Jesse Jane is just your typical all-American blonde, green-eyed girl that hails from Fort Worth, Texas. This bubbly blonde with an infectious personality is not only a certified personal trainer but she has also graced the covers of such magazines as FHM, Maxim, and Arena, just to name a few. In addition to her print work, this multi-faceted starlet has even tackled roles in film, television and music videos. She is just like you or me — except for the fact that she has skyrocketed to dizzying heights of fame through her career in the adult film industry! Steve Johnson of Icon Vs. Icon recently caught up with Jesse Jane to give you an exclusive look inside the world of one of adult entertainment’s brightest stars through her eyes. In the interview, they discuss Jesse’s past, making a name for herself in the adult film industry, carving her own niche with mainstream projects such as ‘Entourage’ and ‘Middle Men’ and what the future might hold for her!
I was born in Fort Worth, Texas, but I moved around a lot. My dad was in the Air Force, so I was a military brat. I had a really good childhood. I moved every two to three years, so it really helped me develop the ability to meet friends and not be shy. Every two years I had to move, so if I ever wanted friends when I lived there, I kind of had to be open and stuff.
How and why did you get involved in the adult film industry?
I am a very sexual person and I even waited. I didn’t get into the business until I was 22, just to make sure it was something I definitely wanted to do. I am very sexual and I have so much fun. I did Hooters. I did bikini modeling. Little by little, on each job, a little more came off. I just skipped the dancing and went straight into adult, which I love. I work for Digital Playground. I shoot five to six movies a year. I don’t get shot out and it’s fun. I get to do real life act out role play. I travel the world. It’s so much fun.
Is your family supportive of your decision to become involved in the adult entertainment industry?
Well … [laughs] They’re cool with it. The initial reaction was that they were upset. My dad’s in the military, so half the guys watch porn. He didn’t necessarily want anybody looking at his daughter. My mom was upset, but they are completely supportive of my career now. They know I handle it as a career. I’m not all crazy and drugged out. I treat it like a business.
You mentioned Digital Playground. How did your signing of an exclusive contract with them come about?
I wouldn’t go in without a contract. I was new and literally never did anything in porn. Not even pictures or been on any websites. They wanted me exclusive anyway, so nobody could. I kind of lucked out in that way. I was the new girl and they were like, “OK.” I wouldn’t do it without a contract and I’m not going to shoot movies every day. I didn’t want to shoot with people that I don’t want to work with. They wanted me exclusive. I wasn’t coming in without my deal. So really I kind of lucked out. I came in at the right time.
It’s good because you have a whole team behind you, supporting you, and marketing you. You’re not having to push yourself. You have to push yourself on your site, and on your twitter, and stuff like that, but you have someone paying to market you and get you worldwide. You have somebody who is backing you and supporting you. They are the ones who got me out there. If you didn’t start like that …
You have had quite the career in the adult entertainment industry. Are there any films that you are glad to have been a part of and why? (‘Pirates’, ‘Pirates II’, etc…)
‘Pirates’ and ‘Pirates II’ were amazing to be a part of. ‘Pirates’ was the first movie to kind of put adult on the map. We were the first movie that got cut to a Rated R version as well and rented in Blockbuster. It was such a big part of adult history. It was insane. It really put us on the map. Anybody who saw us in that movie was just like, “Hey! Wait! You did ‘Pirates’!”
Speaking of ‘Pirates II’. What can you tell us about your experience making one of the biggest adult films ever made?
It was really long. I had to get an apartment in L.A. It was a little over a month of shooting. I think I had something like three days off. I worked like 17 hour days and sometimes longer. It was a really hard movie because we did it all on a green screen. The first time we had the actual boat from the ‘Pirates’ movies. They didn’t think it would be that big and it was, so they cut ship because it was a Walt Disney thing. So we had to do it on this huge boat, with all of this video and all in green screen. It was more difficult to shoot. I was glad when it was done. I felt like I was a pirate for real. [laughs] It was a lot of hard work, but it was absolutely worth it in the end.
Do you have any personal highlights from your career in the adult industry?
I’ve gotten to do ‘Entourage’, which is a pretty big thing for me. That is one of the shows I watch. I thought they were kidding when they asked. That was really, really cool. I have a couple of mainstream movies coming out this year, which is totally different from what I’ve done. ‘Middle Men’, which is coming out in theaters like next week I think, and a few other movies. I have a few things. This has been great. The whole ‘Pirates’ thing. Hell … I don’t even know. So much has happened to me lately. [laughs]
Are there any adult or mainstream performers that you look up to or admire?
Oh my god, I love Angelina Jolie. She is so open and doesn’t care what people think about her. She doesn’t care. She’s very open about her sexuality and being crazy, which is something I like. So I look up to her. I don’t hide anything. I am who I am and I don’t care who judges me. That’s why I like her. I pretty much have the same attitude as her. If you don’t like what I do, fuck off! I don’t care! [laughs]
Are there any differences between your on-screen persona and Jesse in real life?
I’m just a big dork. I will do anything to make anybody laugh. I am exactly the same as I am on film. Sometimes I am a little crazier personally. I’m really the same person. I don’t change. I’m outgoing and I like to have fun. I like to make people laugh. I don’t care if I’m making funny faces and acting like a dork. I like sports. I’m really just the same person. I don’t act differently on film unless I am playing a character. Essentially I am the same. I really think I am a little crazier in my personal life! [laughs]
People often look down on the adult industry because they consider it morally wrong. What do you have to say to those people?
Everybody is entitled to their opinion. It’s a permanent part of entertainment. At least I’m not sitting here like 90 percent of the people having sex with random strangers and one night stands in bars. They don’t know anything about them. At least we’re clean. We get tested. We’re having safe sex. It’s clean. You can’t change every ones opinion.
If there is one thing you would like people to know about yourself, what would it be?
I am actually a certified personal trainer.
Oh really? Cool!
Yeah! I have my ISAA certification and everything.
What do you believe is the biggest misconception about yourself?
That people think I am a bitch. I am furthest from it. That’s like the first thing out of people’s mouths. They’re like, “Oh my god! I though you would be a bitch!” I’m like, “Why?” I’m really into sports.
I see you tweet a lot about that.
I’m like a dude!
Hey. Nothing wrong with that. You’re latest adult film is called ‘Playful’. Where do you think this film stacks up to your previous work?
It’s one of the smaller ones. It’s one of those playful ones that you put out every couple of months. It’s more like a vignette in the cutesy, playful style. It’s not like a big feature. We call them vignettes. You have to do so many a year. You can only do a couple big movies a year. I have a huge movie coming out that’s a feature next week or the week after that. It’s called ‘Body Heat’. We play firefighters. That’s going to be a huge one, on the ‘Pirates’ level. We shot it in an old fire house. We use actual uniforms. It’s very detailed. So that’s a big movie that comes out this month. We’re shooting another big one that none of us know what it is next month. We had to block off a couple of weeks. I wish I knew what it was so I could tell you about it. We do a couple a year. There’s a couple big ones a year that they get all of us Digital Playground contract girls together to do. I do the craziest scene in ‘Body Heat’ by the way. It’s all the DP girls on a fire truck. I hang upside down while I’m having sex with two of them. I’m completely balancing myself. It’s going to be the best scene ever. [laughs] It’s going to be insane. I saw all of the artwork recently. We’re finalizing it. The box cover alone will make you go, “Oh! I want this movie!” [laughs] You’ll look at the box and go, “Oh yeah! I want that!” Plus we have the hottest girls in Digital Playground.
How has the advent of high definition affected the adult industry?
Everybody was scared about having porn shot in HD. I thought it was brilliant. Sometimes when you meet people in person you get disappointed because they don’t look like their pictures. It’s kind of like one of those things. A lot of folks didn’t take care of their bodies because the way lighting and stuff was, they could change it to make you look thinner. So no matter what, it made all of these folks look perfect all the time, which is not a good thing. Everybody has flaws. I like it because, one, it shows all of the girls who do watch porn that we are real too. Plus it made the girls that are actually performing in the business actually take care of themselves and workout. In HD you can’t hide anything. There’s no fine lighting or something that will all of a sudden make you look skinnier. So you actually do have to take care of yourself. I honestly think it was a better thing to do, plus the picture is great.
3D! It’s 3D right now! [laughs] We’re going to shoot ‘Pirates 3’ and it’s going to be called ‘Pirates 3D’! 3D is the big thing right now. There are going to be a lot of companies putting out movies like that.
Do you have any aspirations to direct?
I did. The thing is, I was going to. I was all set and ready to go do my own thing and, quite honestly, I did this huge thing on CNBC about it. The Internet is killing the porn business. Porn has never suffered. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry and you really make the money if you make your own movies, but, with the Internet, the DVD sales have gone down. With the Internet, why buy porn when you can watch it for free? Plus the piracy issue. Piracy is becoming bigger. It completely threw me off. I’m not going to put my own time and money into something to have somebody steal it. I went off on them. I had some crazy movies lined up and set up. I do the business shows as well as the conventions. They always have me do the business conventions. I know way too much about what went on and it just completely threw me off on it.
You have won several awards during your career in the adult entertainment industry. What were those experiences like and what do those awards mean to you?
It was great. It’s really cool to be recognized and win an award. The funny thing is, is that some girls live on that. I’m sorry, the awards really don’t do anything for you. [laughs] You make yourself. I think it’s great, don’t get me wrong. It’s really cool and it’s awesome, but it’s not like it’s going to change your career. A lot of girls, literally when they win, cry and thank their mom for their award for anal sex and stuff. I’m just looking at them going, “Are you serious? Are you listening to yourself?” [laughs]
I never thought of that! That’s funny! I never thought that thanking your mother for doing that was … That’s funny!
And they do! They get up there for group scenes and they go, “I want to thank you for da, da, da, da … [mimics crying] It took a while to get my ass like this for the gang bang” They’re literally crying and I’m just like, “WOW!” [laughs] You’ve got some issues! [laughs]
God that’s funny! [laughs] You mentioned your mainstream acting. You’ve done films, television shows, and music videos. Is that something you would like to continue to pursue?
I definitely want to do some more projects. The reality is that everyone is like, “Do you want to cross over?” No I don’t. One, it’s not a reality. You might get something, but you’re never formally going to cross over. Mainstream has become more open to trying out adult stars, so we’ve gotten to do more things. They’re like, “Fuck it! Sex is sex! If your looking for a hot girl in a part, porn stars are hot … So come on! It’s fun! It’s fun to do them! I always like to do something different, but I’m not looking to totally cross over. Yes, I would love to do more projects because it’s something different to do and you get to meet really cool people.
We actually interviewed Riley for ‘Piranha 3D’.
Oh yeah!
It was awesome!
She’s great! That’s my girl!
That’s my girl. I brought her into this business.
Yeah, she told us that in her interview.
Yeah! I’ve got good taste in girls! [laughs]
Yes you do! You mentioned ‘Middle Men’ with Luke Wilson and Giovanni Ribisi. What can you tell us about that project and how did you get your role?
I actually played myself, which was funny because I had nothing to do. They just asked me to do a cameo. What I did was this really small part. They just wanted me in it. They just called me at the house and they’re like, “Come on! Can you walk the red carpet at the AVNs for the movie with Luke Wilson?” I was like, “Of course! Why not!” For one, he’s so cute [laughs] and two, it’s a good chance whether it’s a really small part or not. So I’m walking at the AVNs doing interviews with some people, like I do now. Even though it was back when the Internet was found by porn and I wasn’t around then, it didn’t matter. They went, “It doesn’t matter. We just want you to play you.” I’m like, “OK!” I met Giovanni Ribisi, who I love. It was just cool. I got to talk to them. I flew in to Vegas for the night. It was just cool. Everyone was so nice.
Did any of your costars have questions about the adult entertainment industry?
Yeah. I did this whole interview that they are going to put on the behind the scenes, asking me about the Internet and stuff. I have a small part in the movie, but at the end they’re interviewing the director and the actors as to how they approached their roles. Then they interviewed me about the Internet and how it affected porn, how it helped it, and right now how it is ruining it. So I did this whole big thing at the end.
You mentioned that you didn’t want to cross over fully into mainstream films. Is there any particular type of role you would like to try your hand at in future mainstream films?
I don’t care if I play the ditsy blond. I can do the bubbly airhead. I can play a good airhead, like in ‘The Hangover 2’ or something … A stripper part … I don’t care. I would love to play a bitch or a bad ass. I want to be on ‘Sons of Anarchy’ so bad, playing a biker chick. I would also like to play a psycho, with something mentally wrong like in ‘Girl Interrupted’. I would love to be able to tap into something like that.
Absolutely! I love it! I’m very good about when I have time, I am on my twitter. If I’m not responding to you … I try to take out the time. I travel from airports, to planes, to hotels. I’m sitting around. So I sit there and try to personally talk to people back. If I can’t, I’m always updating what I am doing. When I come to all of the shows and meet my fans, I love it. I sit there and talk to them. I was dancing at Fantasies last night and I was talking to everybody at the bar. Before I knew it these other girls were trying to get up behind me and I was like, “Oh shoot! I didn’t realize I was up here that long!” That’s who makes you who you are. It’s not just you and your company. That’s just a small part of it. You need to be liked by the fans to be popular. So you need to talk to your fans. I love my fans. That’s why I am who I am. I’m great company and I’m good with my fans.
Any strange encounters or notable interactions with fans?
You know! [laughs] I’ve had quite a few weird encounters, but for the most part people are cool. I had one scary one and I’ve had some creepy ones. All in all I have the coolest fans. They’re all really sweet, and really cool and nice, and just fun. One guy pulled a knife on me to talk to me, which freaked me out. I was surrounded with people because he followed me from a Hustler store signing in Hollywood. I went to dinner. He followed me from the store to dinner. I went to a club afterward with my girlfriends to dance and he followed me there. Then we all went back to her house to hang out and there are like 30 of us. We’re walking up and this guy gets out of his car and pulls a knife on me. I’m lucky I was surrounded by people. My roommate at the time tackled the guy. The thing was he wasn’t trying to hurt me. He thought that’s what he had to do to talk to me. He thought he had to freak me out to talk to me. I’m like, “Don’t freak me out! I’m not going to talk to you when you pull a knife on me! Sorry dude!” [laughs]
That’s nuts!
He scared me!
Shit, I’d be scared too! I would have ran like a girl! [laughs]
It made me very aware of my surroundings. I’ve always been aware of my surroundings anyways, but right after that happened I was extra careful. I pay attention to who is surrounding me. There are a lot of people who hang around in stores for hours at signings. Not that they’re harmful, they’re just there to see you. I’m careful. I know who’s been around and I know who’s acting weird.
If you want to get into adult, I think it is all good if you’ve had time to think about it and you’re not trying to get back at somebody. Don’t come in at 18 or 19, you’re too young. You don’t have to tell people you’re going to be out of it in less than a year. People are going to know who you are and you’re going to have to deal with it. Think about it. Make sure it is something you really want to do. A lot of people do it to try to get back at their boyfriend or are doing it thinking no one is going to know who they are. Guess what, either a friend of a friend, or a family member, or a friend of theirs, somebody is going to see you in that film that you thought nobody was going to see you in. They’re going to know. If you’re not comfortable with people knowing that you do porn then don’t do it. It’s obviously not meant for you. You also need to really enjoy sex. I hate the people that I can tell are faking it. Girls who fake liking girls, I hate that. Be into it. When you do get into it, don’t do something you don’t want to do. It’s a great industry if you can get past all of that! [laughs]
What is the best piece of advice that someone has given you in your career?
To treat it like a business. To be focused. I had to move to L.A. for the first two years. It takes about two years to get enough footage and build your name and get the movies out there and get you known. They are like, “Don’t get caught up!” The thing is, you can get caught up in L.A. so fast. The first thing that I did was that I did treat it like a business. It’s my job. I don’t go blow it on purses and shoes. Don’t get me wrong, occasionally I do. [laughs] I actually have a house and cars. I have things to show for it. I moved right back to Oklahoma. I got out of there so the industry wouldn’t interfere in my life. You can’t even buy a porn in Oklahoma.
Really!?
I swear to god! That and Utah maybe! There’s only one other state you can’t buy a porn in! When you cross the Oklahoma, Texas border … It’s like a couple of hours to cross the border to Texas and there are two huge porn stores right on the state line in Texas. [laughs]
You can’t go 20 feet in the North East without running into something.
Oh yeah! They’re usually everywhere, so I like it. It keeps you grounded. I like to hang out with my friends and ride my jet skis. I just like to hang out and be grounded.
I’m actually writing a book. I’m going to start writing a book now. I got approved. I’m going to make movies for a few more years before I retire. I have a lot of movies that I shot that will be coming out soon. The book. I’m still featured dancing everywhere. My website is finally live at www.jessejane.com. I’ll do two live shows a month like most people do. When I’m traveling and I do so much, if I’m in my hotel room or I’m at home and I have nothing to do, I can log on my computer and it will tell all of my members that I’m on. Then I can do a private live chat. That should be fun. So you never know.
Will the book be an autobiography?
Yes! I’ve got some crazy stories! [laughs]
I’m sure you do! [laughs] Is there any date that you are aiming for the release of the book?
It takes a year to a year-and-a-half. I’m hoping a year. It definitely won’t be anytime until towards the end of next year. It takes a while. It’s a long time. [laughs]
I couldn’t imagine writing a book. There’s no way in hell I would have time for that.
Yeah! [laughs]
Do you have any last words for your fans before we let you go?
I love my fans! Thanks for being awesome!
Thanks for your time Jesse!
Sure! Thank you!
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Be sure to get all the latest information on what Jesse Jane is up to at her official site located at www.jessejane.com! Be sure to follow and interact with her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jessejane.
While you are at it, check out all the girl’s of Digital Playground at www.digitalplayground.com.
