Rob Mills says no-one forgets his sexual fling with Paris Hilton

HE was 21 and she was rich and famous. But no one’s letting Rob Mills forget his brief fling with heiress Paris Hilton and he wants to put it to bed.

Nice tips ... Rob Mills squired heiress Paris Hilton at the Melbourne Cup in 2003. Picture: Manuela Cifra

ROB Mills wants to put his one night in Paris to bed for once and for all.

Mills, the Australian Idol and musical theatre star, is kicking off his one man cabaret show, Rob Mills Is Surprisingly Good, this week.

A humorous and emotional look at his life and career, Mills knew people were still interested in his brief liaison with hotel heiress, reality TV star and independent filmmaker Paris Hilton in 2003 due to the fact he is still asked about it regularly 12 years later.

“There wouldn’t be many days that goes by without someone asking me about Paris Hilton,” Mills said.

“It’s odd. It always comes up. I find it a little offensive for me, offensive for my girlfriend and offensive for Paris even.

“No one wants to be talked about as though they were a ‘thing’. I talk in the cabaret show about how I wonder what it really is about that situation that people want to know about. Everyone has sex. Everyone does it. You’ve all seen the (Paris Hilton) sex tape. It’s pretty much that. What a scandal!

Checking into Hilton ... Rob Mills is a Paris whisperer. Picture: Supplied

“For me, at that time, she was just another girl I spent time with. I was collecting numbers. I was 21 and had been on TV and it wasn’t a terrible life, let’s just say.”

Mills said most men would pat him on the back for the hook up but he’s ready to leave the incident behind him.

“My girlfriend is an extreme feminist, I’m attracted to very strong female role models. I don’t feel that comfortable talking about it.

“So I thought ‘Let’s just get it out in the open, I’ll talk about it in the show and then can we just leave it?’ That would be great.

“I want to get on my with my life and maybe marry the woman I’m in love with, who’s an actor, a director, a choreographer and a smart, savvy, feminist human. We’ll see if people let me have that!”

Regret ... Mills wants everyone to forget his one night stand with Paris Hilton. Picture: Supplied

Mills’ girlfriend Ellen Simpson has choreographed a production of Miss Saigon that opens on the Gold Coast this week and plays Renee Geyer in Channel 7’s Molly Meldrum miniseries.

Mills will be seen in Channel 7’s Peter Allen miniseries, playing the star’s early musical partner Chris Bell.

The actor said he co-wrote the cabaret show (with Natalie Garonzi) rather than wait for another job to come up.

“When we were doing Legally Blonde together, Cameron Daddo told me: ‘Don’t wait for permission’, and that stuck with me. We’re in the entertainment industry. Jobs are rare. I’m lucky to have done Grease, Legally Blonde and Wicked but that’s three jobs in five years. There’s other actors who would have done 10 or 15 different roles in that time. Or musicians who would have done two or three albums.

“I didn’t want to sit and wait for the next job, I wanted to create something of my own.”

Mills said the title of his show is deliberately tongue in cheek.

True love ... Rob Mills has found the love of his life in actor Ellen Simpson. Picture: Adam Armstrong

“Every review I get says, ‘Oh, he’s surprisingly good, he’s actually alright’. And I get it, there’s preconceived ideas of who I am from those 15 minutes of fame on Idol. And I’ve done the math, I was on there for six weeks, if you add up the songs and the behind-the-scenes footage, it’s literally 15 minutes.

“I can see why people have that idea of who I was but it’s not who I am now. I was 21 when I did that show, I was a kid who’d never been on a plane before that. I was pretty hyped up to be let off the lead.”

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Rob Mills is Surprisingly Good:

Mackay: Entertainment Centre, Friday June 12

Brisbane: Powerhouse, Sunday June 14

Sydney: Hayes Theatre Company, June 23, 24

Melbourne: Caberet Festival — The Alex Theatre St Kilda, June 25, 26, 27

Noosa: Berardos, July 23

Tickets here

Cat power ... Rob Mills is moving into cabaret mode. Picture: Chris Pavlich