What the Sydney Sweeney photos really prove about women

On By Littum

Wwhen Sydney Sweeney—a celebrity so famous for being objectively beautiful that she’s had entire SNL skits dedicated to her hourglass figure—isn’t considered physically attractive enough to pass the muster, it really makes you wonder which chance there is for the rest of the woman. This is someone so hot that right-wing pundits memorably, if inexplicably, claimed that her breasts spelled “the death of the woke”. And even she is not good enough? Clearly, we are all playing a losing battle here.

The White Lotus The actress inadvertently sparked some “internet discourse” this week by having the gall to walk around in a bikini with no makeup on, her hair pulled back in a casual ponytail. These weren’t the most flattering photos ever taken of Sweeney: She wasn’t posing to begin with, her purple two-piece was more functional than showstopping, and her hair and face weren’t, respectively. However, it’s unclear why they would be, as Sweeney was simply relaxing and sunbathing at her own home in the Florida Keys instead of attending a red carpet event. The candid photos appear to have been taken by a paparazzo without Sweeney’s consent when she was on her property – she probably made the reasonable but mistaken assumption that she could relax and just be for a change, instead having to “perform” for the male gaze.

Either way, to a certain toxic element in the manosphere, her laid-back appearance was tantamount to committing a capital crime.

In fact, men were so quick to crow about her so-called fall from grace that it was as if they had just been waiting for the opportunity – vultures circled overhead, ready to pounce the second they smelled weakness in the air. Sweeney was “the middle” they claimed; she was “fat”; most despicable of all, she had been “catfishing” unsuspecting members of the opposite sex for years, tricking them into lusting after her by wearing lipstick and low-cut dresses and having her hair professionally done for movie premieres. But now they could all see the truth – she was just like every other sick female woman out there. Imperfect. Faulty. “Normal”, whatever that means.

“All women are catfish. The question is to what degree,” one social media user tweeted alongside the photos. Another self-proclaimed incel posted a bikini photo next to a photo of Sweeney in full makeup and a red, off-the-shoulder dress, as if presenting some kind of “gotcha” moment, with the caption: “This should be illegal. That’s what causes misogyny.” Here I’m thinking that misogyny was rooted in a deeply unequal patriarchal hierarchy where women have been subjugated and thought of as “less than” for millennia—turns out it was Sydney Sweeney’s fault all along , that she sometimes wore eyeliner. Who knew?

Sydney Sweeney has been accused of 'catfishing' by men who don't understand how makeup works
Sydney Sweeney has been accused of ‘catfishing’ by men who don’t understand how makeup works (Getty)

Honestly, my immediate thought when I saw the stripped down version of Sweeney was, “Oh man, even when she’s not make an effort, she looks good!” Many other women shared similar sentiments, revealing that they hadn’t even been able to work out what was “wrong” with the latest photos. “Which part of these pictures of Sydney Sweeney in a bathing suit are catfish to you. Are you saying that’s not a beautiful woman???” one person asked incredulously. It’s hard to fathom how anyone could make the leap from a woman who looks a little more “done” when they’ve spent an hour getting ready for a 52-year-old man who lives in her parents’ basement pretending to be a teenage beach volleyball player online, but here we are. As one woman put it: “Men who complain that Sidney (sic) Sweeney is a catfish, seeing her out of makeup and dressed up literally just saying to himself and admitting that they’ve never touched a woman in their lives.”

Sweeney herself even got involved, responding to trolls by posting a selection of comments calling her “frumpy”, “ugly” and “tubby” on Instagram, before cutting to a video of her working out hard at the gym as preparing for her next big role – starring as famous female boxer Christy Martin in an upcoming biopic. It was perhaps the perfect response, showing a dark and ugly corner of the internet that as much as they could, they couldn’t tear her down (and that she could probably beat them to the punch if need be).

Obviously, the “discourse” is ridiculous. Obviously, none of the insults leveled at Sweeney are even remotely true. And yet, all this latest nonsense proves is that it really does matter what you look like. None of us will ever be good enough to appease men who hate women – because they lack us to fail. And when we commit the cardinal sin of being real and human, rather than just an object to be admired…well, that’s the biggest failure of all.