Marvel star Sebastian Stan has traded in Bucky Barnes' robotic arm for a pair of drum sticks, as he currently plays Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee in the Hulu series Pam & Tommy. Based on the true story of when Pamela Anderson and Lee’s private sex tape went public, the imitation-of-life series has a decent amount of nudity and ridiculous scenes, with the two sometimes coming together to create R-rated absurdity. Now Stan is opening up about filming the streaming series' particularly infamous talking penis scene and it’s a lot more awkward than one would think.
In just the second episode of the Hulu series, Tommy has a “heartfelt” talk with his publicly envied and appreciated penis that served as a legitimately motivational sequence, while also being equally surprising, hilarious, and awkward. (Kudos to Brooklyn Nine-Nine vet and podcast great Jason Mantzoukas for the vocal work.) Sebastian Stan was the latest victim...er, guest...to partake in the popular Hot Ones series, where he talked to host Sean Evans about the NSFW scene, which required the use of animatronics and four puppeteers, and didn't sound like that much fun. In his words:
It was an event. I mean, there were cables and wires and men pressing buttons and directing. It was probably just about as awkward as it can get. Kind of like a fight scene in the sense that it all needed to be choreographed and stuff. That scene obviously is very sweet, because it’s really about a man falling in love with a woman. So he’s in a confessional state of mind.
Even though the Hulu series shows Tommy falling in love with Pamela Anderson in more traditional ways, it’s still a little weird to see him talking to his penis about it all. I can only imagine how it was like choreographing that bit and how awkward it really was for him to act out in his state of undress, even presuming he wasn't wearing the steel balls he donned in other scenes. But at least it was worth the effort, given how quickly the moment became a highlight.
Meanwhile, animatronic penises were not the only prosthetic body parts that were crafted for Pam & Tommy. Recently, the Hulu series' Jason Collins, head of the make-up department, revealed that they had to create 50 pairs of gel-filled silicone breasts, with a different pair apparently being utilized each day that star Lily James filmed. Some days, you're wondering what your next job will be, and other days, you're creating fake genitals for two Hollywood A-listers.
However, not everyone is on board with the show or how it has handled the sensitive subject matter. Pamela Anderson herself isn't exactly a fan of the series, as will reportedly never watch it, but showrunner D.V. DeVincentis revealed that his team tried to reach out to the model and activist to get her input and opinion on Pam & Tommy, but never heard a response. It’s not so surprising, considering Anderson did go through what may well be the roughest patch of her life during that time, so even if the streaming series is wholly sympathetic to her plights, it's easy to get why she would want to stay away. Though I do wonder if anyone will show her Tommy's head-to-head convo on its own one day.
There are four episodes left to go for Pam and Tommy, so things are presumably only going to get more intense for the characters. Whether or not those episodes will include another appearance from an animatronic penis is unknown, though it does make me wonder just how many takes it took to get it exactly right, and if there are lots of outtakes that will be unveiled at a later date. At least Sebastian Stan is ready for any awkward situation, regardless of which of his body parts is talking back to him.
New episodes of Pam & Tommy drop every week on Wednesdays on Hulu. Be sure to check out some of Hulu’s best originals to add to your list!
