Everything Pamela Anderson Has Said About Going Makeup Free After Years of Bombshell Beauty

The 'Baywatch' alum is inspiring women by boldly shaking up beauty standards

Pamela Anderson's surprise decision to go makeup-free at Paris Fashion Week has earned her a chorus of praise — and made her an inspiring example for many.

The Baywatch alum, 56, made the front row rounds in Paris with a completely bare face, prompting countless fans and even fellow celebrities to cheer her on and shout her out for setting such a powerful example.

Anderson's choice to bust beauty norms and embrace a natural look is especially surprising considering she first rose to fame as a Playboy model known for her over-the-top, blonde-bombshell looks. However, as Anderson has explained in various interviews, she's been on a journey of self-evolution and self-acceptance that has led her to place where she's the "happiest I've ever been in my own skin."

And with that has come the desire to ditch the makeup and let the beauty that "comes from within" shine.

Here is everything Anderson has said about her makeup-free moment that's sparked praise and inspiration.

She described her decision to embrace a fresh-faced, natural look as “freeing, and fun, and a little rebellious too"

After the January 2023 release of her new memoir, Love, Pamela, the actress began making appearances with a more stripped-down makeup look, a marked departure from the big-haired, blonde bombshell image that made her a pop culture icon.

She told Elle in August that she spent much of her early career having no input in terms of her makeup and styling, but when her longtime makeup artist, Alexis Vogel, died from breast cancer in 2019, it motivated her to let go of her glam routine.

"She was the best," she said of Vogel. "And since then, I just felt, without Alexis, it’s just better for me not to wear makeup."

She said the decision has been “freeing, and fun, and a little rebellious too."

"Because I did notice that there were all these people doing big makeup looks, and it’s just like me to go against the grain and do the opposite of what everyone’s doing,” she added.

She admitted that she still has moments when she looks in the mirror and is surprised to see the signs of aging, but that hasn't swayed her from her purpose. "I’m kind of laughing at myself when I look at the mirror. I go, ‘Wow, this is really...what’s happening to me?’ It’s a journey," she told the magazine. "But I feel rooted for. I feel good. I’m in a good place.”

She feels the "happiest I’ve ever been in my own skin" since embracing a bare-faced look

In a video for Vogue France in October, filmed as she was getting ready to attend the Vivienne Westwood show at Paris Fashion Week, Anderson explained how the idea suddenly struck her to forgo her usual glam.

"I don't know, something just kind of came over me and I was dressing in these beautiful clothes and I thought, 'I don't want to compete with the clothes,'" the Alone at Night star said. "I'm not trying to be the prettiest girl in the room. I feel like it's just freedom. It's a release."

She went on to share that she was motivated by the fact that she's the "happiest I've ever been in my own skin," noting the old adage that "beauty comes from within." Anderson also said she had finally come to understand the wisdom her mother gave her when she was a young girl.

"My mom always told me, 'At some point in your life you're not gonna want to wear makeup on your skin.' And she's right," she said.

She said it's important to "challenge" beauty norms

The actress told Vogue France she believes women need to take a stand and push back against the pressures of unattainable beauty standards.

"You kind of have to challenge beauty sometimes," she said. "You know, if we all chase youth, or we're chasing our idea of what fashion magazines and everything, we're only gonna be disappointed or maybe a little bit sad. So I feel like this is it."

She said she feels a particular responsibility, as a celebrity growing older in the public eye, to lead by example.

"I feel as a woman and a woman of my age, and a woman in the public eye... it's also your job to be a model of everything," she shared. "Just all sorts of choices. So I am just being me, kind of who I am, in all these great clothes running around Paris."

She believes beauty is "all about self-acceptance"

After making such a bold statement at Paris Fashion Week, Anderson was asked in an interview with Sidia the Brand to share her biggest beauty secret.

“These days? Don’t do anything,” she answered, referring to all the cosmetics, treatments and procedures some women feel pressured to use.

“Wake up, whatever is happening is just happening. It’s all about self-acceptance,” she continued. “This is the chapter of my life I’m trying to embrace now.”

However, she did acknowledge that coming to place of confident self-acceptance does not happen overnight; rather, it's a journey.

“Sometimes it’s challenging and you just have to understand that you are good enough and that you are beautiful,” she noted, adding: “Chasing youth is just futile."

Anderson said embracing the aging process and a natural look has been liberating for her. "Since I’ve really kind of just walked out the door as me, I feel like a relief, just a weight off my shoulders,” she explained. “And I actually like it better. I’m dressing for me now and not for everybody else.”

She admits that her over-the-top glam may have been a "defense mechanism" for her in the past

In her August interview with Elle, Anderson said her '90s bombshell look — which she described as "wild and uninhibited" — almost served as a mask that she could hide behind. “I don’t know if it was a defense mechanism or what,” she said.

The Barb Wire star said her beauty aesthetic at the time included “makeup from the day before, and a little bit of glitter from two nights before. The stuff that never leaves you!"

"I’d be volunteering at the kids’ school, and I would catch myself in a reflection, and I’d have glitter all over my face," she recalled.

Her inspiring example is earning her praise from fellow celebrities

In an entertainment industry driven by image, a growing number of stars have spoken out and shared their admiration for Anderson's makeup-free stance.

Jamie Lee Curtis declared, "THE NATURAL BEAUTY REVOLUTION HAS OFFICIALLY BEGUN!" as she posted a photo on Instagram of a makeup-free Anderson attending the Isabel Marant show at Paris Fashion Week.

"@pamelaanderson in the middle of fashion week with so many pressures and postures, and this woman showed up and claimed her seat at the table with nothing on her face,” the Halloween star, 64, wrote. “I am so impressed and floored by this act of courage and rebellion.”

Commenting on Curtis' post, Selma Blair called it a display of "beautiful self-assuredness," while Chelsea Handler wrote, "That's pretty iconic."

Scarlett Johansson also praised Anderson's makeup-free moment, saying she was impressed by the former model's "powerful" statement.

"I think it is definitely different to see somebody that's in the public eye, a woman in the public eye, go to a fashion show or big event with no makeup on. It's just very different from what we're used to," Johansson, 38, told PopSugar.

"It's a powerful message for women to see that, whether they follow suit or whatever the effect is, in the zeitgeist. It's powerful for women to see other women rejecting standard beauty norms," the Asteroid City star continued.

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