Turning anyone’s life into a TV drama is always tricky ground. How do you balance accuracy with entertainment? How much should the real-life people involved be consulted? Where’s the line between telling someone’s story, and simply exploiting it?
With the Pam & Tommy biopic, the issue is even more fraught. Firstly, the series focusses on the infamous sex tape: the story is all about an invasion of privacy that was inherently salacious and voyeuristic. Secondly, Pamela Anderson was not involved with the making of the show.
While she hasn’t commented publicly on Pam & Tommy, according to People, a source close to Pamela said: ‘After the tape was made public, it was a very traumatising situation and it’s unfair that she is being re-subjected to this trauma, like re-opening a wound…There’s a sense of hypocrisy about it. It’s her life and she should have the decision whether it’s turned into a commodity for public consumption.’
That’s uncomfortable to read if you’re someone watching – and enjoying – Pam & Tommy. From a TV perspective, it’s a good show. It’s funny, smart, nostalgic and has a brilliant cast. The three leads Lily James, Sebastian Stan and Seth Rogen (who plays the man who leaked the tape) are excellent. It’s a great watch, with great performances but still, it’s hard not to feel conflicted when you’re settling down to watch a show about woman – however famous - who clearly didn’t want it to be made.
Lily James explained in a recent interview with Porter magazine that she reached out to Pamela Anderson but did not get a response, adding: ‘I was really hopeful that she would be involved. I wish it had been different. My sole intention was to take care of the story and to play Pamela authentically.’
And in the show’s defence, with Lily James’ portrayal of Pam we see that she is a real person, with real feelings, who had ambitions for her life and career. We see the impact that the leak has on Pam and her marriage. It gives us an insight into the painful fallout behind the headlines.
It would be unfair to say that Pam & Tommy is simply rehashing a sensationalist tabloid story from the 90s for entertainment value but ultimately, what was a distant memory in pop culture history has now been thrust back into the spotlight for the world to pick over once more. However well made the show is, is that really fair?
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