Pamela Anderson Says Producers of 2017 Baywatch Movie Were 'Bullying' Her to Do Cameo 'for Free'
Pamela Anderson claims the team behind the 2017 Baywatch movie initially wanted her to do a cameo for free.
The actress, who made a splash as C.J. Parker in the series that debuted in 1989, told Variety that the producers of the film continually called her about participating in the project.
"It was becoming really, really awful. They said they wanted me to do it as a favor," said Anderson, 55. "I said, 'I do favors for animals, not for Paramount.' There was just so much bullying to do it. They wanted me to do it for free, as an homage or something. I said, 'Come on, guys. I mean, really?' "
Eventually, she agreed to do a cameo without any dialogue. She said about that, "I ended up okay. No complaints."
A spokesperson for Paramount did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
Anderson also told Variety that she didn't fare well when the Baywatch television series was licensed to Prime Video. "The producers of Baywatch made a fortune. I just didn't have the representation back then. Or the know-how. You don't realize when you're doing a TV show that it's going to be that popular, so you kind of sign your life away."
RELATED: Pamela Anderson on Overcoming Abuse, Heartbreak and Never Giving Up: 'I Did It Against the Odds'
Emma McIntyre/Getty, Frank Masi/ ? Paramount Pictures /courtesy Everett Collection
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The 2017 Baywatch movie, directed by Seth Gordon, starred Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron, Alexandra Daddario and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Anderson shows up at the very end in slow-motion and is introduced as the team's "new captain," though she doesn't have any lines.
Back in 2016, Johnson teased the appearance by sharing a photo of himself with Anderson on Instagram and writing, "She introduced the world to 'CJ Parker' and became one of the most iconic characters of a generation - for the most successful TV show of all time. A pleasure to welcome (as gorgeous as ever) Pamela Anderson to our #BAYWATCH cast. We couldn't have made this movie without you. Welcome home. Thrilled you had a blast with us!"
The actress recently told PEOPLE that her sons "encouraged me to tell my story" in the form of a new documentary and memoir Love, Pamela, both out on Tuesday.
"[There's] a little bit of anxiety before it comes out because this has been a year, basically, of therapy, going through my life from my first memory to my last memory," she said. "I'm really proud of it. It is something I wrote every word of. I didn't have a collaborator. I didn't have any ghostwriter, nothing."
"It's just one girl's story of how I made it through: a small-town girl going to Los Angeles and just going through all the wild and crazy adventures I did and then circling back and going home," she added.
The process of reflection, she said, uncovered deep emotions. "I had no idea how much anger I had inside, or how therapeutic it was going to be for not just me, but for people around me, like my mother," Anderson said. "It's been a healing process. I'm so happy to share it and hopefully people will be inspired."
