She’s been adored, celebrated, despised and criticized. She made a career on her sex appeal and leaned into the breathless bimbo stereotype, but she was also known for her wit, generosity and complexity behind the scenes. She was one of the most talked about pop culture icons of the ’90s, but few people really knew her at all. Anna Nicole Smith died in 2007, but her story, her secrets and her impact are still part of pop culture today.
“I want audiences to understand that Anna Nicole was a complex woman,” director Ursula Macfarlane (Untouchable) tells Tudum. “She was someone who above all else wanted to be a good mother and a free-spirited exuberant woman who wanted to live life on her own terms. But her story is also a cautionary tale about how the desire for the American dream can swallow you up and spit you out, blurring your self-image and make you lose sight of your authentic self.”
Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me
With never-before-seen footage, home movies and interviews, the new documentary attempts to get to the heart of who Anna Nicole Smith was, from her childhood to how she handled the fame she’d always wanted.
“I feel like many previous books and films about Anna Nicole twisted her narrative, so I felt fortunate to have access to a wealth of audio and TV interviews including personal phone calls that involved Anna Nicole,” Macfarlane says. “I really feel like she is telling her own story in her own words. And with the contributions of people in her life who genuinely knew her, I feel that we’ve been able to get closer to her truth.”
Anna Nicole Smith was born Vickie Lynn Hogan, and the documentary features interviews with many people who knew the “real” Anna Nicole, long before she became a household name. One of the most integral interviews in the film is Missy, one of Smith’s oldest friends. Missy’s story offers insight into who Vickie/Anna was, and what she meant to the people who loved her.
Watch Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me on Netflix now.
