Pamela Anderson Slams Hulu's Pam & Tommy For Rubbing 'Salt On The Wound'
It's hard to overstate how much of a cultural icon Pamela Anderson was in the 1990s. "Baywatch" was one of the most popular shows on the air, and she frequently found herself on the cover of magazine covers, both as a model and as a subject of a scandalous article. As such, it was a big deal when a pornographic video featuring her and her partner at the time, Tommy Lee, surfaced.
The tape was leaked without Anderson's consent, and it caused her a great deal of distress. This period in her life was chronicled in last year's Hulu original series, "Pam & Tommy." The limited series followed the tumultuous relationship between Anderson (Lily James) and Lee (Sebastian Stan) as they attempted to navigate having careers with such a video out for the public to see. As evidenced by the show, it hurt Anderson the most, as she became the butt of the joke within the cultural zeitgeist.
Famously, Anderson did not approve of "Pam & Tommy" getting made and spoke out about the show during its release (via Vanity Fair). It's been a year since the show came out, and during a recent chat with Variety, Anderson continued explaining why joining "Pam & Tommy" was never an option for her.
Pamela Anderson has no interest in checking out Pam & Tommy
In the 1990s, people were more than happy to throw Pamela Anderson under the bus and make jokes at her expense, even though the tape was stolen property. Society has gotten (a little) better at the way it treats women when their personal photos or videos get leaked, but "Pam & Tommy" showed that it wasn't that long ago when women weren't in control of their own narratives.
Anderson has spoken out about the Hulu series before, but it comes up again in her recent chat with Variety. She explained, "When I first heard about the 'Pam & Tommy 'TV series, I think everyone just protected me from it. I wouldn't get involved. And that's, I don't know, I just think it was interesting to hear about it. Didn't make me happy." She then jokingly refers to the people involved with the show as "a**holes" but takes it back pretty quickly. She goes on to say, "Just salt on the wound. Not necessary. Anyway, it happened. I've never seen the series, and I've never seen too much of it, but it just looked like another Halloween costume to me."
It's understandable for Anderson to have strong feelings toward a show that continues to mine her trauma for entertainment. Lily James wrote Anderson a letter about how much she wanted to do justice to her story, but Anderson hasn't read it (via The Hollywood Reporter). Anderson has her own documentary coming out that will shed light on her life on her own terms. "Pamela, A Love Story" comes to Netflix on January 31.