Pamela Anderson Is the Marilyn Monroe 'of Our Time,' SaysLast ShowgirlDirector: 'Hungry to Show Her Talents'

Mar. 15, 2025

From L: Pamela Anderson inThe Last Showgirl(2024); Marilyn Monroe circa 1954.Photo:Zoey Grossman; Hulton Archive/Getty

Zoey Grossman; Hulton Archive/Getty

Pamela Andersonhas shades of another Hollywood “it girl” that came before her, according toThe Last ShowgirldirectorGia Coppola.

“She is theMarilyn [Monroe]of our time,' " Coppola said of Anderson, 57, in a conversation withEntertainment Weeklypublished Friday, Nov. 8, revealing that she came to the realization while watching the star’s 2023 documentaryPamela, a Love Story.

Coppola, 37, went on to praise Anderson as “very intelligent” and an “interesting human being” while noting her “art background, and I could see she was a woman that was really craving toexpress herself as an actresscreatively.”

“I saw a lot of parallels with [her character] Shelly, but I also saw this was a person that was really hungry to show her talents,” the director added, recalling of considering who would play Shelly, “It was all these actresses from the past I would dream about: ‘Wouldn’t this be an interesting role for Marilyn Monroe?’ "

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Pamela Anderson inThe Last Showgirl(2024).Roadside Attractions/Courtesy Everett Collection

Roadside Attractions/Courtesy Everett Collection

It was “the first time I had seen myself up on a big screen doing a movie,” Anderson toldEW,calling the experience of seeingThe Last Showgirlin a theater “so hard.”

But even so, “I feel like this is what I’m meant to do, so I hope to get to do more,” she added. “I feel like this isjust the beginning of my career.”

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Pamela Anderson at the premiere ofThe Last Showgirlduring the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 6, 2024.Kayla Oaddams/Getty

Kayla Oaddams/Getty

During a post-screening Q&A atThe Last Showgirl’s premiere at theToronto International Film Festivalback in September, Anderson said she believes she has “been getting ready my whole life for this role.”

TheBaywatchalum jokingly said it was the first time she’d ever been given a script that was “coherent,” and she realized she was the"only one who could do this.”

“I’ve never felt that strongly about something,” Anderson continued. “So after that, I thought, ‘You know what, I have nothing to lose. I’m just gonna do it, just be it.’ "

The Last Showgirlis in select theaters Dec. 13, with a wider release on Jan. 10.

source: people.com