The Ways to Deal with a Sex Tape
Reality TV "star" Kendra Wilkinson is making tons of money off the release of her sex tape. So why is she talking about how it's the worst thing ever? It's just one of several approaches for smut-scandalized celebs.
Wilkinson, who was one of the Playboy Playmates on The Girls Next Door, got a check for $680,000 from Vivid Entertainment and a share of the profits from the sale of her sex tape. Then she runs and tells E! Online how hard it's been for her lately: "It broke my heart because how can [someone] do that when I have a baby? It just sucks. It's the hardest thing to deal with right now." We're sure it's not that hard that it's going to keep her from spending that money! But this is one of four strategies that celebs use when their naughty bits are displayed for the world to see.
Cry, But Cash the Check: This is a very popular option, wherein the celebrity gets to profit both monetarily and publicity-wise, but still comes out looking like a saint. They have to say that the sex tape was private and not meant to be public, and often have to sue the company putting it out to drive home the point. But in the end, they end up taking the cash and the fame that comes along with it. If they said, "Yeah, that's my sex tape, pay me," everyone would think they were craven sluts and they wouldn't get the long-term exposure/sympathy that a denial engenders.
Celebrity Examples: Kim Kardashian, Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee, Kendra Wilkinson, Paris Hilton
Sue to Block It: When stars really don't want their sex tape messing with their image—or can't figure out a way to profit from it—they go to the lawyers to help. Basically they're the same as the people above, but don't have a good reason as to why they should profit from it. It usually works, but in some cases (Colin Farrell) the tape ends up going public anyway.
Celebrity Examples: Bret Michaels and Pamela Anderson, Jennifer Lopez, Real Housewife Danielle Staub
Deny It: Not the most successful option if the star is readily identifiable in the footage, but some stars are able to keep the hype around their supposed blue movie low just by saying it's not them. It may really not be them. Your momma was right when she said ignoring it will make it go away.
Celebrity Example: Leighton Meester
Release It Your Damn Self: The sick thing about celebrity sex tapes is we kind of want the stars to try to keep us from seeing them. That makes us all think that there's something secret and dirty going on. If you wanted to watch porn that was made to be, er, released, then you could just go buy any old movie from an adult video store. We want something special with a bit of taint to it (and hopefully a bit of taint in it as well). But for the really desperate, they can always put their sex tape on the shelves themselves. It's usually a dud though.
Celebrity Example: Dustin "Screech" Diamond