Sydney Sweeney sparks fresh controversy over ‘sexualized’ Cindy Lou Who outfit in new lingerie commercial

Sydney Sweeney has sparked fresh controversy after posing as what fans have called a 'sexualized' Cindy Lou Who as part of an ad for her lingerie brand Syrn.

The Euphoria star took to Instagram to share the new holiday commercial, which began with her sitting in an upholstered chair, eating a big bowl of ice cream and turning on the TV, just like in Kevin McCallister in the iconic Home Alone scene.

When the TV comes on, she sees herself appearing as Cindy Lou Who from How the Grinch Stole Christmas, but with a rather X-rated twist.

Sweeney initially pops up on screen wearing two separate sets of plaid pyjamas, complete with a Who-style fur-trimmed cape, as she balances a pile of gifts and sets up festive Christmas lights.

However, as the final bulb is screwed into place, the ad suddenly sees Sweeney stripped down into lingerie, with a Corpse Bride smile drawn on her cheeks.

In other looks, she can be seen wearing black and red lingerie sets, which Syrn says represents four different capsule collections.

While the original post has so far been liked by nearly half a million people on Instagram, not everyone is too comfortable with the 'sexualized' representation of Cindy Lou Who, who was depicted as being just six years old in the iconic Christmas movie.

In the 2000 live action film How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Cindy was played by Taylor Momsen, who was just seven years old while filming the movie.

Taking to X, one person fumed: "Making a child character sexual isn't it... and yes it is that deep," while a second questioned: "Why is she posing as a child character in a lingerie ad?"

A third suggested: "Is she actually turning Cindy Lou, the [purest] sweetest child into a sex symbol!?!? Fire that creative director and get a brain Sydney Sweeney."

Not everyone agreed, with one person defending the advert, commenting: "For once I'm gonna say the people are overreacting, the Cindy Lou ones weren't lingerie."

Another added: "Lmao you can tell who didn’t watch the clip. She did NOT wear the lingerie while dressed as Cindy."

"What I wanna know is what kind of ice cream that she was eating because that looks delicious," a third joked.

UNILAD has approached Sweeney's reps for comment.

This far from the first time Sweeney has faced criticism over a marketing campaign.

Just last month, the 29-year-old came under fire for her completely nude campaign with sports betting company Novig, in which she posed wearing nothing but sports equipment covering her modesty.

The advert was heavily criticised by female athletes, who argued that the advert reduced women in sport to being sexualized instead of representing their skills and achievements.

Last year it was the actress' American Eagle jeans campaign, which mimicked Brooke Shields' 1980 Calvin Klein ad, in which Shields bragged about her 'great genes'.

Many suggested that Sweeney's appearance as a blonde, white woman was being used to represent genetic superiority and eugenics.

Speaking at the time, she called the backlash 'surreal,' adding: "I think that when I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear.

"I know who I am. I know what I value. I know that I’m a kind person. 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."