Pamela Anderson walked the red carpet at the 2025 Met Gala in May, and honestly? She looked brilliant. No foundation, no mascara, no lipstick. Only her real face, at 58 years old. This is the woman who was ’90s glam. Heavy eyeliner, glossy lips, a bombshell look, covering the whole nine yards.
And now she’s rocking up to all of the hottest Hollywood events with no makeup, and everybody’s like, ‘Why does Pamela Anderson not wear makeup?’
It Started in Paris 2023
September 2023. Paris Fashion Week. Pamela hit The Row, Isabel Marant, Victoria Beckham, and Vivienne Westwood shows completely barefaced. That was the first time people properly noticed.
Before that, she’d occasionally done natural looks. But Paris Fashion Week made it official, this wasn’t a one-off. This was her new thing.
She told Elle magazine in August 2023 that going makeup-free felt “both liberating and slightly rebellious.” Ageing had given her “new perspectives on beauty”. That’s quite something coming from someone who spent decades as a sex symbol. The Baywatch pin-up girl suddenly says, “Actually, I’m done with all that.”
The Real Reason Behind It
Why does Pamela Anderson not wear makeup? She’s never given one dramatic reason. It’s loads of things together.
First, she got sick of the expectation. Spending hours in makeup chairs to look like what everyone expected Pamela Anderson to look like. That gets knackering after 30 years.
Second, ageing changed her perspective. She said in interviews that getting older made her realise she’s “good enough just the way she is.” Proper straightforward, that.
Third, the makeup was never really her anyway. She told The Times, “I didn’t realise it was going to start all of this, all these people really relating to me.”
Turns out loads of women felt the same pressure. Pamela ditching makeup gave them permission to do the same.
Fourth, she co-founded a skincare company called Sonsie with her sons in January 2024. The brand’s about “authenticity” and “mindful beauty”. It’s kind of hypocritical to preach natural beauty whilst caking on foundation, innit?
How Old Is Pamela Anderson Today
She’s 58 as of November 2025. Born May 1, 1967.
This is notable because she’s doing this makeup-free thing at an age when Hollywood usually spends a lot of time trying to make women look younger. Anti-ageing creams, Botox, fillers and whatever it takes to avoid looking 58.
Pamela’s basically said, “Nah, I’m 58 and I look 58 and that’s fine.” Revolutionary for someone whose entire career was built on looking perfect.
Her skincare routine’s dead simple now. Sonsie products mainly include Cleansing Mousse (£26), Super Serum (£52), and Basic Balm (£18). That’s it. The whole bundle costs £88. She washes her face, applies serum and moisturises. No foundation, no concealer, no bronzer.
The whole bundle costs £88. Just clean skin.
The 2025 Award Season Glow-Up
Pamela got nominated for a Golden Globe in January 2025 for “The Last Showgirl”. Her first major acting nomination ever at 57.
She showed up to the Golden Globes ceremony on January 5th wearing Oscar de la Renta and zero makeup. Hair in curtain bangs, diamond jewellery, fresh face.
SAG Awards on February 23rd? White Dior gown, soft curls, and Pamela Anderson with no makeup* again. People on social media lost their minds, calling her “a goddess” and “naturally beautiful.”
Met Gala in May? Custom Tory Burch, baby bangs, skin glowing from Sonsie products. Still no makeup.
The woman’s been nominated for major awards, attending the biggest events in entertainment, and she’s turned up to every single one with her actual face showing.
That takes proper confidence. Most actresses wouldn’t dare.
What She Actually Uses
If you’re wondering how her skin looks that good with no makeup, it’s skincare. Loads of it.
Her Sonsie routine includes cleansing mousse with rose essence. The Super Serum hydrates and plumps. The Basic Balm handles dryness and fine lines.
She’s also doing the basics right. Sleep. Water. Not smoking. Good diet. All the boring stuff that actually works.
At red carpet events, she’ll sometimes use her Sonsie products to get a “soft glow.” But it’s not makeup. It’s just hydrated skin catching the light properly.
Her signature thin eyebrows from the 90s are still there. She hasn’t filled them in or changed them. They’re just part of her face now.
Makeup-Free Celebrities Following Her Lead
Pamela’s not the only one doing this. Alicia Keys stopped wearing makeup years ago. Drew Barrymore goes barefaced loads. Gwyneth Paltrow does minimal makeup. But Pamela’s different because she was THE beauty icon of the 90s. Changing her look sends a bigger message than someone who was never known for glamour doing it.
She’s proving you can be 58, famous, attending major events, and still just show up as yourself. No filters, no makeup, no pretending.
Loads of women online have said seeing Pamela Anderson’s no-makeup looks made them feel better about their own faces. That’s the impact she’s having.
The Style Transformation Too
It’s not just makeup. Her whole style changed. In the 90s, Pamela wore tiny dresses, sky-high heels, and super-tight clothes. That was the aesthetic. Maximum skin, maximum glamour, maximum everything.
2025 Pamela wears elegant gowns, tailored pieces, and classic shapes. She’s working with stylist Bailey Moon now. The looks toy with pin-up design language but make it sophisticated.
Thom Browne midnight gowns. Danielle Frankel emerald pieces. Gabriela Hearst’s off-the-shoulder dresses. All paired with Pandora jewellery because she’s their ambassador and they do sustainably-minded stuff, which fits her eco-work.
The fashion’s gotten better whilst the makeup’s disappeared. That’s intentional. She’s redefining what glamour looks like for her at 58.
What She Said About It
In a recent Substack post called The Open Journal, Pamela wrote, “So much of what I’ve lived…what I’ve created—began as a feeling. A shimmer of something just beyond reach…not quite real, but not only imaginary either.”
That’s how she approaches style now. As a feeling, not a formula.
She told Vogue at the Met Gala that her look was “the best version of me right now.” Not trying to look like 1995 Pamela. Just being 2025, Pamela.
In another interview, she mentioned she’s “jumped off the crazy train”. The pressure to maintain that bombshell image for decades? She’s done with it.
The Last Showgirl Connection
Her film “The Last Showgirl” is about an ageing Vegas showgirl whose show gets cancelled after 30 years. She has to figure out who she is without the glamour and performance.
That’s basically Pamela’s actual life. Spent 30 years being the blonde bombshell. Now she’s figuring out who she is without all that.
The makeup-free choice connects to the film thematically. She’s living what her character’s experiencing, letting go of the image everyone expects and just being herself.
Director Gia Coppola cast Pamela specifically because she understood that journey. The performance is getting proper acclaim, too. SAG nomination, Golden Globe nomination, loads of praise from critics.
Does She Ever Wear Makeup Now?
Occasionally. She’s not totally anti-makeup. She’s anti-expectation.
If a role requires makeup, she’ll wear it. If she feels like wearing it one day, she might. The point is it’s her choice now, not an obligation.
Most public appearances since September 2023? No makeup. Red carpets, fashion shows, film premieres, and award ceremonies all barefaced.
She’s committed to it. This isn’t a phase or a publicity stunt. It’s been over two years of consistently showing up with her actual face.
Why It Matters
Why does Pamela Anderson not wear makeup? It matters because of who’s asking the question.
If a random person stopped wearing makeup, nobody would care. But Pamela Anderson? The 90s sex symbol? The Playboy model? The Baywatch lifeguard?
Her ditching makeup challenges everything her image represented. It says beauty standards are rubbish. It says ageing is normal. It says you don’t need to perform femininity to be valid.
That’s powerful coming from someone who built a career on performing femininity brilliantly.
She’s also proving something else you can change. At 56, 57, and 58, you can completely shift how you present yourself. You’re not stuck being who you were at 25.
The woman who wore tiny red swimsuits on Baywatch can become the woman who wears elegant Dior gowns with no makeup. Both versions are hers. Both are valid.
The Bottom Line
Pamela Anderson quit wearing makeup because she felt like it. She got tired of expectations, and ageing changed her perspective. Because she’s not uncomfortable with her real face anymore.
She is 58 and has been famous since her early 20s, and she is finally doing exactly what she wants. No makeup, simple skincare, elegant fashion, focusing on acting instead of being a symbol. The “Pamela Anderson no-makeup” movement she accidentally started has given loads of women permission to do the same. Stop performing. Stop pretending. Just be yourself.
That’s why she doesn’t wear makeup. Because she doesn’t need to anymore. And she’s brilliant enough that everyone’s paying attention anyway.
