The Hulu miniseries Pam & Tommy attracted viewers and award show nominations after it premiered in February 2022, but one person who didn't tune in was Pamela Anderson herself. The show dramatizes the series of events set in motion by the theft and distribution of a tape featuring Anderson and then-husband Tommy Lee in intimate situations, which they intended to remain private. Anderson has not supported the show, and she's continuing to share her feelings toward it in her upcoming memoir and in her upcoming Netflix documentary.
In an except of her book published by People, Anderson doesn't mention the miniseries by name, but she does denounce anyone who's profit from a crime that occurred nearly 30 years ago. Read on for more.
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The tape was stolen by an ex-employee in 1995.
Featureflash Photo Agency / ShutterstockIn 1995, an intimate tape that Anderson and Lee had filmed for their own purposes was stolen from their home by an electrician who'd been doing work on their house. After it was distributed online and elsewhere, the couple entered into various lawsuits regarding the tape and damages they suffered.
The miniseries Pam & Tommy depicts not just the aftermath of the tape getting out but also the ups and downs of Anderson and Lee's relationship. Lily James plays Anderson, Sebastian Stan plays Lee, and Seth Rogen plays Rand Gauthier, the disgruntled employee who tries to get rich by selling the tape. Showrunner Rob Siegel told Entertainment Weekly that they tried to reach out to Anderson but never got a response. He claimed that the series is most interested in Anderson's perspective and that it was his intention to "very clearly, unambiguously present [Lee and Anderson] as the victims of a crime, which they were."
Anderson thinks profiting from their pain is "unforgivable."
Andrea Raffin / ShutterstockIn her memoir, Love, Pamela, Anderson writes of the sex tape theft and what's come after, "It ruined lives, starting with our relationship—and it's unforgivable that people, still to this day, think they can profit from such a terrible experience, let alone a crime."
Around the time that the show was released, a source close to the Baywatch star told Entertainment Weekly, "I do know she'll never, never watch [the show]. Not even years from now. Not even the trailer."
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Anderson didn't respond to a letter from James.
Tinseltown / ShutterstockIn addition to producers reaching out to Anderson, James wrote a personal letter to the star she was set to portray. Anderson told The New York Times in a recent interview that she never read it.
“It was already hurtful enough the first time,” the Baywatch actor said (via The Hollywood Reporter). “It’s like one of those things where you’re going, ‘Really?’ People are still capitalizing off that thing?”
For her part, James told Porter that she "was really hopeful that [Anderson] would be involved" in Pam & Tommy.
"I wish it had been different,” she said. "My sole intention was to take care of the story and to play Pamela authentically ... I was very hopeful that we would be in touch right up until we started filming."
Anderson will open up more in her documentary.
Anderson's Netflix documentary, Pamela, a love story, is being released on Jan. 31, the same day as her memoir. It will show her reaction to finding out about Pam & Tommy, and she will speak out about the sex tape itself.
"Nobody knew the truth—even I don’t know 100% of what happened," the 55-year-old star told Vanity Fair, "but I think what is most important is to share my human feelings and how much it hurt and how it undeniably defined me moving forward—in my career and my relationships."
