The problem with Pam & Tommy: Canadian actress Pamela Anderson is again exposed without consent

The new series Pam & Tommy is many things. 

It's a bawdy look at the whirlwind romance of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee played by Lily James and Sebastian Stan, and an off-the-wall true-life crime caper involving a disgruntled carpenter, an adult movie producer and mobsters. 

Look past the salacious details and wild tonal shifts and what you find is a surprisingly sensitive portrait of the celebrity couple who were burglarized and had their most personal moments become the first case of viral internet fame. 

Airing on Disney+ in Canada, Pam & Tommy purports to tell the real story of how the couple's famous sex tape made its way to the web in late 1995, exploding at the worst possible time for Anderson's career. But for all the real-life details, the eight-part series lacks one critical ingredient: the real Pamela Anderson's participation. 

Which raises the question, who is it for?

Senior culture reporter at Vox Constance Grady says millennials are taking a fresh look at the culture they grew up with, from Britney Spears to Tara Reid to Pamela Anderson.

"All these women who the culture sort of fetishized but also kind of despised at the same time," she said. 

The makers of Pam & Tommy say their aim is to correct that narrative.

Craig Gillespie is a producer and directed the first three episodes of the series. Speaking with CBC News, he called it an opportunity to show the real story of what happened and the role the media played.  

"We all have these preconceived notions of what the [sex] tape was," he said. "We consumed it; we judged it. Then you get to come in … and be surprised."  

While much of the public assumed Lee and Anderson profited off the release of the tape, the series chronicles how the video was stolen by Rand Gauthier, a disgruntled carpenter who had been hired to work on Tommy Lee's estate. 

In the film, Gauthier is played by mullet-haired Seth Rogen as a sad sack who masterminds a burglary for revenge. 

Besides the comedic aspects, Gillespie says, he wanted to show how Canadian actor Anderson was more than the pretty blond from Baywatch. 

"To be as successful and iconic as she is, you don't fall into that. It takes a strong work ethic and tenacity," he said.