The treasure: Paris Hilton achieved a miracle: she managed to make it out of the body-shaming, sex-negative, misogynist 2000s not just alive but thriving.
After enduring hellish boarding schools as a teen, she emerged as an advocate against institutional abuse, testifying before legislatures and backing anti-abuse bills and, this month, she teamed up with congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to pass the DEFIANCE Act (Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits) against non-consensual deep-fake pornography.
The mother of two also continues to follow her passion for music, releasing “Infinite Icon” in 2024.
The new thing: Hilton gives a peek into this musical journey with new documentary “Infinite Icon: A Visual Memoir,” which explores her challenging 2000s-era past as well as documenting the past five years as she returned to making music and ventured into performing.
The details: “Infinite Icon: A Visual Memoir” is in theatres Friday.
In the film, you mention feeling nervous due to how judgmental people can be about you and your music career. What are your go-to strategies for ignoring the haters and pursuing your passions regardless?
I’ve always been a very naturally shy person and, with everything I went through in the 2000s, it was so traumatizing; it’s something that has always affected me. But I got amazing advice when I performed with Miley (Cyrus) and Sia. Right before we were going onstage, I was freaking out; I was so nervous and they both were like, “Paris, like it’s so normal: we do this every day of our lives and we get nervous. We get shy. It just means you care so much. Because if you didn’t care, you would not feel this way.” And they’re so right because as soon as I got onstage and I feel the love from the crowd and see everyone so happy, all of the nervousness just goes away, so now I don’t get nervous anymore.
What was the hardest part about making this documentary?
It’s always difficult to have to relive things in your past or painful experiences. I’ve been through so much in my life and so many of the things I just wanted to forget because I just hated even thinking about them. But I thought it was also important to tell that story because there’s so many other people who have been through similar situations. And I want people who watch this to feel that they’re not alone and let them know to not let the people who hurt you, or your past, define who you are today. And it’s always possible to reclaim your story and reclaim your happiness. And I hope by people watching this film, they could find that strength in themselves as well.
What was the most surprising part about making this documentary for you?
Just watching it, I feel like I never gave myself the credit for, like, how much I survived going through what I did, especially in the early 2000s, just how the media was so vicious and cruel to myself and to other young women, and how painful that was to go through after as a teenager already going through so much abuse in these schools, and then to become an adult and then have the whole world judging me and picking me apart. I was just a young woman trying to live my life and was constantly being treated in such a horrible way. My life (has) just moved so fast where I’d never really had that time to actually reflect on what I actually had to go through.
What is the worst piece of advice you ever got?
My mom told me not to do “The Simple Life.” When I got that offer, she was like, “Paris, this is a bad idea — I don’t think you should do it.” But then the night after it aired, she called me and she was like, “Paris, I’m never wrong about anything, but I was wrong about this.”
What is the skill people may be surprised to discover you have?
I’m actually a huge tomboy. And I’m a daredevil. I love jumping out of planes, like skydiving is one of my favourite things to do. I was on my high school ice hockey team, so I’m an amazing ice hockey player, which a lot of people don’t know.
What makes you happiest these days?
My babies, my family, just being at home with them. They are my life and my world. And being onstage and performing and just living out my dreams because, since I was a little girl, I always wanted to be a pop star, so to be able to do that now and bring so much happiness to people and just feel that love in the room is so indescribable and it’s very healing to my inner child.
What gives you hope these days?
All my advocacy work that I’m doing, because when I was a little girl locked in these places and just going through just such scary abuse, it was unimaginable (to me that I could) now be the hero I needed when I was a little girl, and to be on the steps of Capitol Hill, and then going and testifying in Congress against these places, and changing 15 state laws and passing two federal bills to protect children and still continuing that work. But the fact that I’m able to do that just shows the power of being vulnerable and telling your truth … and I also hope that inspires others that you can do the same thing, (to) use your voice and make a difference in other people’s lives.
In the 1998 Japanese film “After Life,” when people die, they get to pick a happy scene from their life that they get to live in forever. What scene from your life would you pick to live in forever?
I was just here at home with my babies and my puppies and in my tracksuit with my socks on, chilling and doing art, and just doing what we do on the weekends when I have my days off and I’m with my family: my kids are cooking and eating and drawing and painting, and running in the backyard with the doggies. That’s my favourite thing to do.
