A celebrity sex tape is typically an amateur pornographic video recording involving one or more famous people which has, intentionally or unintentionally, been made available publicly. Such videos have often been released without the consent of their subjects and have damaged (or enhanced) celebrities' careers. In 1988, for example, a sex tape caused significant damage to Rob Lowe's career. [1]
The surfacing of sex tapes has become so common that some are "leaked" as a marketing tool to advance or establish a media career. [1] A celebrity can fight the release in court to maintain deniability while still enjoying the career benefits. Alternatively, a celebrity may take the route of openly releasing the tape and benefitting directly from royalties as well as indirectly from the publicity. The public acceptance of celebrities with sex tapes is speculated by Joe Levy, executive editor of Rolling Stone , to be due to the easy availability of pornography, as well as couples more commonly making their own tapes due to the prevalence of video cameras. [1]
The following is an alphabetical list by surname of individuals known to have their sexual acts recorded and distributed:
Ginger Lynn Allen is an American pornographic actress and model who was a premier adult-entertainment star of the 1980s. She also had minor roles in various B movies. Adult Video News ranked her at #7 of the 50 greatest porn stars of all time in 2002. After ending her pornography career, she began using her full name and found work in a variety of B-movies. She returned to the adult industry and appeared in pornographic movies throughout the 2000s. Allen is a member of AVN, NightMoves, XRCO, and Urban X Halls of Fame.
Jenna Marie Massoli, known professionally as Jenna Jameson, is an American businesswoman, writer, television personality, and former pornographic film actress. She has been named the world's most famous adult entertainment performer and "The Queen of Porn".
Shannon Michelle Wilsey, better known by her stage name Savannah, was an American pornographic film actress who starred in over 100 videos during her career. One of the most prominent adult industry models of her time, she achieved notoriety within her short (1990–1994) career due to her onscreen presence and personal life. In January 2002, AVN ranked her at #19 on its list of the top 50 porn stars of all time.
Christy Canyon is a pornographic actress and American radio personality. She is a member of both the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame and a recipient of the Free Speech Coalition Lifetime Achievement Award.
Nguyễn Thị Thiên Thanh, better known by her stage name Tila Tequila, is an American model, singer, television and social media personality. She has also used the names Tila Nguyen, Miss Tila and Tornado Thien. Born in Singapore and raised in Houston, Texas, Tequila moved to Los Angeles in 2001 to pursue her modeling career. She first gained recognition for her active presence on social networking websites. After being featured as a model in numerous men's magazines, she made her reality television debut on the VH1 show Surviving Nugent (2003). After becoming the most popular person on Myspace, Tequila was offered the opportunity to star in her own reality television series. Her bisexuality-themed dating show, A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila (2007), aired for two seasons and became MTV's second-highest-rated series premiere of that year.
Sunrise Adams is an American author and pornographic actress.
The so-called Iranian sex tape scandal involves the public outcry and judicial proceedings against Zahra Amir Ebrahimi, an actress who appeared in the soap opera Nargess, and an associate producer, accused of appearing together in an explicit sex tape, allegedly filmed for private consumption with a camcorder, a serious crime under Iranian law. The actress denied that the tape was of her, while the film producer reportedly has claimed that it is him. The scandal virtually ended the actress's career; she was banned from Iranian films in 2006.
Monique Alexander is an American pornographic actress, nude model, and 2017 AVN Hall of Fame inductee. Alexander has also been an advocate for free speech and sex education, and has appeared on Fox News and in a debate at Yale University addressing these topics. In addition to her pornographic work, she has had several cameo appearances in mainstream films and television shows.
YouPorn is a free pornographic video-sharing website owned by Aylo that launched in August 2006.
Lisa Ann Corpora, known professionally as Lisa Ann, is a retired American pornographic film actress and radio personality. She has also worked as a director and talent agent. She parodied former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin in six adult films and a music video. She is a member of the AVN, XRCO, and Urban X Halls of Fame. Ann has been described as one of the most popular and successful pornographic actresses in the world.
Tanya Tate is an English glamour model, writer, international cosplayer, and pornographic actress. In 2023, she was inducted into the XRCO Hall of Fame.
Farrah Abraham is an American reality television personality, singer, pornographic actress, and writer. Born and raised in Council Bluffs, Iowa, she received public attention after being cast in the reality television series 16 and Pregnant in 2009, which documented the pregnancies and first months of motherhood for several young women. Later that year, she was cast in the spin-off series Teen Mom, and appeared in each of its four seasons until its conclusion in 2012. That August, she released her debut studio album and first memoir, both of which were titled My Teenage Dream Ended. The book made it onto The New York Times bestseller list.
Crissy Moran is a Christian public speaker who is a former American pornographic actress. She began working in adult entertainment in 1999, and between 2001 and 2006 had performed in over 50 adult films. In 2006, Moran became a devout Christian and quit working in the adult industry. After retirement, she began speaking about her experiences in porn and appearing in national media projects addressing what she considers "the harms of pornography," associating adult films with human sex trafficking and the exploitation of women and children.
Christopher Daniel Zeischegg, formerly known as Danny Wylde, is an American writer, musician, filmmaker, and former pornographic actor.
A pornographic parody film is a subgenre of the pornographic film industry genre where the basis for the production's story or plotline is the parody of a mainstream television show, feature film, public figure, video game or literary works. This subgenre also includes parody of historical or contemporary events such as political scandals. The subgenre has gained acceptance by the adult industry to the extent that major awards are presented in this category by organizations such as AVN and XRCO.
Londell Smith, better known by his stage name Nikko London, is an American television personality, singer and record producer. He is best known on the VH1's reality show Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta.
Oluremi Fela Faust, known professionally as Mimi Faust, is an American reality television personality who stars on the VH1 program Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta. She first appeared as the long-time girlfriend of producer Stevie J.
Tiziana Cantone, name subsequently legally changed to "Tiziana Giglio", was an Italian woman who committed suicide after the spread on the web of some of her amateur pornographic videos.
Kim Kardashian, Superstar is a 2007 pornographic film featuring American television personality Kim Kardashian and singer-actor Ray J. It depicts the pair having sexual intercourse in October 2003 while on vacation in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The film brought in more than US$1.4 million in its first six weeks.
...investigates the reality star Farrah Abraham who dabbles in acting, writing, singing, and cooking, but is best known for appearing in the MTV reality series Teen Mom and then scandalously starring in the pornographic video Backdoor Teen Mom produced by Vivid Entertainment. Abraham participates in a phenomenon that I refer to as "the aesthetics of violation" which is evident in media genres such as celebrity sex tapes and upskirt photography wherein a significant part of the appeal is that the images may have been produced or released without permission of the women involved.