Pamela Anderson’s Transformation InTo Shelley
At the Toronto International Film Festival’s world premiere of her new film The Last Showgirl, Pamela Anderson was asked during an on-stage inquiries and responses session how she studied to play Shelley, a Vegas showgirl whose long-running profession is about to end. “I think I’ve been getting ready my whole life for this role,” Anderson stated, dressed in a black suit with sunglasses (which she later removed).
She also recognized how unusual this opportunity was for her. “It’s the first time I’ve ever read a good script, first and foremost,” she stated amid laughter. She joked that other stuff had not been as “coherent.”
A Role That Will Define Pamela Anderson’s Career
Indeed, The Last Showgirl, directed by Gia Coppola, is Anderson’s most significant picture to date, and it has received rave reviews. The BBC described the 57-year-old actor as a “revelation.” The film comes at a time when the former Baywatch star’s career is being reassessed culturally, having previously been treated as a jest or a tabloid headline. While Anderson’s Shelley is a new invention, the audience’s sense of history with the actor playing her, whose rise to stardom was closely linked to her physical appearance, is relevant to the plot. Shelley demands that her desire to appear in the Vegas extravaganza, nudity included, be taken seriously—just as Anderson has long pushed for herself.
Reviews for Anderson’s Performance Are Rave Reviews
Prior to this point, Anderson’s most notable picture was the 1996 thriller Barb Wire, which eventually became yet another punchline in her career narrative. She was in the midst of her high-profile marriage to rocker Tommy Lee at the time, and she miscarried during the shoot. In his review of the film, Roger Ebert wrote: “Pamela Anderson Lee, while not a great actress, is a good sport.” Later, Anderson would say, “I have no idea what that film is about.” “I have no idea.”
The Development of Shelley Mirrors Anderson’s Own Struggle
The previous few years have provided an opportunity for the public to rethink Anderson and the media’s treatment of her. First came the 2022 Hulu miniseries Pam & Tommy, which followed the aftermath of Anderson and Lee’s infamous sex tape and starred Lily James as Pam. While the show was respectful to Anderson, she did not like it and described it as “salt in the wound” in an interview.
Pamela Anderson’s Evolving Public Perception
The next year, Anderson shared her own experience in Ryan White’s Netflix documentary Pamela: A Love Experience. She openly discussed her life, including her dealings with sexual abuse, and shared diary entries. The video also followed her rehearsals for her role as Roxie Hart in Chicago, which will run on Broadway for eight weeks in 2022. The Guardian evaluated her performance with the following: “Anderson might not have a great talent for singing (her voice is feathery and soft, at times difficult to hear even in the orchestra) or dancing (good necessary), but she has what she needs: an unserious self-awareness and an excellent grasp on winking camp.”
However, The Last Showgirl isn’t a camp film. Instead, it’s a compassionate look at the parts of Vegas that many might dismiss as brash or tacky. Kate Gersten’s screenplay was inspired by her observations of the showgirls of Jubilee!, the “last standing tits and feathered show, as they call them,” as she recounted during the Q&A session. Gersten had a job creating a pattern for the show that would replace some of Jubilee’s performances.
An Important Turning Point: Shelley’s Meeting with Truth
From there, Gersten imagined Shelley, a woman who has been with the musical Le Razzle Dazzle for over 30 years, prancing onstage nightly in wings and rhinestones. Shelley enjoys her position as a den mother to some of the younger dancers (including Kiernan Shipka and Brenda Strong). However, Shelley is also caught in the past, remembering Le Razzle Dazzle as a phenomenon in which showgirls were honored and flown throughout the world. It is now going to be replaced by a “dirty circus,” and Shelley is left stranded in its final weeks.
Anderson portrays Shelley with immaculate gentleness, which occasionally registers as naivete. Le Razzle Dazzle has been Shelley’s life for so long that she doesn’t comprehend how others see it, particularly her estranged daughter (Billie Lourd), who is about to graduate college. However, Shelley isn’t a tragic figure. During a pivotal scene, she confronts a contemptuous casting director, telling him, “I’m 57, and I’m beautiful, you son of a bitch.” The TIFF audience applauded.
During the post-film Q&A session, the rest of the cast was visibly sad for Anderson. Jamie Lee Curtis, who plays Shelley’s spray-tanned cocktail-waitressing pal, was in tears when she addressed her co-star. “I can’t,” she replied.
Lourd, Carrie Fisher’s daughter and Debbie Reynolds’ granddaughter, revealed that playing Shelley’s child was “cathartic” for her.
Lourd’s Emotional Connection: Portraying Shelley as a Reflection of Her Own Family
“It felt like Shelley was my grandma, and I got to be my mom, and I got to comprehend my mom on more profound levels than I ever had, and it was a beautiful experience,” according to her.
“And getting to do it with Pamela was an unbelievable blessing. She is a lovely mother in real life and a fantastic mother to me in this picture.”
Parenthood is an important aspect of Anderson’s journey, as she discusses it in Pamela, a love tale that includes her miscarriage on Barb Wire, making The Last Showgirl another full-circle event for her. That’s just another way the film allows Anderson, who is the mother of adult sons Brandon and Dylan Lee, to disclose aspects of herself that would otherwise be overlooked.
On stage, Anderson mentioned that while reading the screenplay, she thought, “I’m the only one who can do this.” After watching it, you believe her.