Sydney Sweeney's Lingerie Ad with "Home Alone" Theme Sparks Controversy

The approximately 30-second video posted on Instagram promotes the "Hibernation Nation" holiday collection from Sweeney's brand SYRN. In the video, Sweeney imitates Kevin McCallister from the movie "Home Alone" — in pajamas while eating ice cream — and Cindy Lou Who from "The Grinch" with braids and a plaid bow.

Criticism emerged because both characters were originally played by children: Macaulay Culkin was 9 years old when he starred in Home Alone, and Taylor Momsen was 7 years old during The Grinch (2000). A number of commenters considered it inappropriate to use childhood characters for adult clothing advertisements.

On the other hand, there were those who defended it by saying that Sweeney was only wearing character costumes, not explicit lingerie in that scene, and that the video was a light parody. To date, neither Sweeney nor SYRN have provided public comment. The SYRN holiday shop itself officially opens on October 27, 2026.

This is Sweeney's second controversy in two months — in September 2026 he was criticized for a sports betting platform advertisement whose video was viewed more than 60 million times.