Sydney Sweeney has spoken out for the first time about the controversy surrounding her American Eagle advert.

The Euphoria actress sparked debate in July when she appeared in a campaign for the American fashion brand that featured the tagline "great jeans", which some viewers interpreted as a double entendre for "great genes".

In a new interview with GQ published on Tuesday, Sydney insisted that the advert was simply about denim.

"I know who I am. I know what I value. I know that I'm a kind person," she said. "I know that I love a lot, and I know that I'm just excited to see what happens next. And so I don't really let other people define who I am."

The 28-year-old told the publication that she was surprised by the reaction.

"I did a jean ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans," she stated. "All I wear are jeans. I'm literally in jeans and a T-shirt every day of my life... I knew at the end of the day what that ad was for, and it was great jeans, it didn't affect me one way or the other."

Shortly after the campaign's release, reports surfaced that Sydney was a registered Republican. In August, U.S. president Donald Trump publicly praised both the actress and the ad.

"She's a registered Republican? Oh, now I love her ad," Trump told reporters at the time. "If Sydney Sweeney is a registered Republican, I think her ad is fantastic."

Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance criticised democrats for being offended by a "pretty girl" selling jeans.

The White Lotus star described Trump and Vance's responses to the controversy as "surreal".

Elsewhere in the interview, Sydney explained that she largely avoided seeing the backlash.

"I was filming every day," she said. "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."