With the series premiere of The Hills: New Beginnings less than a week away, fans of the early 2000s MTV reality series are understandably stoked to see their faves return to the small screen. Though not everyone from The Hills will be making an appearance on the reboot (miss you, LC), much of the original cast is back in action; Heidi and Spencer Pratt, Whitney Port, Justin "Bobby" Brescia, Audrina Patridge, and Stephanie Pratt have all signed on to star on the new show.
In addition to the OGs, fans of The Hills will be introduced to a few new faces, including Brandon Thomas Lee, the son of two Hollywood heavyweights. For many, The Hills: New Beginnings will be an official introduction to the 23-year-old, who has mostly avoided the public eye in his adulthood. It's his first time appearing on reality television, and choosing to do so after what he's been through wasn't easy, but Lee is finally ready to step into his star power.
From his celebrity roots to his celebrity crushes, here's everything you need to know about Brandon Thomas Lee.
He's the firstborn son of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee.
Actress and Playboy model Pamela Anderson's three-year marriage to Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee wasn't all smooth sailing, but their love for each other did result in the birth of their two sons, Brandon and Dylan. Even after their 1998 divorce and subsequent remarriages to other people, things haven't exactly been copacetic for the exes and their family; just last year, news broke of a physical altercation between father and son that sent the rocker to the hospital. Since then, fortunately, things seem to have come to a peaceful resolution.
Growing up, Lee didn't really understand the magnitude of being raised by two of the most famous celebrities of the 90s. He told Interview Magazine a charming story about the moment he realized just who his parents were: "The normal thing to do as a parent is, of course, to make your kids feel like everything is normal and fine. I remember one day asking my mom, 'Hey, why does everybody take photos of us?' And she said, 'Oh, they do that to everybody.' Then, I remember being with one of my friends’ families when I was, like, 10, and we walked into dinner somewhere, and I said to them, 'Hey, why does nobody take photos of you guys?' "
He's a working model and actor.
Due to the public nature of his parents' relationship, Lee originally wanted to stay out of the limelight, but even he couldn't turn a blind eye to an opportunity to work with premium brand Tommy Hilfiger. At age 18, Lee officially began his modeling career, walking in the runway shows of Dolce Gabbana and Phillip Plein. He's even been featured on the covers of GQ Germany and D'Scene Magazine.
In addition to working as a model, Lee is also pursuing acting. He's already booked some gigs, too; in 2018, he played a character in the Netflix teen comedy Sierra Burgess Is A Loser, and he's set to play a lead role in the upcoming BET series Tales alongside his ex-girlfriend Bella Thorne.
He's the youngest member of 'The Hills: New Beginnings'
At 23, Lee is obviously the baby of the group, but that doesn't scare him much. Actually, he prefers it that way—it's one of the main reasons why he finally decided to join the close-knit cast in the first place. “Originally they were thinking about doing it with a younger group of kids, and I knew a lot of those kids and I wasn’t really interested in doing it,” Lee told Women's Wear Daily earlier this year. “And then they were bringing the old cast back; then I was like, ‘OK, this is really cool.’ But I was like, ‘I still wouldn’t really want to do it.’ You know? I never thought in my whole life I’d ever do a reality show."
Get to know more about Lee and reconnect with the rest of your faves when The Hills: New Beginnings airs on MTV on Monday, June 24.
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