anyone's guess. The Chamber has given no timeline for finishing its investigation.

Sweeney's representatives have not commented.