Halsey recently made some comments which many people are finding controversial, but aren’t. Let’s clarify what was said and what it meant! With the release of her film, Americana, Halsey posted on her Instagram stories on August 21st saying:

“you should go see this movie. because @tonytost made an exceptional film, in honor of a genre he knows intimately. Because his work and his vision are greater than the 24 hr gossip tabloid denim bullshit. He’s an incredible artist who made a great film with a group of hardworking, talented people. If you love cinema, then you should know that cinema comes first. This is cinema.”

Halsey was referring to the controversial jeans ad co-star Sydney Sweeney did for American Eagle which some are accusing of eugenics and Nazi propaganda following their pun of jeans and genes with “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.” Halsey was pointing out critics and media should not be using this to undermine Americana, which should stand on its own merit. On her Instagram stories, she expressed further in response to criticism that she is talking about this but hasn’t been speaking out about other events people deem more important:

“I do agree that our words are important in this climate. I don’t, however, think that it’s fair for the news cycle to predatorily rip a hardworking director and his hardworking crew for their film that is completely separate-from and unrelated-to a (pretty dumb) advertising take. If it’s not clear who the actual people I’m standing up for are, I’m sorry look closer.”

In the last sentence, Halsey is referring to the fact she’s standing up for her director, Tony Tost, and potentially the other cast and crew members. She’s not necessarily saying she supports the advert or Sweeney. Halsey also took to the Twitter to share some further thoughts about this, but the tweets were deleted.

On August 25th, she replied to an article from The Cut which covered this story. Their tweet said: “After ‘Americana’ flopped at the box office, Halsey blamed the ‘gossip tabloid denim’ b.s. over Sydney Sweeney’s jeans ad for the movie’s low numbers.” In response, Halsey said:

“No that’s actually not what I said at all. I said that film reviewers using the controversy over the ad as cheap cover to trash a film director who had nothing to do with it is ridiculous to me. Good job adding to the click bait though! You really nailed it! 😃”

Many have been commenting on how it’s ironic this is happening during the Badlands 10 year anniversary celebrations because this is what Badlands is about. egomanic3am said: “Corrupted media twisting narratives to sensationalise bigger issues and putting celebrities and non-celebrities on a sadistic scrutiny.” Halsey also posted this video on TikTok on August 26th, which further comments on how fans and the media have been criticising Halsey for not talking about other issues such as politics as much as she used to:

Halsey shared a post on Instagram about her experience working on Americana — a film she shot 3.5 years ago — in celebration of its release! Check it out:

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A post shared by halsey (@iamhalsey)

Fandango have released a new still of Sydney Sweeney and Halsey in Americana. Check it out below:

Entertainment Weekly have released an exclusive image of Halsey as Mandy Starr in ‘Americana. The film is scheduled to release on August 22nd, 2025. Continue reading for more information on Halsey’s character.

Halsey can summarize her character in one word: “Badass.”

“She’s holding on to a pretty profound secret that is eating her alive a little bit,” the singer/actress says of her character. “She’s really struggling with wanting to do the right thing and be a good person. It’s been challenging for her because she’s been done wrong by so many people that she’s trusted.”

A bit of a wild child, Mandy has a “very small found family” that Halsey describes as different from the one she was born to. “A lot of people will resonate with growing up under circumstances out of their control,” she says, “and wanting to do better and break these generational curses.”

Mandy also finds inspiration in music icons — for her, as evidenced by her hairstyle, it’s Joan Jett. “She aspires to be these badass women who don’t really take s— from anyone around them,” she explains. “Women who carved out their own path and have a voice and something to say. Mandy’s still finding her way to becoming those women that she admires.”

As for Mandy’s connection to the artifact, all Halsey will say is, “Mandy has a great ability to be in the wrong place at the wrong time — or at the right time, depending on how you look at it.”

The director of Americana, which stars Halsey, has finally announced a release date of August 22nd for the film, which will be distributed by Liongsate. How exciting!

Tony Tost said:

The official release date for AMERICANA is August 22nd. It’s my first picture as a writer-director. I can’t wait for people to see it & our wonderful cast: Sydney Sweeney, Paul Walter Hauser, Halsey, Zahn McClarnon, Simon Rex, Eric Dane, Toby Huss, Gavin Maddox Bergman, & more.