Comedian Tim Dillon Defends Sydney Sweeney Amid Ad Controversy

Comedian Tim Dillon passionately defended actress Sydney Sweeney as she faced criticism for her near-nude advertisement for the sports prediction market company Novig. The ad, featuring Sweeney with strategic sports equipment placements, drew backlash from some female athletes who opposed hyper-sexualization in sports.

Sweeney handed out her SYRN lingerie to attendees at Diplo’s Honkeytonk on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival in Indio, California, on April 25, 2026.

“It’s nice to look at. What are these female athletes upset about?” Dillon commented on his podcast. He questioned if critics wanted Sweeney to adopt an athlete’s physique, arguing her attractiveness is part of her appeal.

Australian Olympic gold medalist swimmer Ariarne Titmus, British sprinter Amy Hunt, and former American gymnast Gracie Kramer were among those who criticized the ad. Dillon addressed Australian surfer Felicity Palmateer’s statement to CNN, where she called the campaign damaging due to its hypersexualized content.

No one is valuing female athletes for what they look like, Dillon said. He emphasized that Sweeney’s appearance shouldn’t imply that female athletes are being sexualized.

Actress Sydney Sweeney appeared nude on a Times Square billboard ad for Novig. The campaign sparked online backlash, with Dillon predicting more companies would now seek the publicity Sweeney generates.

Dillon remarked, “By the way, Sydney Sweeney’s going to be the hottest commodity for a corporate company now because you know you can get a controversial ad with her.” He pointed to her ad for Guess which caused a stir due to its tagline.

Sweeney countered the criticism by highlighting ESPN magazine covers of nude athletes, including Serena Williams and Ronda Rousey.

Craig Carton of “The Craig Carton Show” also defended Sweeney, criticizing those who claimed the ad set back the women’s movement. Carton divided critics into what he termed “crazy” and “non-crazy” groups, associating the latter with support for Sweeney.

The world’s going crazy when it comes to the photographs of Sydney Sweeney. QNo, you’re just ugly,Q Carton said, addressing critics.

Carton argued that those criticizing Sweeney also hailed Lindsay Clancy as a hero, a contentious opinion given Clancy’s conviction for a serious crime. He concluded by saying that critics of Sweeney, in his view, supported questionable figures instead.

Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report for Fox News Digital.