Hulu's Pam & Tommy is one of the buzziest shows of 2022 largely thanks to its star-studded cast of characters and the infamy of the real people they're based on. Centering around the whirlwind nineties romance of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee, the show will specifically focus on the outrageous circumstances and life-changing repercussions surrounding the unlawful and explosive release of the couples' sex tape. As one of the very first videos to go viral in the early days of the internet, the sex tape made a lasting impact on celebrity culture, the public consumption of media, and the burgeoning World Wide Web.
The true story of Pam & Tommy was sensationalized by the media to a degree, but it's incredible how much of their highly publicized, stranger than fiction tale actually happened. Anderson and Lee first met on New Year's Eve in 1994 when Lee approached Anderson and licked her face. She got his number but six weeks later when they were about to go on their first date, Anderson had to fly to Mexico for work. Not to be deterred, Lee followed her to Cancún and called every hotel until he found her. 96 hours later, they were married on the beach. The marriage lasted until 1998, with the entirety of it being plagued by relentless paparazzi and media attention. The pair had two sons, but divorced after Lee went to jail for spousal battery.
Anderson and Lee were blindsided by the deeply violating release of their private tape, which was stolen and distributed by the disgruntled porn-star-turned-electrician, Rand Gauthier. Directed by I, Tonya's Craig Gillespie, Pam & Tommy promises to provide a new, more sympathetic perspective on the notorious celebrity scandal, especially for Anderson, whose career and reputation suffered unjustly in the aftermath. Here is a guide to the cast and characters of Pam & Tommy, and their real life equivalents.
Lily James As Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson is known for her role as C.J. Parker on the hit show Baywatch from 1992-1997. The Canadian-American actress and model first rose to prominence after being featured in Playboy magazine in 1990, after which she went on to set the record for most Playboy covers of any person, the most recent being in 2016. She has long been an activist for animal rights and has remained an iconic public figure. After her divorce from Lee, she was married four more times.
Anderson is being played by Lily James in Pam & Tommy. Though social media initially questioned the casting decision, James' transformation has proven uncanny after she spent over 3 hours in the make-up chair every day before filming. James is a British actress known for her television role of Lady Rose MacClare on Downton Abbey as well as films such as Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Cinderella, and Yesterday.
Sebastian Stan As Tommy Lee
Tommy Lee is the drummer for the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, formed in 1981 and still active today. The band is known for the extravagantly hedonistic, rock'n'roll lifestyle that Lee has always embodied, as well as their elaborate performances. Lee was recently played by Machine Gun Kelly in Netflix's Mötley Crüe film The Dirt. The sex tape did not have the same effect on Lee's career as it did on Anderson's; while she suffered from intense scrutiny and public humiliation, Lee's status as a rock'n'roll god was permanently affirmed. Anderson was his third wife, and Lee is now married to his fourth spouse, internet influencer Brittany Furlan.
Sebastian Stan is playing Tommy Lee in Pam & Tommy. Stan is a Romanian-American actor widely known for his role as Bucky Barnes (A.K.A. The Winter Soldier) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He has also starred in movies such as I, Tonya, The 355, and The Martian. Stan's next appearance after Pam & Tommy will be in Mimi Cave's directorial debut, Fresh.
Seth Rogen As Rand Gauthier
Pam & Tommy's Rand Gauthier was a former porn star working as an electrician on Tommy Lee's Malibu home when Lee refused to pay up, citing shoddy workmanship. Gauthier returned to the house to collect his tools, but was chased off the property by Lee, who pointed a shotgun at him. That was the last straw for Gauthier. He then hatched an elaborate and ridiculous plot months in the making to steal Anderson and Lee's personal safe. Miraculously, he pulled off his heist and was excited to find the private tape made by newlyweds. Using his connections in the porn industry, he circulated the video in bootleg copies. However, due to his incompetence, he ended up owing money to the mob rather than making any profit.
Seth Rogen plays Gauthier in Hulu's adaptation of real events, and he serves as producer for the series as well. Rogen is a versatile Canadian actor, writer, and producer primarily known for his comedic films such as Superbad, Pineapple Express, and This Is The End. His credits as a television producer include The Boys, Preacher, and Black Monday.
Nick Offerman As Milton "Uncle Miltie" Ingley
Milton "Uncle Miltie" Ingley was the owner of a porn studio and an avid opportunist. Ingley was the first person Rand Gauthier approached with his newly-acquired tape, and Ingley set off to sell it for what he was hoping would be millions of dollars. Legitimate porn distributors were not interested, however, fearing legal repercussions, so Ingley took out a loan with Louis "Butchie" Peraino, a crime lord who dealt largely in adult videos. When he didn't make enough money to pay Peraino back, he fled to the Netherlands and only returned to the U.S. after Peraino died. Ingley himself passed away in 2006.
Parks and Recreation's Nick Offerman is playing Uncle Miltie in Pam & Tommy. Offerman is an actor best known for his role as Ron Swanson on Parks and Rec. He has also appeared in The Founder, Colin in Black & White, Fargo, and many other film and television projects. He currently has two TV shows coming up: A League of Their Own and The Last of Us.
Taylor Schilling As Erica Gauthier
Erica Gauthier was a queer porn star and the wife of Rand Gauthier. She is being played in Pam & Tommy by Taylor Schilling, who starred in the TV show Mercy and subsequently reached worldwide fame with her role as Piper Chapman in Netflix's Orange is the New Black, based on the bestselling memoir of the same name by Piper Kerman. Schilling was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for the role.
Fred Hechinger As Seth Warshavsky
By the time he was sued by Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee in 1998, Seth Warshavsky was a 25-year-old early internet entrepreneur with a bad reputation. He owned a porn site called Club Love, which became the first website to legally sell Anderson and Lee's sex tape after they signed away their rights. Over the next few years, hundreds of thousands of copies were sold on VHS, DVD, and CD-ROM. Warshavsky is being played by Fred Hechinger from The Woman in the Window, who was most recently seen as Quinn Mossbacher on HBO's highly acclaimed series The White Lotus.
Andrew Dice Clay As Louis "Butchie" Peraino
Louis "Butchie" Peraino was an adult film producer who belonged to a powerful crime family. He initially supplied Milton Ingley with $50,000 for the purpose of distributing the sex tape, with the agreement that he would collect interest. However, he was never able to get what he was owed after Ingley went into hiding. Peraino died of cancer in 1999. Andrew Dice Clay, a stand-up comedian and actor, is playing "Butchie" in Pam & Tommy. Dice Clay's previous films include A Star is Born and Blue Jasmine.
Spenser Granese As Steve Fasanella
Steve Fasanella is the fake name of one of Milton Ingley's employees at his porn studio. Realizing Ingley wasn't going to cut him into any profit, Fasanella started selling copies of the sex tape out of his trunk for $175 each. The Many Saints of Newark's Spenser Granese, who plays Pam & Tommy's Fasanella, has appeared on shows such as Mayans M.C. and Fear the Walking Dead.
Jason Mantzoukas As Tommy Lee's Penis
Jason Mantzoukas is voicing Tommy Lee's penis in a scene where Lee has a heartfelt talk with his genitalia about Anderson. The scene from Pam & Tommy is directly adapted from Lee's autobiography, Tommyland, in which he details such a conversation. For filming purposes, an animatronic penis with no less than four puppeteers was used. Jason Mantzoukas is a ubiquitous actor with a distinctive voice best known for his comedic roles on shows like The Good Place, Big Mouth, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
Pam & Tommy premieres Feb. 2 on Hulu.