Sharon Stone Urges Sydney Sweeney to ‘Take Responsibility’ for Novig Ad

Tania Levees

25 September 2026

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^{Sharon Stone / © Shutterstock}

Hollywood actress Sharon Stone has criticised the provocative ad campaign for prediction platform Novig featuring Sydney Sweeney, she told People.

The campaign launched on September 9. In the commercial, the Euphoria star appears nude, covering herself with sports equipment.

Stone said Sweeney should “take responsibility” for appearing in the ad. She explained her criticism by saying that women’s sport should not be degraded to draw a male audience to betting.

Stone contrasted this approach with supporting women who have succeeded in professional sports.

The ad had previously drawn criticism from female athletes. They accused its creators of sexualising women and said the image shown has little to do with real women’s sport.

Novig CEO Jacob Fortinsky refused to apologise for the campaign. He explained that it was never intended to portray women’s sport: the main goal was to draw attention to the brand.

The ad campaign also had a noticeable effect on search interest. According to Google Trends data analysed by Gambling Park, worldwide interest in Novig grew by 1000% week-on-week in the seven days after launch. At the same time, Sweeney herself remained far more popular than the brand she advertised: the average global search interest in the actress during that period was roughly seven times higher than in Novig.

Tania Levees

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