Four porn actors in France have been charged with rape, in a first for the country’s adult film industry, according to a report.
Three have been taken into custody over porn videos that were available on a streaming site, news agency AFP reported.
The arrests come a year after women started speaking up about facing harassment and abuse in the French porn industry, in what is being described as a moment of reckoning for the industry’s MeToo movement.
At least 50 abuse victims have been identified by investigators, a source close to the investigation told AFP.
In 2020, four people, including two porn film producers, were charged with pimping and modern slavery in France. But this is the first time that porn actors have been charged with rape.
An investigation into what is touted as an amateur porn hub in 2020 prompted dozens of women in the industry to come forward and share their experiences about the abuse they have faced on amateur as well as professional film sets.
One actor said in 2020 that a director had forced her into acts that left her in pain for days. Other women also recounted experiences when they were forced by directors to accept scenes that were not discussed before.
One actor said that she had been forced to engage in a sexual act with a man who was not wearing a condom. He had lied about testing negative for sexually transmitted diseases and actually had herpes, she said.
The MeToo movement, which first originated as a social media campaign, and saw women across the world opening up about the sexual abuse faced by them in workplaces, has seen a resurgence in France this year.
In February, the French justice minister promised better legal protection against child abuse after the hashtag started trending again with accounts of incest and child abuse.
Meanwhile, in the US, porn star Ron Jeremy was charged with rape and sexual assault of 21 women and girls this year.
