Comedian Matt Rife Calls Sydney Sweeney's Critics 'Garbage Losers' Amid Backlash Over Bathwater Soap

Comedian Matt Rife recently defended Sydney Sweeney after she spoke out about the reaction to her Dr. Squatch bathwater soap campaign.

The actress, who collaborated with the brand to release a limited edition of soap bars, claimed that mostly women were mad about the idea.

Now, while calling critics "garbage losers," Matt Rife took to X (formerly Twitter) to condemn the backlash the actress has been facing in the past few months.

Rife is stepping in to back Sweeney, but this time, it's not about her viral American Eagle campaign. Instead, he's addressing the backlash surrounding her bathwater soap partnership.

On Friday night, Rife jumped on X to react to Sweeney's recent remarks about being targeted by women online after her Dr. Squatch collaboration, a campaign that sparked chatter when the brand promoted soap supposedly made with her bathwater.

Fed up with the negativity, Rife posted, "I keep seeing people mad at Sydney Sweeney for noooothing. She's learning that the internet is full of absolute garbage losers who will twist anything you say into a c-nty misinterpretation. People are awful."

Notably, he avoided addressing the separate firestorm surrounding Sweeney's American Eagle ad, which drew accusations of racism and claims that the brand had ties to Adolf Hitler.

Fans quickly chimed in under Rife's post to show support for him and Sweeney.

One person wrote, "Well said, she definitely deserves support right now."

Another added: "They truly are awful. Sydney is a delight. Beauty and brains, what's not to love about her?!" another said.

A third user pointed out, "The mad people are the ones who were never going to support or buy what she was advertising, regardless. Ignore and keep doing her thing."

Rife's post comes as he faces some controversy of his own, most recently tied to his partnership with makeup giant e.l.f. Cosmetics.

In their latest campaign, Rife stars alongside drag performer Heidi N Closet in a quirky legal-themed spot where the duo play "E.l.f.ino & Schmarnes," defending consumers against overpriced beauty products. The spot builds on e.l.f. 's 2024 Super Bowl commercial.

Kory Marchisotto, e.l.f. Beauty's Chief Marketing Officer explained the vision behind the campaign: "For 21 years, e.l.f. has been making the best of beauty accessible to every eye, lip, and face. From 'Cosmetic Criminals' to 'Judge Beauty' to the law offices of 'e.l.f.ino and schmarnes', we stand with our community in favor of beauty justice."

She added: "Our vigorous defense is high-quality beauty without compromise – to your wallet or your values. That's the e.l.f.ing way."

Many people weren't thrilled to see Rife featured in the e.l.f. Campaign, pointing back to his controversial past. The comedian came under fire in 2023 for a domestic violence joke included in his Netflix special, "Natural Selection."

As reported by The Blast, in the special, Rife recounted an interaction with a waitress who had a black eye, joking, "My boy, who I was with, was like, 'Yeah, I feel bad for her, man, I feel like they should put her in the kitchen or something where nobody has to see her face.' And I was like, 'Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn't have that black eye.'"

The bit sparked widespread backlash, with many condemning him for making light of abuse.

His response only added fuel to the fire, as, instead of apologizing, Rife posted an Instagram story with a link he told critics to click on to "solve their issue." The link redirected users to a website selling helmets for people with disabilities.

The backlash over Rife's role in e.l.f. 's campaign quickly snowballed into boycott calls across social media, with beauty influencers, including some who previously collaborated with e.l.f., taking the lead.

Several even filmed themselves tossing their e.l.f. products in protest.

Creators such as James Welsh, Katie Raymond, Jillie Clark, and Nikkie de Jager spoke out against the brand's decision to work with Rife, publicly withdrawing their support and urging followers to reconsider buying from the company.

In response, e.l.f. issued an apology on August 15, addressing the criticism directly.

"You know us, we're always listening, and we've heard you. This campaign aimed to humorously spotlight the beauty of injustice," the apology read. "We understand we missed the mark with people we care about in our e.l.f. community. While e.l.f.ino & schmarnes closes today, we'll continue to make the case against overpriced beauty."