Former Disney Actress Says Porn Saved Her From Hollywood

Former Boy Meets World actress Maitland Ward says that becoming a porn star 'saved' her from Hollywood.

The 43-year-old actress made her name on the teen comedy between 1998 and 2000, when she played Rachel McGuire, but now she says that she has a 'genuine love' for the 'adult world'.

She starred in two seasons of the ABC/Disney Channel show and says that there was a crossover between the audiences.

ABC

Writing in an opinion piece on The Daily Beast, she said: "They are part of the porn generation, where internet access to viewing sex has always been easily accessible and readily attained."

Speaking of the transition to her new career, she wrote: "It was a big deal when I starred in my first hardcore adult feature.

"The day Drive, the film I made for Deeper.com, was announced, the site's traffic skyrocketed. Subscriptions for the site went wild. The headlines were international and viral.

"I trended No. 1 on Google all day, topping Bernie Sanders' heart attack (the joke was that I gave it to him)."

She said that people didn't take her seriously as an adult actor to begin with.

She explained: "Many expected my rise in the adult world, including many in the adult world itself, to be a flash in the pan. It was a stunt. I wasn't serious. But that's what makes this story different: my genuine love for adult performance and for colorful cinema.

"My story is a journey rather than a cautionary tale. And I was ready to prove the naysayers wrong."

She said that she is not ashamed of the path her career has taken, explaining that she feels liberated.

She writes: "I'm playing roles that I want to play. I can be dark and twisted and sexual. I'm afforded the freedom to find my voice, and that isn't something mainstream often allows you to do. I have porn to thank for that. It's time for porn to be mainstream and mainstream to accept porn."

And her fans tell her that they haven't just appreciated her since her move into adult entertainment.

She added: "A lot of people tell me they've been masturbating to me for more than 20 years. Think about that. That's no easy task-being fap material for someone for nearly three decades.

"It's so rare, I don't think Guinness World Records has a category for it. But my fans can now buy my Fleshlight! How many of you can say your childhood crush's vagina is in your nightstand drawer?"

Topics: US Entertainment

Amelia Ward

Amelia is a journalist at LADbible. After studying journalism at Liverpool John Moores and Salford Uni (don't ask), she went into PR and then the world of music. She spent a few years working on festivals and events before joining LADbible. In her spare time, Amelia likes music and spending good, quality time with her cat, Paul. You can contact Amelia at [email protected].

@ameliasward