On July 23, a jeans-clad Sydney Sweeney ignited the culture wars as she starred in an American Eagle ad, lying on her side, her blue eyes trained at the camera, talking about her genes.
64 days later, in a new ad, another attractive, blue-eyed blonde woman lies on her side, clad in denim, talking about genes.
But it’s not Sweeney this time, it’s not on behalf of American Eagle, and its message, by any measure, is more important than denim.
In a spot for The Colorectal Cancer Alliance, the 68-year-old journalist Katie Couric playfully riffs on Sweeney’s genes/jeans spiel, even as she delivers an admonitory message.
“Speaking of jeans,” Couric kicks off the ad, “did you know that the majority of people who develop colon cancer are not genetically predisposed to the disease? That’s why doctors recommend everyone 45 and older get checked.”
As Couric speaks, the camera pulls back to reveal that she’s wearing a hospital gown underneath her jean jacket—identical to the one Sweeney wears in the American Eagle ad—lying on a hospital bed while a doctor readies a colonoscope.
Amusing as these 30 seconds are, the elbow goes for the ribs once the frame fills with block lettering that reads: “KATIE COURIC GETS REGULAR SCREENINGS,” an unmistakable sendup of “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans,” which appeared in the same light-blue, all-caps typeface in the American Eagle ad.
The PSA, created by Ryan Reynolds’ Maximum Effort, serves as an allegory for viewers old enough to remember Couric’s network days. In 2000, the anchorwoman raised awareness of colorectal cancer by having her own colonoscopy televised.
That TV event was “a moment in time,” Couric told People. “We thought, ‘Why don’t we ride that horse a little bit longer and have some fun with it?’”
But Couric’s dedication to the cause is resolute. Jay Monahan, Couric’s first husband, died in 1997 of colon cancer at age 42.
Reynolds has devoted his own efforts to Lead from Behind, a colorectal cancer awareness drive, by turning his own colonoscopy into a video three years ago. Actor Terry Crews and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott have contributed their own PSAs.
Couric’s spoof of the American Eagle ad isn’t the first time she’s leveraged her fame to draw awareness to this cause. In 2019, she convinced Jimmy Kimmel, just turned 50, to let her accompany him for—you guessed it—a colonoscopy, and record it.
