Elon Musk has drawn criticism online after posting a remark about actress Sydney Sweeney’s body, responding to footage of her on a red carpet with what several users described as a sexualised and inappropriate comment.
The exchange began after a clip circulated from the Los Angeles premiere of The Housemaid, a psychological thriller starring Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried. Sweeney appeared at the event wearing a white gown with a low-cut neckline, a look that quickly became a talking point on social media.
Musk, who owns X and is chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX, replied to the viral moment with a post that included a meme-style image and the words, “Can’t be easy,” according to multiple outlets that reproduced the post.
The post was widely shared, prompting a wave of responses that ranged from mockery to anger, with critics accusing Musk of reducing Sweeney to her appearance. Others defended the post as a joke, while some argued it was part of a broader pattern of commentary about women’s bodies in entertainment culture.
The meme attached to Musk’s comment framed the topic in terms of physical strain, pairing an image of a woman with large breasts with another image suggesting back pain, according to reports that described the content of the post. The implication, critics said, was that Sweeney’s figure was being treated as public property for ridicule or appraisal, rather than her being discussed as an actor attending a film premiere.
The episode comes as Sweeney’s profile has continued to rise in Hollywood, following a run of prominent roles across film and television. The 28-year-old actor first gained wider recognition with parts in Everything Sucks!, The Handmaid’s Tale and Sharp Objects before earning major attention for her performance as Cassie Howard in HBO’s Euphoria, as well as a role in the first season of The White Lotus. Her work on both series contributed to Primetime Emmy nominations.
In recent years, she has moved into leading film roles, including the romantic comedy Anyone but You and the drama Reality, both released in 2023, alongside appearances in Madame Web and Immaculate in 2024. The Housemaid, released in late 2025, is the latest high-profile project on her slate, adapting Freida McFadden’s bestselling psychological thriller novel of the same name.
The film, directed by Paul Feig, centres on Millie Calloway, a woman who takes a live-in housekeeping job with the wealthy Winchester family, only to find the household is not what it seems. Reviews have been mixed, with some critics describing it as knowingly pulpy while others were more dismissive, though the title has still generated significant attention in the run-up to its release.
For some observers, Musk’s intervention turned what would otherwise have been routine celebrity and red-carpet coverage into a debate about objectification and the way women are discussed online. The fact that the comment came from one of the world’s most prominent technology executives, whose posts routinely reach tens of millions of users, was cited by critics as intensifying its impact.
Others pointed out that women with disproportionately large breasts can experience musculoskeletal strain, including chronic pain in the neck, shoulders and upper back. Researchers have published findings linking large breast size to symptoms such as shoulder grooving from bra straps and persistent pain, and have discussed how weight distribution can affect posture and spinal curvature. However, critics of Musk’s post argued that medical reality did not justify making an unsolicited public remark about a specific person’s body, particularly in response to red-carpet footage intended to promote a film.
Sweeney has previously spoken publicly about how her appearance is discussed, particularly after scenes in Euphoria generated extensive commentary online. In interviews cited in biographical accounts, she has said she does not consider on-screen nudity to be a boundary for her work, a stance that has itself been debated in the broader conversation about the “male gaze” and the pressures faced by young actors. Supporters of Sweeney argued that her choices as an actor were being used by strangers to justify an ongoing stream of commentary about her body that would be considered unacceptable in most other contexts.
Musk, 54, has often used his social media presence to weigh in on cultural controversies, sometimes sparking backlash. In this instance, the criticism focused less on political content and more on tone and propriety, with users arguing the post was demeaning and unnecessary. Some pointed to the age gap between Musk and Sweeney in expressing discomfort, while others accused him of encouraging a pile-on by amplifying the topic to his audience.
The exchange also reflected the way red-carpet fashion moments now function in the social media era, where short clips can rapidly become raw material for jokes, arguments and harassment. Coverage of Sweeney’s premiere appearance often emphasised the dress’s styling and old-Hollywood references, but the online discourse quickly shifted to her body and to the reaction it provoked from high-profile accounts.
Neither Musk nor Sweeney has publicly issued a statement addressing the backlash described by outlets that tracked the online reaction. The immediate focus, instead, remained on the post itself and the polarised responses it triggered, with supporters dismissing the criticism as humourless and opponents arguing that the incident underlined a familiar dynamic: even as Sweeney promotes major projects and expands her career as an actor and producer, she is repeatedly forced into a public conversation about her appearance rather than her work.
