Justin Liles is your typical boy next door. He’s cute, smart, outgoing and never meets a stranger. His personality and good looks have come in handy when he’s staffing one of the bars at Tribe.
In the two years that Justin has bartended at Tribe, he’s built up a list of many regular customers (you can find him at Tribe on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday) who are fans of his ability to sling drinks. But those aren’t his only fans; he’s also got an international following of adoring fans who marvel at his skills in the adult film industry as newcomer ‘Hunter Page’.
With more than 70 scenes under his belt as ‘Hunter Page’, Justin burst onto the gay adult film industry about a year and half ago. He had just turned 18 (he’s now 20) and was a fresh new face. Since then he’s also appeared in four full-length movies and had the leading role in one of those.
And while being in the public eye has its ups and downs, Justin says he enjoys the life, despite the loneliness that can sometimes follow a highly visible career.
“It was a way to step out of my comfort zone,” he said when asked why he got into the business. “This type of industry teaches you a lot about life. It grounds you, and then you build yourself up. I will say it has thickened my skin enough to depend on myself over anyone else.”
He loves the joy that he can give people through his acting. He said being a part of someone’s fantasy was an honor.
“It sounds weird, but through what I do, I have the power to make their troubles go away,” he said. “I can help them forget about what issues they have and temporarily leave reality. It is not a joy that anyone outside the industry can understand, but it is a joy.”
His journey began with the simple click of a mouse. He applied online at one of the adult websites. He was contacted and began his journey.
“I told myself I could do it as a stepping stone,” he said. “I knew how hard it could make my personal life when I first thought about doing it. It was never for money or any materialistic reason like that. No one should do something as permanent as porn for a paycheck. I challenged myself to do something that people wouldn’t expect. I wanted to prove that the stigma of “porn stars” all sleeping around is untrue.”
Overwhelming and fresh, Justin claims his first time engaging on camera was exciting. “I wasn’t nervous which worried me,” he said.
Since that first appearance on camera, he’s won a few blog awards (Prettiest and Most Perfect Porn star of 2013). Additionally he was recently nominated for Best Newcomer, Best Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Group, Best Duo, and Best Art Direction at the annual Grabby Awards.
“All of my nominations come from the full movie I starred in titled 'Frat House Cream’, he said. “This was a horror style movie, and closely related to a ‘Scream’ movie.”
Justin is single. It’s by choice, because dating can be challenging and difficult for those in the adult film industry.
“What relationships?” said Justin. “People look at you in one of two ways—disgust or as an object.”
Justin added that he once had someone leave in the middle of a date because they learned of his job. And it’s the judgment leveled at him by others that leave him feeling frustrated with the gay community.
“I don’t judge or give my opinion on situations I know nothing of,” he explained. “For example, I can’t bear children myself. So I have no right to tell a woman what she should or shouldn’t do with her child. It isn’t my place. I will not marry a woman, I will marry a man. So I feel heterosexuals input on that subject are irrelevant. So unless you have done porn, don’t pass judgment.
Sex is Americas dirty secret. Porn is one of the largest money makers in this country. We all watch it, participate, or fantasize about sex at points and times. It is just a level of comfort that I have with my body to put it out in the world for all to see. I don’t feel anyone should be penalized for that. As long as you pay your bills, invest in yourself, and don’t hurt anyone else while accomplishing what you want, who has the right to speak about you. People always like to tell me what I should do with my life. This is my skin though.”
“And unlike many, I know that I don’t ‘need’ someone,” he added. “When I find someone I am interested in, that will be great. Until then, I am content with being my own star player.”
And who will be the person that captures Justin’s heart?
“I am big on personality. I want to have someone who can make me laugh. A person who makes me nervous around him is something I like. It keeps you from getting too comfortable,” he explained. “They need to be charming, sarcastic, and compassionate. If I had an ideal age range, it would be someone in their mid to late twenties. I don’t list any physical attributes, because I feel that would set me up to fail. Happiness isn’t in what you look like all the time; it is in the level of respect and maturity someone gives you. I know who I am attracted to. I also know that just a pretty face won’t get you everywhere with me.”
There are, of course, many attitudes and stereotypes towards those that perform in the adult industry. With heterosexual porn, feminists have often criticized it as degrading to women and sparking violence toward women. Some have argued the same can be said for the submissive partner in same sex porn films.
There’s a stigma, but not just in porn, explained Justin, that exists between bottoms and tops. “If you’re the bottom then you must act like this and if you’re a top then you must act like this and it couldn’t be further from the truth, sometimes,” said Justin. “I have always been made to bottom for the camera. For the right person though, I don’t want a relationship labeled as he is the top and I the bottom. I am perfectly content sharing any role equally with whoever my partner may be. I don’t do roles in my relationships. I am masculine at times and feminine at times. I want someone who is the same. To share every aspect of a relationship, rather than defining who I am by “top or bottom”.
Aside from the genders of the actors, many people think all porn, whether it is straight or gay porn, is the same. According to Justin, straight porn is more rigid and scripted, while gay porn has more fluidity and ease to it. “It’s more about the chemistry between the models,” said Justin. Justin explained that whenever he has to act in a scene he prefers to meet and talk to his coworker before they shoot.
Given the nature of their work, porn stars risk exposure to STDs and HIV. Recently the adult film industry came under scandal when several stars tested positive for HIV. Many models assume that because they are tested regularly they can engage in off camera unsafe intercourse. “I can say I’ve never done that. I hold myself to [a] higher standard,” said Justin. “My status is negative and I get tested every two months, because I am responsible with my body.”
While some people jokingly discuss entering the adult film industry, Justin warns they should do their research if they are serious. “Reach out to someone who’s done it,” he advises. Justin claims entering the industry was one of the most difficult things he’s ever done.
“Reach out to someone whom you know has been there and can give you the positives and negatives of the industry,” he said. “Like all jobs, there are aspects you will have to find out for yourself, but having someone in your corner to help coach you is a hell of a lot better than doing it blind like I did.”
Justin isn’t just a porn star. He has been involved in many projects that seek to change the way people look at that particular topic. Recently Justin was featured on the several billboards in and around the Nashville area. “I want to stand up for people who live somewhere where they can’t,” Justin said. “Anything I do that helps people is not a waste of time.”
So what does this 20-year-old see in his future? It’s a life that he will script, not one scripted by others.
“I make what is going to happen,” he said. “I am in college and will continue after my undergraduate on to medical school. People may think they have me figured out, but I am always the wildcard. My favorite quote of all time is something I apply to all situations of who I am.
If there is one thing the history of evolution has taught us, it's that life will not be contained. Life breaks free, it expands to new territories and crashes through barriers, painfully, maybe even dangerously, but, uh... well, there it is.”
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