Paris Hilton has opened up on the release of her notorious sex tape

Paris Hilton says the release of her sex tape was like being raped. Photo / Supplied, Netflix

Paris Hilton has spoken about how the release of her sex tape damaged her.

Hilton relives the ordeal in The American Meme for Netflix saying she didn't leave the house for months after the sex tape of her and then-boyfriend Rick Salomons was released.

"It was like being raped. It felt like I've lost part of my soul and been talked about in such cruel and mean ways," she said. "Literally overnight my entire life changed … everyone was making fun of it. I didn't leave my house for, like months."

"I was so embarrassed. I felt like everyone on the street was laughing at me," she says as she breaks down in tears.

Many believe that Hilton was responsible for the leak as a way to become famous as she then went on to star alongside BFF Nicole Richie in The Simple Life for four years until 2007.

Salomons went on to sue the company the released the sex tape as well as the Hilton family, who he says ruined his reputation by saying he exploited Paris.

However, in 2004 he started to distribute the tape himself through his adult film company under the title One Night in Paris. He later paid Hilton $US400,000 ($550,000) and a percentage of the profits from the tape.

A few years before the tape, Salomons was married to Beverly Hills 90210 actress Shannen Doherty but the marriage was annulled after nine months,

He went on to marry Pamela Anderson, twice. Once from 2007-2008 and then again from 2014-2015.