Pam & Tommy director Lake Bell on honouring Pamela Anderson's story by reframing the narrative
In a Q interview, Bell also addressed criticism that the sex tape drama feels exploitative
Click the play button above to hear Lake Bell's full conversation with Tom Power.
Lake Bell was a teenager when Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee's stolen sex tape was leaked to the public in 1995. Like many at the time, the actor didn't "understand the magnitude" of the situation.
"It was like the butt of jokes, you know, it was like the punchline," she told Q's Tom Power in an interview. "It didn't feel like it was something that you could relate to because [Anderson] didn't feel real."
Today, Bell clearly sees the scandal for what it was: a traumatic violation of privacy that exploited Anderson. As the director of two episodes of Pam & Tommy — a new limited series that follows the real-life events of the leak — Bell wanted to "humanize" Anderson by painting a more sympathetic portrait of her.
"My North Star on this project was not just to serve a narrative, you know, it's really to honour someone's story," she said.
WATCH | Official trailer for Pam & Tommy:
For Bell — who experienced a similar injustice when she became the victim of a nude photo leak in 2014 — honouring Anderson's story meant approaching it from a woman's perspective. She said the series provided an opportunity to "reflect on that time in our culture and society."
"It's not letting the viewer get away with the numbness of how it was initially perceived in our culture," she said. "These aren't caricatures of people. These are real, complicated, flawed, loving, sweet creatures…. And just because you pose on the cover of a magazine naked or in a bathing suit — as I have done many times — that doesn't mean that you can steal … their private property and then show the entire universe."
But the series has drawn criticism for re-exploiting Anderson and further profiting off her trauma. Actor Lily James (who plays Anderson) stated she reached out to Anderson before filming started but never received a response. Sources close to Anderson said she would never watch the series.
"I can't speak for Pam…. I don't know her and I would never, ever try to think for her," said Bell about the controversy. "All of the creatives on this show have really worked hard to create something from a space of great respect and honour."
"You know, I really respect her position, I do…. It's completely up to her whether she wants to see it or not, or feel involved or disassociate from it. It's not our position to really have an opinion about it, to be fair."
Written by Vivian Rashotte. Produced by Vanessa Nigro.