{"id":57817,"date":"2025-08-04T14:12:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T14:12:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/57817\/"},"modified":"2025-08-04T14:12:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T14:12:08","slug":"bad-timing-gavin-casalegnos-dunkin-ad-sparks-backlash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/57817\/","title":{"rendered":"Bad timing? Gavin Casalegno\u2019s Dunkin\u2019 ad sparks backlash …"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n By Eliza Frost<\/a>
\n Published Aug 4, 2025 at 11:10 AM<\/p>\n

Reading time: 2 minutes<\/p>\n

\"Share<\/p>\n

A new Dunkin\u2019 Donuts ad starring The Summer I Turned Pretty actor Gavin Casalegno is facing backlash for its \u201cgenetics\u201d theme, following online controversy over American Eagle\u2019s \u2018Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans\u2019 campaign.<\/p>\n

68630<\/p>\n

Forget about The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3<\/a>, according to Dunkin\u2019 Donut\u2019s latest advert with actor Gavin Casalegno<\/a>, it\u2019s all about a golden summer with a side of controversy.<\/p>\n

The ad\u2019s reference to Casalegno\u2019s<\/a> \u201cgenetics\u201d has sparked backlash over its underlying tones, echoing the online stir caused by American Eagle\u2019s \u2018Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans\u2019 campaign<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Promoting Dunkin\u2019s Golden Hour Refresher, the ad shows Casalegno lounging poolside with the golden-hued drink in hand. \u201cLook, I didn\u2019t ask to be the king of summer. It just kind of happened,\u201d he says. \u201cThis tan? Genetics. I just got my colour analysis back. Guess what? Golden summer. Literally.\u201d<\/p>\n

@screenshothq<\/a> <\/p>\n

A new commercial has people talking about eugenics again\u2014more than the actual product it\u2019s selling. How did we get here? @Dunkin’ just introduced a pair of new Refreshers to its menu. To launch one of them (the Golden Hour Refresher) the brand partnered with @the summer i turned pretty star @GavinCasalegno for a new video posted on social media. \u201cLook, I didn\u2019t ask to be the king of summer, it just kinda happened,\u201d Casalegno says at the start of the 35-second spot. \u201cThis tan? Genetics.\u201d Casalegno then talks about his colour analysis \u201cliterally\u201d coming back \u201cgolden summer\u201d as he lounges by a pool with a Refresher in hand. \u201cCan\u2019t help it \u2014 every time I drink a Golden Hour Refresher, it\u2019s like the sun just finds me,\u201d he says. \u201cSo if sipping these refreshers makes me the king of summer? Guilty as charged.\u201d Instead of being flooded with fans excited to try the new drinks, the ad\u2019s comments section is full of people wondering why a certain word was used in the script. \u201cWhat in the Sydney Sweeney did I just watch,\u201d asked a TikTok user. #gavincasalegno<\/a> #tsitp<\/a> #sydneysweeney<\/a> #americaneagle<\/a> #dunkindonuts<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u266c original sound – SCREENSHOT<\/a> <\/p>\n

\n Why Gavin Casalegno\u2019s Dunkin\u2019 ad is sparking backlash\n <\/p>\n

The doughnut brand dropped its summer Refresher drink advert almost a week ago now, but the controversy around it is still rife.<\/p>\n

On the surface, Dunkin\u2019s campaign feels like a light-hearted slice of summer. But online, it\u2019s raising questions about its intended message. Some say the timing was tone-deaf (especially after the recent backlash to American Eagle\u2019s recent ad), while others see it as yet another campaign celebrating the \u201cgood\u201d genes of a white, blonde-haired, blue-eyed celebrity.<\/p>\n

\n How Dunkin\u2019s Gavin Casalegno ad compares to American Eagle\u2019s Sydney Sweeney campaign\n <\/p>\n

Unsurprisingly, users online were quick to link Dunkin\u2019s new advert to American Eagle\u2019s recent campaign with Sydney Sweeney<\/a>, which stirred up conversation over race<\/a>, eugenics, and beauty standards<\/a> due to its curious tagline: \u201cSydney Sweeney has great jeans.\u201d<\/p>\n

One user commented on Dunkin\u2019s Instagram post, stating that it\u2019s a \u201cweird time to drop an ad talking about genetics,\u201d presumably referencing the backlash the American Eagle campaign received. On X, another person asked: \u201cWhat does genetics have to do with a Refresher\u2026 at least the jeans made SENSE.\u201d With another questioning: \u201cWhat\u2019s going on with genetics being a topic lately lol.\u201d<\/p>\n

what does genetics have to do with a refresher\u2026 at least the jeans made SENSE<\/p>\n

\u2014 eryn\ud83d\udc8b (@erynsbloodline) July 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

??? what\u2019s going on with genetics being a topic lately lol<\/p>\n

\u2014 The Notorious J.O.V. (@whotfisjovana) July 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Another said: \u201cWouldn\u2019t it make more sense to talk about him lying in the sun getting a GOLDEN tan? Why are we mixing genes and coffee?!?\u201d<\/p>\n

Wouldn\u2019t it make more sense to talk about him laying in the sun getting a GOLDEN tan? Why are we mixing genes and coffee?!?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Sweetenermatcha \ud83c\udf49 (@sweetenermatcha) July 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Adding to the controversies surrounding Casalegno, one user on X also said: \u201cHe\u2019s also been cancelled for being \u2018maga<\/a>\u2019 LOL.\u201d<\/p>\n

he\u2019s also been canceled for being \u201cmaga\u201d LOL<\/p>\n

\u2014 Paula Scanlan (@PaulaYScanlan) July 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

\n Is Gavin Casalegno a Trump supporter?\n <\/p>\n

Although Gavin Casalegno has not confirmed his political views, fans seem to believe that he is a Trump supporter<\/a>. Comments on a TSITP<\/a> Reddit thread (r\/TheSummerITurnedPrett<\/a>) ask \u201cis this true?\u201d in regards to TikTok comments about Casalegno, where fans say they \u201cwish he wasn\u2019t a Trump supporter.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another Reddit user<\/a> claims the TSITP actor is \u201can evangelical Christian right-wing Trump supporter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n Gavin Casalegno was cancelled for liking anti-feminist posts\n <\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t the first time Gavin Casalegno has experienced backlash. Back in 2023<\/a>, it was discovered that Casalegno had liked an anti-vaccination and anti-feminist<\/a> tweet, which read: \u201cWhen you find out she is unvaxxed, not a feminist, loves the lord, and aspires to be a wife, mother and a homemaker.\u201d This created a visceral reaction among the mainly liberal TSITP<\/a> fans. Although Casalegno later commented that the tweet didn\u2019t reflect his views, adding that he doesn\u2019t always have Instagram on his phone, the incident still left many fans unconvinced.<\/p>\n

@screenshothq<\/a> <\/p>\n

Social media users are calling Gavin Casalegno problematic for his recent activity on social media, is he the latest celeb to be cancelled? #gavincasalegno<\/a> #thesummeriturnedpretty<\/a> #chrisbriney<\/a> #gavincasalegnocontroversy<\/a> #thesummeriturnedprettyseason3<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u266c Lo-fi hip hop – NAO-K<\/a> <\/p>\n

A little while after this, it was revealed that the actor had also liked a video on TikTok posted by Jordan Peterson<\/a>, a Canadian psychologist who has been under fire for sexism<\/a>, transphobia<\/a>, and homophobia<\/a> in the past.<\/p>\n

It seems that Casalegno is never too far from controversy, with the Dunkin\u2019 advert and his \u2018golden summer genetics\u2019 adding one more notch to an already too small belt. Just how many more problematic situations will he find himself in?<\/p>\n

Gavin Casalegno has not made a formal statement in response to the ad at the time of writing.<\/p>\n