Hana Oakes

Hulu has recently released a mini series about the lives of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee.

The show itself follows a very interesting timeline, starting from the incident that resulted in the leaked sex tape and going back in time to show how Pam and Tommy met and how the tape came to be in the first place. From that point on, it portrays an array of repercussions and media reactions to the tape showing the viewers the inside perspective on how these two infamous celebrities’ lives were impacted.

This short tv series examines the legal rights to this sex tape and images related to them. It follows a set of events after their private sex tape was released. The show also portrays the backlash Pamela specifically received, really demonstrating how the double standard works in regards to sexuality of women vs men. 

In a scene at the end of the series Tommy is shown in a bar with two other men who are applauding him for sexual acts he engaged in with Pamela and he accepts the praise even discussing how dominant he was during the sex; Tommy is practically praised for the tape, seen as a ‘cool dude’ for having sex with such a famous beautiful blonde celebrity.

Meanwhile, Pamela was degraded for the acts she performed and the exposure of her body–slut shamed– even though her partner was doing the same thing. She was often seen on talk shows, including with Jay Leno, who pokes fun at the sex tape over and over again. In a specific interview in 1996, Pamela remarks, ‘You’re jumping on the bandwagon and making fun of us.’ to which Leno replies, ‘I made one little joke,’ Pamela then shakes her head, replying with, “One?! Tommy’s been taping them. I’ve got them all right here.’ The screen then flashes to an abundance of Leno beginning a joke with ‘Pamela Lee and Tommy Lee’ 11 times. After this Leno attempts to laugh it off to which Pamela responds, ‘This is not funny. This is devastating to us.” Leno replies with a grin, “It is?” Even after Pamela explicitly stated that this is no laughing matter and its extremely detrimental to her life, Leno continued to poke fun as well as the studio audience laughing in the background.  This just went to show that no matter what Pamela said, it wouldn’t change how the media saw or treated her. This is just one example of the media not taking this blatant violation of privacy seriously and attempting to make light out of an extremely serious situation. This is important to understand because the media plays a huge role in our lives. For example, the way women are portrayed as treated in the media can impact how they are treated in society. This can happen because of the way many look to the media for social norms and values.

This show propels the viewers into the time period, creating a memorable experience. Its very insightful on Pam and Tommy’s lives, topped off with a talented cast and thrilling visuals that will keep you hooked from episode 1 to 8.