Sydney Sweeney may have pushed the envelope a little too far in her latest bid to keep all eyes on her.
The 28-year-old actress, known for her provocative behavior and boundary-pushing scenes on “Euphoria,” sparked fresh chatter after pulling off an almost impossible and provocative stunt to show the world her undergarments for free.
Framed as a bold promotion by supporters and reckless overexposure by critics, the stunt for Sweeney’s lingerie brand quickly took on a life of its own — with online observers questioning whether shock value has officially become the main event in Hollywood marketing.
In a video published circulating on Monday, Jan. 26, Sweeney and a few of her pals crept up to the Hollywood sign to drape bras from her new lingerie line. Wearing a black sweatsuit set and a hat, Sweeney is seen in the nearly 90-second clip, smiling ear to ear as she placed a string of bras on the letter “H” of the sign.
At one point, she got up on the ladder and gestured for another person to hand her the bras as she throws it over the top of the Hollywood letters. She then jumps down, and does a celebratory, whisper-scream before making her way back to the front of the sign. The next clip cuts to an unidentified person catching the other end of the string of bras that she threw and pulling it around the letter.
This was all meant to be a creative way to market her new brand SYRN, which is to be coming this week on Jan. 28. However, it looks like her efforts may have led her into some trouble with the law.
According to TMZ, Sweeney reportedly did not get the proper permission to hang her bras on the sign. Though she did get a FilmLA permit to shoot the sign, the permit did not approve of her touching or climbing on it.
The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, the organization that owns the sign, shared an email with the outlet detailing their disapproval with Sweeney’s actions.
In the email they wrote, “Please be advised that the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce owns the intellectual property rights to use of the image of the Hollywood Sign and neither you nor the production company have sought or received permission to use the images captured for any commercial use. We understand that you received a film permit from FilmLA, whose staff assures me that you were notified of the requirements to seek a license from the Chamber prior to your shoot.”
Sweeney could face vandalism or trespassing charges. It has not been confirmed if the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce plans to charge her.
YouTube prankster Vitaly Zdorovetskiy’s 2016 incident was one of the last major incidents of someone climbing the Hollywood sign. Once Zdorovetskiy got to the top, he waved a banner around that read “I’m back” before climbing back down. Unfortunately, for his actions, he was taken into custody by authorities and charged with trespassing.
Fans on X responded to Sweeney’s stunt writing, “If she was black this would have made headlines around the world,” and someone else said, “Well, that’s a weird way to do.”
Others thought the legal consequences would probably only benefit Sweeney.
“Publicity stunt or poor judgment? Either way, it’s generating headlines for the brand,” wrote one person.
A third joked, “But do yall know if she wore em beforehand ?”
Someone else who felt similar typed, “I don’t think she would mind that. It means her lingerie brand gets more publicity, and that’s what she set out to do anyways.”
More declared that authorities “arrest Sweeney” for trepassing, even suggesting she make it up with community service. But others laughed at a streamer’s claim that Sweeney likely got permission due to the lack of alarms that normally go off within two minutes at the Hollywood sign.
As for next steps, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce is looking to discuss an agreement regarding the usage of their IP with Sweeney’s crew.
Though the bras were taken off the sign after her video shoot, four to five bras were left behind.
Sweeney’s SYRN already has the backing of Amazon co-founder Jeff Bezos, who has invested an unconfirmed amount into the business. Both Bezos and PC company founder Michael Dell invested a billion dollars into Ben Schwerin’s private equity firm Coatue, which is backing Sweeney’s venture. Coatue’s Innovation Fund, which will invest in high-growth public and private tech companies.
