Millie Bobby Brown's Messy Blonde Beehive Is So Pamela-Coded

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 25 February 2025

Millie Bobby Brown took a page from another Hollywood blonde's beauty playbook at the Los Angeles premiere of The Electric State, her new Netflix sci-fi adventure flick. Clad in a dazzling gold cap-sleeved gown from Annie's Ibiza and a matching gold choker, the 21-year-old was clearly channeling iconic sirens of the silver screen on the red carpet. The reference for her hair, however, felt much more direct.

Piled high atop the newlywed's head was a messy bedhead bun that unmistakably paid homage to Pamela Anderson's signature updo from the 1990s. It was a pitch-perfect use case for the platinum blonde hair transformation Brown debuted earlier this month, and hairstylist Pete Burkill took the assignment seriously. He even added a set of faux bangs to replicate Anderson's wispy rounded fringe from that era. The loose, wavy tendrils that framed Brown's face marked a similarly stellar execution of the sexy flyaways that always complemented Pam's effortless top knot.

A photo of Brown posing in a gold cap-sleeved Annie's Ibiza gown and a gold choker with her husband Jake Bongiovi. — Brown poses in a gold cap-sleeved Annie's Ibiza gown and a gold choker with her husband Jake Bongiovi.

According to Anderson herself (and this live demonstration she once performed for British Vogue), the secret to nailing her tousled '90s beehive is using a G-string in lieu of a scrunchie. Understandably, Brown chose not to take that approach here. Instead, Burkhill secured her updo with a series of U-shaped gold hair pins. Bigger than a bobby pin but smaller than a full-size French hair pin, U-pins are perfect for adding modest support to looser styles such as messy buns, French twists, and chignons.

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A photo of Millie Bobby Brown securing her braided blonde bun with a set of gold hair pins. — Millie Bobby Brown secures her braided blonde bun with a set of gold hair pins.

A photo of Brown smoldering in a Pamela Anderson-inspired top knot styled by Pete Burkill. — Brown smolders in a Pamela Anderson-inspired top knot styled by Pete Burkill.

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Pamela Anderson basically invented the concept of sexy bedhead, and generations of It girls—from Sabrina Carpenter to Megan Fox—have been copying the look ever since. But I have to say, Millie Bobby Brown really did look like the spitting image of Pammy in this historic hairstyle. How soon can we start casting the biopic?

Hanna Lustig is a staff writer at Marie Claire, where she gets to gab every day about the topics she holds most dear: fashion, beauty, and celebrity. Hanna’s editorial journey began with formative internships at Elle and InStyle, where she was lucky enough to work for some of the smartest women in media while she was still in college at the University of Tennessee. Hanna then accepted a digital culture reporting fellowship at Insider, where she helped carve out a new beat dedicated to covering influencers. Those experiences later served her well as a staff writer at Glamour, where she developed a knack for spinning quick turnaround celebrity news and trend reporting into juicy feature stories. Some of her greatest hits include an earnest ode to the no-pants trend, this meticulously reported feature exploring the rise of endoscopic facelifts, this snappy take on the Chanel-designed fantasy of Sofia Richie’s wedding, this tribute to WAGs past and present, and this timeline of Katie Holmes’s life and career as told through her denim collection.

Diane Keaton once hung up on Hanna during an interview, but thankfully that mishap did not derail what has otherwise been a deeply fulfilling career writing for and about women. As one of Marie Claire's resident experts on style and culture, her current coverage ranges from exploring TikTok's contrast makeup theory and the return of the boat shoe trend to interviews with costume designers for hit shows like Nobody Wants This and The Penguin. When she’s not at work, Hanna can probably be found listening to pop music, talking to her dog, and gossiping with her best friends. For more of Hanna’s perfect opinions on pop culture, you can follow her on Instagram and X.