37.
The average was aggregated from a list of dead porn performers (women and men) over the course of 20 years by Rev. Daniel R. Jennings. These statistics have been subject to much scrutiny, as the findings were conducted unscientifically and misleadingly posited as “the average life expectancy of a porn performer” (the statistics are not averaged against the ages of performers still living). However, framed as the average age of death of porn performers, a majority of whom died via suicide, murder, disease, and drug & alcohol abuse, there is enough evidence to suggest that a career in pornography increases the likelihood of dying well below the average American age of 78 years old. In a comparable study on former Playboy models (all women), The Pink Cross Foundation found the average age of death to be 36 years old.
A brief glance at the testimonials of exited pornography performers helps to provide insight into the dangers of living in the sex industry.
Lisa Ann: Speaking from experience, I can tell you that a majority of the performers I shot most of my movies with in the 1990s are no longer with us… The new generation of porn star faces an unspoken risk to their lives. In the past, we were mainly focused on the toll of the destructive lifestyle prevalent in the industry, filled with drugs and alcohol, which led to the tragic car accidents, suicides, or accidental overdoses. But the murder of porn stars is often overlooked – I feel most people just assume the worst and think absolutely nothing of another porn star’s life ending too soon.
Becca Brat: I became horribly addicted to heroin and crack. I overdosed at least 3 times, had tricks pull knives on me, have been beaten half to death.
Jessie Jewels: People in the porn industry are numb to real life and are like zombies walking around. The abuse that goes on in this industry is completely ridiculous. The way these young ladies are treated is totally sick and brainwashing. I left due to the trauma I experienced even though I was there only a short time. I hung out with a lot of people in the adult industry, everybody from contract girls to gonzo actresses. Everybody has the same problems. Everybody is on drugs. It’s an empty lifestyle trying to full up a void.
Lara Roxx: It isn’t a safe business, and I thought it was, and I would have not did that scene with no condom with Darren James if it would have crossed my mind that those tests weren’t good and that I couldn’t trust him or the people he’s been with. I thought porn people were the cleanest people in the world, is what I thought.
Genevieve: The abuse and degradation was rough. I sweated and was in deep pain. On top of the horrifying experience, my whole body ached, and I was irritable the whole day. The director didn’t really care how I felt; he only wanted to finish the video.
Jenna: It was torture for seven years. I was miserable, I was lonely, I eventually turned to drugs and alcohol and attempted suicide. I knew I wanted out, but I didn’t know how to get out.
Neesa: I hate life. I’m a mess. A disaster. I’ve attempted suicide many times.
Jersey Jaxin: Guys punching you in the face. You have semen from many guys all over your face, in your eyes. You get ripped. Your insides can come out of you. It’s never ending.
Jessi: It was the most degrading, embarrassing, horrible thing ever. I had to shoot an interactive DVD, which takes hours and hours of shooting time, with a 104 degree fever! I was crying and wanted to leave but my agent wouldn’t let me, he said he couldn’t let me flake on it. I also did a scene where I was put with male talent that was on my ‘no list’. I wanted to please them so I did it. He stepped on my head […] I freaked out and started balling; they stopped filming and sent me home with reduced pay since they got some shot but not the whole scene.
Andi: After a year or so of that so called ‘glamorous life,’ I sadly discovered that drugs and drinking were part of the lifestyle. I began to drink and party of out control – cocaine, alcohol, and ecstacy were my favorites. Before long, I turned into a person I did not want to be. After doing so many hardcore scenes, I couldn’t do it anymore. I just remember being in horrible situations and experiencing extreme depression and being alone and sad.”
Elizabeth Rollings: I didn’t want to feel the pain of penetration from an over average sized man, being told to freeze in a position until the camera man was happy with his shots was very painful. I had people’s body fluids forced on my face or anywhere else the producer pleased and I had to accept it or else no pay. Sometimes you would get to a gig and the producer would change what the scene was supposed to be to something more intense and again if you didn’t like it, too bad, you did it or no pay.
Crissy Moran: I went through more heartbreaks and became suicidal. I was taken to the hospital for panic attacks. I tried to overdose on xanax, strangle myself, and cut my wrists but not nearly deep enough. I was too scared of the pain.
Sierra Sinn: My first scene was one of the worst experiences of my life. It was very scary. It was a very rough scene. My agent didn’t let me know ahead of time… I did it and I was crying and they didn’t stop. It was really violent. He was hitting me. It hurt. It scared me more than anything. They wouldn’t stop. They just kept rolling.
Vanessa B: Here is the pattern I have seen over and over again in my 7 years in this industry: Girl gets into porn, shoots regularly for about 6 months to a year doing relatively tame sex scenes. Work starts to slow down, so girl decides to do more hardcore scenes (things like anal, multiple men etc.). Work slows down again. Girl now starts escorting and becomes “open” to doing just about anything on camera to get work. Eventually, there is no company willing to shoot her and porn work is dried up. Girl usually has no work history and often no schooling, and now is essentially stuck with escorting, stripping, webcamming and any porn work she might be able to scrape up.
Now the girl has a black mark on her reputation forever and no matter what else she does in life, there are videos all over the Internet of her engaging in various sexual acts. She can never take it back or hide it. All she can do is hope that future employers, potential mates and others never see it or are very understanding about her past. (And even those who are understanding still look at her differently. You can never unring that bell.) This cycle usually only takes 2-3 years. That is not a career, and it’s nothing to look up to or hope for.