Sebastian Stan and Lily James went through amazing transformations to embody the ‘90s icons Tommy Lee and Pamela Anderson for the new Hulu limited series Pam and Tommy. Not only did the actors nail what the celebrities looked like, but they had to fully embrace the characters’ libidos and personalities. It turns out, Stan had a little extra help in the costuming department that viewers — and even James — didn’t get to see, as Stan recently let fans in on the wild addition to his wardrobe that helped him “feel like a man.”
Tommy Lee partied hard back in the day as the drummer for Mötley Crüe, and if you’re going to portray a rock star in a series about a sex tape, you’ve got to really feel like a rock star. What better way to do that than a pair of steel balls? Sebastian Stan revealed the costume addition on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, saying his acting coach actually gave him the idea.
So Larry Moss, my acting coach, happened to have taught Helen Hunt for As Good As It Gets. He told Helen Hunt, 'You need to put nickels in your shoes when you're acting so you know what it's like to stand up on your feet for 12 hours.' And I said, 'Larry, I need something myself.’ So, we came up with this idea. For the duration of the shoot — you know, Tommy was a big man — I wore these bare steel balls.
Well, I mean, if it worked for Helen Hunt … Sebastian Stan said Tommy Lee was “carrying some luggage around,” and, much like the tattoos he sported, the prop balls helped him get into character — a character who regularly walked around in a Speedo.
Lily James apparently had no idea about Sebastian Stan’s steel wardrobe addition, and her jaw dropped as Stan showed the balls to Jimmy Kimmel. She laughed and said she was glad she didn’t know about that on set. Stan defended the choice, saying it really helped to have “a little weight when you walk into a room.”
I know it sounds insane to you, but trust me, I was like, ‘I need to kind of feel like a man.’ [Laughs.]
Surely Lily James can understand, as she recreated Pam Anderson's classic Baywatch look in a blonde wig with bleached eyebrows and fake teeth — not to mention she had to change her accent. They acknowledged that all of those things helped them become their characters and get past any potential awkwardness in their more intimate scenes.
Pam and Tommy tells the story of Pam Anderson and Tommy Lee’s whirlwind romance and how they were victimized by the theft and subsequent release of a private sex tape that they’d filmed on their honeymoon.
Showrunner D.V. DeVincentis said people have forgotten or don’t know that Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee were victims of a terrible crime that affected their careers and their relationship, making it an important story to tell. That same reason has kept at least one of Anderson’s friends from being involved in the project, as Courtney Love spoke out about how her friend’s life was destroyed in the aftermath of the sex tape’s distribution.
Pam and Tommy is available now to stream on Hulu, and alongside Sebastian Stan and Lily James, stars a mullet-sporting Seth Rogan — who developed the series with partner Evan Goldberg — as disgruntled contractor Rand Gauthier, who stole the tape from the famous couple’s house. Be sure to check out some more of the best shows on Hulu, as well as our 2022 TV Schedule to see what series are premiering soon.
