Jewish porn star Joanna Angel said she feared for her safety during her six-year relationship with fellow porn actor James Deen.
Angel called Deen a “scary person” in an interview Wednesday on the Jason Ellis radio show on Sirius XM, the Daily Beast reported.
Angel’s allegations came less than a week after another of Deen’s ex-girlfriends, the porn actress Stoya, accused him of raping her. Two other adult film actresses have also alleged Deen sexually assaulted them.
Deen has denounced the claims against him on Twitter.
I want to assure my friends, fans and colleagues that these allegations are both false and defamatory
— James Deen (@JamesDeen) November 30, 2015
I respect women and I know and respect limits both professionally and privately
— James Deen (@JamesDeen) November 30, 2015
Angel, who grew up religiously observant and attended Jewish day schools and summer camps, runs the alternative porn website BurningAngel.com. She told Ellis that Deen once kept her head underwater so long that she thought she would die, and that she woke up on several occasions to find him choking her in his sleep.
Angel tweeted to Stoya after her accusations:
You have my support @stoya . I’m here for you . https://t.co/KQZzHVIwcP
— Joanna Angel (@JoannaAngel) November 28, 2015
On the Ellis show, Angel said Deen’s behaviour does not represent the porn industry.
“I do not want people to blame porn. I think he is a bad egg. Please don’t blame the industry,” she said.
Deen, 29, born Bryan Sevilla, had been called a “feminist hero” and the “boy next door” of the porn industry for his average stature and boyish looks. An often-cited magazine profile describes him as “polite,” “self-deprecating” and someone who “speaks well of everyone,” in contrast to other male porn stars who sport “neck chains,” “unreasonable biceps” and “tribal tattoos.”
In the same article, Deen calls himself someone who cracks Jewish jokes and has an “overanalytical Jewish brain.” He has also once called himself a feminist.
Deen also has a history of joking about rape on Twitter.