Sydney Sweeney has spoken publicly about politics and the “MAGA Barbie” nickname following controversy surrounding her American Eagle Outfitters “Great Jeans” advertising campaign.

The actress addressed the issue in an interview with Cosmopolitan published on January 29, after criticism emerged last summer accusing the campaign of being “Nazi propaganda” for praising her blond hair and blue eyes. The debate intensified online after it became known that Sweeney has been registered as a Republican since June 2024, despite her rarely discussing political matters.

“I’ve never been here to talk about politics,” Sweeney told the magazine. “I’ve always been here to make art, so this is just not a conversation I want to be at the forefront of.” She said that labels attached to her online are outside her control, adding, “I think because of that, people want to take it even further and use me as their own pawn. But it’s somebody else assigning something to me, and I can’t control that.”

Sweeney rejected claims that she is motivated by hate, explaining the difficulty of responding to politically charged criticism. “If I say, ‘That’s not true,’ they’ll come at me like, ‘You’re just saying that to look better,’” she said. “I just have to continue being who I am, because I know who I am. I can’t make everyone love me. I know what I stand for.”

The 28-year-old said she does not see herself as a political figure. “I’m in the arts. I’m not here to speak on politics,” she said. “That’s not an area I’ve ever even imagined getting into. It’s not why I became who I am.”

Sweeney added that she has stepped back from reading commentary about herself online, describing it as unhealthy. She recently acknowledged that remaining silent during the initial backlash to the American Eagle campaign was a mistake, saying that her intention had been to avoid division rather than contribute to it.