Known to the tabloids as "Paris the Heiress," Hilton made a name for herself as a party-hopping socialite early in the 21st century. She is the great-granddaughter of hotel magnate Conrad Hilton, granddaughter of Barron Hilton, grand-niece of Nicholas Conrad "Nicky" Hilton (the one-time husband of Elizabeth Taylor) and daughter of real estate magnate Rick Hilton. An occasional model, she also has had a few small film roles, most notably appearing as herself in the hi-fashion satire Zoolander (2001, with Ben Stiller). Her younger sister Nicky is also a well-known socialite. In 2003 Hilton starred in a fish-out-of-water "reality" show called The Simple Life. The show was a takeoff on the 1960s sitcom Green Acres, with city girls Hilton and Nicole Richie (daughter of singer Lionel Richie) spending a month on a farm in Altus, Arkansas. A big hit, the show spawned sequels in 2004 and 2005. In 2004 Hilton released a book, Confessions of an Heiress, and in 2005 she appeared in the remake of the 1950s horror film classic House of Wax (also starring Elisha Cuthbert).

Hilton became engaged to Greek shipping heir Paris Latsis in May of 2005; however, Paris and Paris broke off their engagement later that year... By coincidence, the original Green Acres starred Eva Gabor, the sister of Zsa Zsa Gabor, who was married to Paris Hilton's great-grandfather Conrad Hilton... A similar reality-type show of 2003, Rich Girls, starred fashion fortune heiress Ally Hilfiger... Hilton was in the news in November 2003 when a home video of her cavorting with former boyfriend Rick Solomon was published online. Solomon is the estranged husband of actress Shannen Doherty; the tape was reportedly made in 2000, when Solomon was 30 and Hilton was 19... Hilton is a partner in an Orlando nightclub, Club Paris, which opened in 2004... In 2005 Hilton announced that she was cutting Richie from future editions of The Simple Life and replacing her with another friend, Kimberly Stewart, the daughter of rock star Rod Stewart.