10 things that are “so hot” in Paris & Nicole: The Encore

From 2003 to 2007 best friends, rich kids, fashion icons and heiresses, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie terrorised small-town America as they travelled around the country trying out “normal” jobs and lives in their “reality” series The Simple Life. This is the show that skipped so that Keeping Up with the Kardashians (2007-2021) could run – and make Paris’s former assistant Kim a household name. 

Twenty years later, they’re back on the road, begging the talented (and the gullible) to help them realise their latest shenanigan: Sanasa, the opera, in their new reality miniseries, Paris & Nicole: The Encore. Scared of taking the plunge into this insanity? Never fear. We gladly threw ourselves into the chaos, and we’ve brought back 10 reasons it’s worth tuning in.

Watch the trailer for Paris & Nicole: The Encore

Binge Paris & Nicole: The Encore

1: The Narrator

Is that the mischievous voice of Love Island’s Iain Stirling guiding us through the madness as narrator? Psych! It’s a different sexy Scotsman, Alan Cumming, narrating. On AlanCumming.com he reveals: “I narrated the three-part series Paris and Nicole: The Encore, and I had an absolute hoot. What was even funnier is that I recorded this ultimate Beverly Hills show in a tiny studio in Tain in the Highlands of Scotland.”

2: Return to a Simpler time

At the start of Episode 1, Paris and Nicole meet with their producers from The Simple Life for a quick trot down memory lane, and producer Jeff Jenkins reveals that the first morning of shooting in their rented farmhouse in Arkansas, Paris walked out crying and proclaiming, “We’re going home!” And why? Because there were no wardrobes or dressing tables in the room they were sharing, with its single bed. But Paris agreed to stay in exchange for production getting them a rolling rack for their clothes, and a mirror. We also find out that Nicole developed a habit of chewing tobacco off-camera during The Simple Life Season 1.

3: Scenes we thought were made up were real!

Jeff Jenkins reveals that he still has an arrest warrant out in his name from The Single Life Season 1, because Nicole “borrowed” a police car in New Jersey, turned on the siren, and drove off to go buy Paris some nail polish. And Arkansas dairy farmer Danny reveals that he got in trouble with the health department over all that unpasteurised milk that they spilled in his yard while trying to bottle it (for the show, not for sale, since it’s illegal to sell unpasteurised milk in the state).

4: Everyone’s expressions at the idea of opera

If you’ve read about a smile being frozen on someone’s face but never seen it, we beg you to watch the start of Paris & Nicole: The Encore. When Paris and Nicole propose that they turn their novelty song “Sanasa” into an opera, the silence as everyone waits for the joke to be revealed is telling. The cautious “…Amaaaaziiing?” from one producer is sheer perfection. 

5: The peak fashion

Paris and Nicole, 2025, are dressed in rich mom blue jeans, black tops, or chic outfits that give ladies who lunch, discreetly – like the Simkhai Navy Blue Short Sleeve Knit Fringe Mini Dress that Paris wears in Episode 1, the Alice + Olivia Floral Puff Sleeve Mini Dress from Episode 2, or Nicole’s Oscar de la Renta Green Fern Sleeveless Gown from Episode 2. But pour one out for the early 2000s selves as we get to take in all their LA glam during flashbacks to The Simple Life. It’s all oversized sunnies, fluffy, girly core outfits, Juicy Couture velour tracksuits, neon bikinis with bandana headbands or tops, lacy camis, Von Dutch branded tat, denim “belt” mini-skirts, low-rise jeans, and Missoni knits.

6: The return to Arkansas

During The Simple Life Season 1, Paris and Nicole spent a month living on a farm with the Leding family – Albert and Janet and their sons, Justin, Cayne and Braxton – in Altus, Arkansas. In Episode 1, they return to Altus, where a lot of the townsfolk remember their nonsense fondly, despite some visible struggles between manners and honesty, which is a relief in the case of tough dairy boss Danny. 

While you’ll see footage of the Leding family from the original show and they were delighted to catch up with Paris and Nicole, they did not want to appear on camera. Paris and Nicole are told this in the middle of their flight to Arkansas for drama, but it’s likely that the real negotiations happened weeks or months before the trip. The two respected the Ledings’ decision, but we do get to join them for a gleeful shopping trip to buy gifts for the family, because a good guest never arrives empty-handed. 

7: What is Sanasa?

In the words of Nicole Richie, “’Sanasa’ is a song that Paris and I wrote when we were kids. It’s a song, but it’s also a vibe check.” Paris adds, “It’s a feeling of happiness and joy that Nicole and I like to sprinkle around the world.” The song had its origins as a little nonsense form of communication that they used to check in with each other and perk each other up, and to get everyone around them onboard with their playful energy. What are the lyrics? Oh, it’s very easy to remember: Just the word “Sanasa” will do. And if you’re wondering how you turn one word into a whole opera, come along for the journey, starting with Paris and Nicole’s visit to their old school music teacher, the utterly charming Mr Vincent Hauser. 

8: They’re still so unserious

Whether they’re riding their motorised luggage through a Walmart parking lot, bamboozling the world of opera, starting their production planning at a cat cafe, declaring that they want ferrets, rats, spiders and chinchillas on the stage with them, dressing up as giant hotdogs, taking us along on a costume buying expedition with their personal buyer, Tony Ferrera, at Saks Fifth Avenue (because gorgeous gowns are the true heart of opera), or taking over a Hollywood tour bus to lure an audience to come see their opera – with help from pop star Kesha – Paris and Nicole still approach life in the true spirit of absurdity.

9: The montage of failure

If you’re thinking a Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie opera is a non-starter, you’re not alone. Episode 2 does not hold back on the tough first stage of their heroic journey, as this pair of silly geese try to get serious grownups to come along for the ride. Contemporary opera producer Beth Morrison (The Source, Breaking the Waves) gets wrong-footed when she somewhat patronisingly remarks, “When you think about Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton, you don’t automatically go to opera,” and Nicole claps back with a deadpan, “You don’t?” 

But to be fair to everyone who turns them down, including Ivor Novello Award-winning composer and pianist Thomas Adès (a long-time Paris and Nicole fan), a three-week timeline to produce a full opera with a live orchestra and choir is, shall we say, a reach. Or in Thomas’s words, “Aaahoooooowwwww!” (mildly horrified).

10: Is that … Sia?!?!

Yes, it is. Near the end of Episode 2, Paris and Nicole meet with music icon Sia during their talent auditions at the Saban Theatre. First of all, she’s in full Sia regalia with a giant wig and hairbow. By contrast, Paris and Nicole seem restrained and elegant. Sia offers the kind of feedback that other singers dream of, like, “I feel like I had taken a walk through a beautiful forest after eating some psilocybin.” In response, the singer apologises for having dressed as if he’s going to a funeral, and explains that it’s generally appropriate, since opera audiences have one foot in the grave.

Despite all of this, at the end of it all we do get a full-scale production in Episode 3, so come along for a three-episode night of nostalgia. We can guarantee you’ve listened to worse music on your social feed.

Binge Paris & Nicole: The Encore now.