The year 2014 was a big one for celebrity cameos in porn. And none made more headlines than the loooong strip tease Kristen Stewart enacted for the audience back in February.
The actress has spoken openly in the past about her affinity for nudity and her love for masturbating in front of the mirror. Well, it was all the more surreal when you consider that she was playing a girl who got drenched in sea water and had to be fished out by a heroic guy in an inflatable dinghy. Just as bizarre was the fact she’d chosen to film this steamy scene on the deck of a luxury yacht – one of the most photographed vessels in the world.
But while this might have been an interesting experiment for the 29-year-old actress, it wasn’t exactly representative of the average joe slutty teen in her early 20s. Because that would be a bit too commonplace, wouldn’t it?
Which is why, when it came down to choosing the next big-name actress to play a part in an adult film, producers turned to someone closer to home. Someone who not only looked the part, but also shared the same proclivities.
Entertainment website TMZ got wind of a rumor that Robert Pattinson might be interested in performing in a porno. And, as we mentioned above, the “Twilight Saga” hunk has been open about his love for nudity and masturbation. So, naturally, they got in touch to see if he’d be interested in appearing in a gay porno as a part of an experiment to see how many hits they could get on the site.
Pattinson’s representatives reportedly had no comment on the matter. But if we’re to believe TMZ, the actor responded with a yes, putting his name in the hat. And so, a few days later, we find ourselves enjoying one of the hottest gay porn videos of all time: Pattinson’s solo masturbation scene, which was named one of the best adult films of 2014 by iFap.
To celebrate this iconic moment, let’s dive back into the roots of gay male porn, as embodied by this magnificent specimen.
From Closet To Bedroom
The origins of gay male porn stretch all the way back to the 1800s, when men looking for sex with other men would venture into adult bookstores to see explicit illustrations of same-sex desire. These days, X-rated movies and TV shows are ubiquitous, easily accessible entertainment. And it seems that society as a whole is becoming more open-minded when it comes to alternative lifestyles and sexual preferences.
In a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone, star of the upcoming Netflix documentary ‘Marjorie Merriweather’s How to Make an Adult Film’ Mimi Collins explained why she got into the industry.
“I never thought of doing porno when I was growing up. I just did theater and stuff like that. It wasn’t something you did, like, in high school. But then, during my mid-twenties, I was doing some modeling and I needed some cash so I thought, ‘Well, why not?'”
Collins’ parents weren’t too keen on her pursuing a career in the adult industry, considering it a “disgusting” habit. But she stuck with it, and eventually won them over, if only thanks to her charm and poise.
While there are pros and cons to being in the public eye, the industry has undoubtedly provided Collins with a wealth of opportunity. Since entering the adult film industry, she’s appeared in more than 100 movies and TV shows and even landed roles on the big and small screens. She’s now a familiar face on the red carpet and has even graced the covers of prominent magazinesthat have given her the chance to speak publicly about her experience.
That public profile has undoubtedly helped shape how people think about the adult film industry. And it’s made Collins something of a role model for other women, helping them to see themselves as equals in a profession that was once dominated by men.
The ‘Twilight’ Effect
As you might imagine, the ‘Twilight’ books and the Twilight Saga film series have had an outsized influence on the adult film industry. Not only were the films blockbusters, earning more than $400 million worldwide, but they also inspired a whole generation of young women to read and, eventually, write about their own sexy backstories.
The books’ author, Stephenie Meyer, has said that she intended for them to be “urban fantasy” pieces that would “scare the pants off a thirteen-year-old.” While that might have been her goal, it seems that her work had an unexpectedand perhaps even unintended, side effect.
The novels are filled with descriptions of Edward Cullen’s (played by Robert Pattinson) massive erection, as well as his and Bella Swan’s (played by Kristen Stewart) lovemaking sessions. So it really shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that adult film studios were quick to capitalize on this trend.
In an interview with the New York Times, director Rob Hardy, whose credits include the Twilight and Fifty Shades of Greymovies, described how he approached his role as Bella’s love interest, Christian Grey:
“I think that part of wanting to portray this character was just to show that a woman can have the same level of enjoyment that a man does when it comes to sex,” he said. “It came down to offering the audience something new and, for me, Christian Grey is a character that people haven’t seen represented in porn before.”
With Christian Grey, it’s not just about the bedroom antics either. The Fifty Shades of Grey movie is actually a rather faithful adaptation of the first book in the series. This summer, fans of the erotic romantic fantasy will finally get the chance to see the results of the author’s lifelong quest to give a voice to the “invisible” friend she encountered in her teens.
Modern-Day Sluts
While the popularity of ‘Twilight’ might make you think that all of a sudden, everyone in Hollywood became a nymphomaniac, the reality is that desire for sexual adventure hasn’t gone out of style. And, as we’ve established above, adult film producers have cottoned on to this fact.
The line between “slut” and “prostitute” has become blurred in recent years. Since the inception of the adult film industry, there has always been a division between the two. Prostitutes were the ones who were actively looking for customers while sluts were supposedly having fun with their girlfriends.
Things changed with the advent of AIDS in the 1980s. Prostitutes were faced with an entire gender of men they’d never seen with the disease. Suddenly, a taboo about sex broke out. One that’s still intact today. But, as aforementioned, with the rise of easy access to internet porn, traditional notions of “slut” and “prostitute” have blurred. Modern-day sluts, those who frequent adult forums and blogs, have been around since the beginning. But for whatever reason, the stigma attached to the profession has always stopped most attractive women from publicly admitting they’re in the business.
In the early days of the AIDS pandemic, there was no “typical” porn star. Actresses either had to put their money where their mouth is and risk exposure or remain silent about their profession. But, in modern times, being a porn star is almost commonplace. And, as we’ve established, stigma no longer applies. So if a woman wants to tell the world she’s a porn star, regardless of whether or not she wants to have sex for money, she can and most likely will. This has led to an overall democratization of the industry, as well as increased opportunities for everyone, regardless of gender or background.
With more people than ever before choosing to enter the industry, there’s never been a better time to be a part of the world that loves to masturbate. And, let’s face it, what’s more fun than masturbating in front of a camera? Whether you’re a fan of Rob Pattinson’s or Kristen Stewart’s work, you can’t help but get off watching these two legends of cinema strut their stuff in front of a webcam.