BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged in by people who do not consider themselves to be practising BDSM, inclusion in the BDSM community or subculture often is said to depend on self-identification and shared experience.
A dominatrix, or domme, is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are popularly known for inflicting physical pain on their submissive subjects, but this is not done in every case. In some instances erotic humiliation is used, such as verbal humiliation or the assignment of humiliating tasks. Dominatrices also make use of other forms of servitude. Practices of domination common to many BDSM and other various sexual relationships are also prevalent. A dominatrix is typically a paid professional (pro-domme) as the term dominatrix is little-used within the non-professional BDSM scene.
The role of sadism and masochism in fiction has attracted serious scholarly attention. Anthony Storr has commented that the volume of sadomasochist pornography shows that sadomasochistic interest is widespread in Western society; John Kucich has noted the importance of masochism in late-19th-century British colonial fiction. This article presents appearances of sadomasochism in literature and works of fiction in the various media.
Leslie Michael Grantham was an English actor, best known for his role as "Dirty" Den Watts in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. He was a convicted murderer, having served 10 years for the killing of a West German taxi driver, and had significant press coverage resulting from an online sex scandal in 2004.
Dominance and submission (D/s) is a set of behaviors, customs, and rituals involving the submission of one person to another in an erotic episode or lifestyle. It is a subset of BDSM. This form of sexual contact and pleasure has been shown to please a minority of people.
Michael Anthony Beach is an American actor. He has appeared in the films Lean on Me (1989), One False Move (1992), Short Cuts (1993), Waiting to Exhale (1995), A Family Thing (1996), Soul Food (1997), Aquaman (2018), and Saw X (2023). On television, he played Al Boulet on the NBC medical drama ER from 1995 to 1997. From 1999 to 2005, Beach was a regular cast member in another NBC drama series, Third Watch, as Monte Parker, and as T.O. Cross in FX's Sons of Anarchy.
Zelda Rae Williams is an American actress, director, producer, and writer. She is the daughter of late actor Robin Williams and film producer Marsha Garces Williams. As a voice actress, she is best known for voicing Kuvira in the Nickelodeon series The Legend of Korra.
Bliss is a Canadian-produced, half-hour dramatic television series, produced by Montreal-based Galafilm and Toronto-based Back Alley Films, an anthology of women's erotica. The series ran from 2002 to 2004.
BDSM is a frequent theme in culture and media, including in books, films, television, music, magazines, public performances and online media.
Hayley Marie Norman is an American actress, writer, and creator known for her roles in Kenan, A.P. Bio, Hancock, Chris Rock's Top Five, Adam Ruins Everything, Fired Up!, and Norbit.
Terence Sellers (1952–2016), also known as Mistress Angel Stern, was a New York-based writer and dominatrix involved in the New York Downtown Arts Scene. Her papers have been collected by New York University's Fales Library Downtown Collection.
Jennifer Prediger is New York City–based actress, writer, and director known for the films Uncle Kent (2011), Red Flag (2012), and Apartment Troubles (2014)—her directorial debut with collaborator Jess Weixler. Prediger also played and wrote Ask Umbra, the "world's most trusted eco advice columnist," on Grist.org.
Conor Marie Leslie is an American actress. Beginning her career in the late 2000s, her first major role was in the thriller film Chained (2012). She has worked frequently on television, including as a series regular on the Discovery Channel historical Western Klondike (2014), the Yahoo! Screen science fiction comedy Other Space (2015), and the Fox crime drama Shots Fired (2017). From 2015 to 2018, she also appeared on the first three seasons of the Amazon Prime Video alternate history thriller The Man in the High Castle. Leslie gained further prominence for portraying Donna Troy / Wonder Girl on the DC Universe / HBO Max superhero series Titans (2018–2021) and was part of the main cast during the second and third seasons.
Dreamland is a 2016 American musical comedy-drama film directed by Robert Schwartzman in directorial debut, from a screenplay by Benjamin Font and Schwartzman. It stars Johnny Simmons, Amy Landecker, Jason Schwartzman, Noël Wells, Alan Ruck, Beverly D'Angelo, Talia Shire, Shay Mitchell, Frankie Shaw and Nick Thune.
Betting on Zero is a 2016 American documentary directed by Ted Braun. It investigates the allegation that Herbalife is a pyramid scheme, and follows Bill Ackman's short investment in Herbalife, which is ostensibly a billion-dollar bet that the company will soon collapse.
Nichi Hodgson is a British journalist, broadcaster, and author. She was one of the first British journalists to court-report via Twitter, covering the 2012 obscenity trial, R v Peacock.
Hearts Beat Loud is a 2018 American comedy-drama music film directed by Brett Haley, from a screenplay by Haley and Marc Basch. It stars Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Sasha Lane, Blythe Danner and Toni Collette, and follows a Brooklyn record store owner who tries to convince his daughter to start a band with him after a song they recorded goes viral.
A League of Their Own is an American comedy drama television series co-created by Will Graham and Abbi Jacobson, who also stars. It is an adaptation of the 1992 film of the same name with new characters and storylines, about the formation of a World War II-era women's professional baseball team. Chanté Adams, D'Arcy Carden, Roberta Colindrez, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Kelly McCormack, Molly Ephraim, Melanie Field, and Priscilla Delgado also star. The series premiered with 8 episodes on August 12, 2022. The series was renewed in March 2023 for a four-episode final season, but in August 2023, Amazon announced that the second season would be scrapped due to delays caused by the WGA strike.
Bonding is an American dark comedy television series that premiered on Netflix on April 24, 2019. The series stars Zoe Levin, Brendan Scannell, Micah Stock, Theo Stockman, and Nana Mensah. On January 16, 2020, the series was renewed for a second season which was released on January 27, 2021.
I'm No Longer Here is a 2019 Mexican Spanish-language drama film written and directed by Fernando Frías de la Parra, and starring Juan Daniel García Treviño and Angelina Chen.
