Sydney Sweeney’s new film The Housemaid has generated strong buzz among fans, and two media experts believe the star’s upcoming role could help solidify her as an A-list actress
Sydney Sweeney has endured numerous career setbacks in recent months, but two media experts believe that could all change thanks to her upcoming film, The Housemaid.
The 27-year-old actress grabbed headlines after she declined to respond to the backlash surrounding her American Eagle jeans advertisement. The commercial faced widespread criticism from viewers for having a “eugenics-like” message, as it featured the slogan, “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color. My jeans are blue.”
Following the controversy, Sydney’s latest biopic, Christy, flopped at the box office. The movie, which chronicles the life of boxer Christy Martin, opened to merely $1.3 million across over 2,000 theaters and became one of the poorest-performing wide-release films in box office records.
The Euphoria star is now preparing to appear in the forthcoming adaptation of Freida McFadden’s 2022 novel and media specialist Ryan McCormick thinks it could provide the career revival she requires. “Analyzing the most recent 280 comments on The Housemaid film trailer on YouTube, nearly 3 out of 4 praise it,” he noted in an exclusive conversation with The Irish Star.
The public relations expert continued, “The enthusiasm comes from both book readers and newcomers. One viewer said, ‘This was one of my absolute favorite books… I can not wait to see this movie!’ This is a very good sign that the film will succeed.”
He suggested “core fans of the book” will be the ones driving interest in the movie, adding, “If Sydney Sweeney does even a decent job, it will be perceived as a big success.” And he believes another underperforming movie won’t necessarily spell disaster.
“Even if the film underperforms, I think Sweeney’s career will continue to grow,” McCormick shared. However, he warned, “But high-quality opportunities may begin to decrease.”
The PR expert concluded, “Sweeney has a proven track record of garnering attention and public interest. From a PR perspective, a critically and commercially successful film would solidify her as a dependable A-lister and open the door to more prestigious roles.”
PR expert Kieran Elsby echoed McCormick’s comments. He told the publication, “Studios evaluate actors primarily on recent box-office performance and audience reach, and Sydney Sweeney is in an interesting moment career-wise.
“Some of her recent films haven’t generated the numbers the industry hoped for, which means there is naturally a lot of attention on The Housemaid and how it performs. That’s not a reflection of her talent or marketability; it’s simply how the economics of the film business work.
“Because the film is based on a well-known book with an existing fan base, it has an advantage that her recent projects didn’t. Well-established IP often attracts audiences even when the star power alone isn’t enough, so The Housemaid may have a stronger starting position than her previous releases.”
However, Elsby cautioned, “If the film underperforms, it doesn’t mean her career is in danger, but it may influence the types of roles studios offer in the short term. This happens to many well-known actors; Hollywood can be quick to reassess the scale of projects offered after a run of films that fail to meet financial expectations. Sean William Scott is a classic example of an actor who remained well-liked and continuously employed, but whose box-office track record led studios to place him in more specific, contained roles rather than major tentpole releases.”
