Katie Couric spoofs Sydney Sweeney’s jeans ad with colon cancer PSA

Screens, not genes.

Katie Couric has spoofed Sydney Sweeney’s controversial American Eagle ad campaign in a new public service announcement about the importance of regular colon cancer screenings.

The PSA is part of the Lead from Behind campaign initiative from the Colorectal Cancer Alliance and Maximum Effort, the latter of which was co-founded by Ryan Reynolds.

It begins with a close-up of the former “Today” show co-host in a denim jacket as music plays softly in the background.

But as the camera pans out, Couric is revealed wearing a hospital gown underneath her jean top and lying on a gurney as nurses prepare for her colonoscopy.

“Speaking of genes,” Couric, in a nod to Sweeney’s American Eagle campaign, starts the PSA. ”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.”

“Mine are televised,” she added, referring to the first on-air colonoscopy she received while still an anchor on the “Today” show in 2000. 

The former “CBS Evening News” host opened up about her decision to spoof Sweeney’s jeans ad for her colon cancer screening PSA in an interview with People published Thursday.

She noted how the campaign “showed how pop culture and a pair of jeans could really shape the cultural conversation” and that “it was everywhere.”

“It was a moment in time,” Couric, 68, explained. “And we thought, ‘Why don’t we ride that horse a little bit longer and have some fun with it?’”

“It was funny for me because I’m a little older than Sydney Sweeney, and I was trying to get the jean jacket to lay just so,” she joked, regarding the 28-year-old actress.

Couric’s late husband, Jay Monahan, passed away from colon cancer in 1998 at 42. His tragic passing inspired the famed journalist to co-found the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance in 2000, the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health in 2004 and Stand Up To Cancer in 2008.

“I’m a grandmother now,” Couric told the outlet, adding that her late husband “would’ve been a grandfather.”

“My girls graduated from college, and these huge life moments that he’s missed – I don’t want that to happen to other people,” she continued. “And so I think of him often, and think of other Jay Monahans that might be out there, whose lives I can potentially I save with this information.”

“So I feel such an obligation and a responsibility to do that,” Couric shared.

The “Next Question” podcast host, meanwhile, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022. However, the disease was detected and treated early thanks to regular screenings.

“Early detection saves lives. It’s really that simple,” Couric concluded. “If you can get a cancer that’s detectable at its earliest stage, your chances of survival just go up dramatically. So get screened.”

As for Sweeney’s jeans ad, she and American Eagle faced backlash over the summer after they launched a marketing campaign with the tagline “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans.”

Critics quickly slammed the jeans/genes wordplay, as the ad sparked debate about Western beauty standards, race, and the backlash to “woke” American politics and culture. But the brand doubled down and insisted the campaign was about nothing other than the product.

“‘Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans’ is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story,” the retailer said in a statement to The Post. “We’ll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone.”

The “White Lotus” alum, for her part, has refused to address the drama surrounding the ad initiative.