It used to be so easy to make fun of Pamela Anderson: the blonde who was perceived as a big-boobed bimbo who had a sex tape to boot. But now, Anderson is in a new phase of her career – and if you can’t take her seriously now, then that’s on you. Anderson has completely shifted her public persona, ditching makeup and landing a Golden Globe nomination. Helping her navigate this journey is her son, Brandon Thomas Lee, who she had with ex Tommy Lee.

Speaking with Variety, Lee said that Pamela Anderson’s resurgence has been building for years now, “The documentary [Netflix’s Pamela, a Love Story] and book gave Pamela the opportunity to own her narrative and really present that story to the world. When we had the opportunity to do that, it was something in the back of my head that I was always thinking about the goal of those projects — it wasn’t to bring opportunities, the goal of those projects was to get people to understand and get to know Pamela because there was so much misconception around her and who she was.”

Lee also said that he felt he owed Pamela Anderson a lot for all she did for him growing up; thus, he took on the role as something of a guardian, using the position of producer (on the aforementioned doc and The Last Showgirl) as a way to help. “My personal mission was to give my mom the opportunities she gave me as a child. She would do anything for me. She showed up and was a very good mother. And at a certain point in your life, you become a protector…It would have been very easy for us, or for me, to come up with some sort of scheme to make money off the Pamela that people thought they knew. It would have meant she wasn’t going to be happy, but she would have been making money.”

With her first Golden Globe nomination – in the category of Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama for The Last Showgirl (read our review here) – Pamela Anderson will no doubt earn even more respect than she has been getting over the past few years. It’s no easy feat to grow out of a perpetuated persona, so good on Anderson (and her son) for pushing forward and changing not only her own image but the one people had of her.

What do you hope to see in the future for Pamela Anderson?

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