When you think about popular shows from the ‘90s, Baywatch is a big one that comes to mind. In the show, we saw the professional and personal daily obstacles of lifeguards who were known for running to the rescue in slo-mo. Now, Carmen Electra, who was part of the cast of Baywatch during its eighth season, is joking about why the action-drama series was so groundbreaking at the time and how it involves equality for everyone being “pants off.”
Like other life-saving shows about doctors, firefighters, or cops, Baywatch follows a cast of characters doing important work. However, it was also prominent because the cast was incredibly good-looking and always wearing swimsuits. Carmen Electra, who played Lani McKenzie, opened up about all of this while talking to People about why the ‘90s series was so groundbreaking at the time:
People were watching it for the sexy bodies, the slo-mo run. These guys were handsome, ripped, and they were in Speedos. It just wasn’t about us girls. We’d say, ‘See? Everything ’s equal around here. Pants off!’
Electra may be joking around, but she's got a point, because the show didn't just feature pretty women in swimsuits. Men had just as much sex appeal, and they also had to wear swimwear most of the time. So, viewers got to watch everyone with "sexy bodies" doing the "slo-mo run," not just the girls.
Along with the incredibly good-looking cast and those red swimsuits, another thing about Baywatch that the stars and creators couldn’t ignore was the campy storylines. Throughout the series, lifeguards were heroes in situations way beyond saving someone from drowning. There were earthquakes, shark attacks, volcanoes, and even an octopus stealing surfboards.
David Hasselhoff admitted in the new Hulu docuseries After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun what the secret was to getting around those campy episode plots:
The show really wasn’t good. But we made it good because we had passion.
It’s true the passion paid off. Just like show co-creator Douglas Schwartz said, every time The Tonight Show with Jay Leno made fun of Baywatch, the ratings went up. According to the Guinness World Records, syndication made the lifeguard series the most-watched show worldwide in 1996 with an estimated weekly audience of more than 1.1 billion viewers. Clearly, audiences adored the show for its campy storylines, red swimsuits and more.
With Baywatch being one of the most-watched shows in the ‘90s, now I’m curious what the numbers will be like for the reboot series that’s in the works. So far, we know the show will be run and written by Fox and Lara Olsen, and they produced Reba and 90210.
Carmen Electra also said she'd be interested in coming back to wear the iconic swimwear under the condition that she doesn't have to be in the freezing cold water so much. Seeing as the former Playboy model can still pull off the Baywatch red, and that she shares a good rapport with the OG cast during reunions, she looks more than ready to make her way back to the groundbreaking beach.
To see what the actress was talking about, you can watch eleven seasons of Baywatch with an Amazon Prime subscription. Also make sure to catch the brand-new docuseries After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun with a Hulu subscription.
