There was a time when porn stars were famous for fucking and that was their career. But now we live in a time where they are labelled porn actors, they are intellectual performance artists, high fashion models or even dressed in drag and slapped on the cover of a rather brilliant new LGBT mag. Ahem.
Michael Lucas is another case in point. He may have started off in porn, but it wasn’t long before he was using sex to break boundaries by filming the first ever porn film in Israel and now he has directed Campaign of Hate: Russia and Gay Propaganda, a documentary about LGBT life in his homeland – Russia. We caught up with him to find out more…

So, was porn something you always wanted to pursue or something you thought you could make a name for yourself in – or even a potential way to escape Russia?
I wanted to be a lawyer and went to law school. But, at the same time I always wanted to leave Russia and make it in America. Porn was something I believed I could do and do well. Russian laws are way too different compared to American laws and my education would not have been recognized in the States. I had to get legalized, make money and bring my family here so I had no means to study again.
I was always very sexual but I wasn’t really watching porn. I think what led me to the industry was my sexual ability. I like all types of men regardless of race or age. Porn seemed to be the perfect idea.

Which has been your favourite porn film to make?
The most incredible experience was filming the very first porn movie made in Israel – ‘Men of Israel.’ It was a very unknown territory to film porn there because neither straight nor gay porn had been filmed there before. It happened to become the most amazing experience for our entire production team. We filmed in the most gorgeous locations all over the country and the men were absolutely stunning. We returned the following year with a bunch of American and European guys and paired them with Israeli models.

Who has been your favourite partner?
Many have stood out but Adam Killian comes to mind first. It was a very different scene then either of us had ever done before. It wasn’t so much fucking but rather love making.

We’re big fans of Dean Monroe and Adam Killian. Do you have any stories from working with them?
I like both of them. Dean is one of the sweetest guys I have ever met. Adam is just fantastic all around. Adam really gets it. I never have to direct his scenes. He is so natural when it comes to having sex in front of the camera. He has no boundaries and he knows what I want.

Can you tell us some stories about the celebrities who have cameoed in your movies like Graham Norton and RuPaul?
Most of them were great. I didn’t have such a great experience with Boy George though. He can be super sweet but he can also be very impatient and arrogant. I remember we sent a limo to pick him up and bring him to the location and when he arrived on set we were all waiting for him inside. He expected to be met outside. He could have just called me, instead he told the driver to bring him back home and never picked up when we tried calling him. He said “stars do not wait.”

How is PrEP affecting the porn industry?
In a great way. I think models that are on PrEP are not worried about the HIV status of their partners. Besides the obvious that PrEP keeps people from getting HIV, it also eliminates the stigma.
Today HIV is not the death penalty. People with HIV live normal healthy lives but it comes with a huge stigma and often alienation. It makes it much more difficult to find a partner and you are being judged.
People can be insensitive. My boyfriend is positive and it was never a problem for me but he encountered lots of bigotry when going on dates. I think it’s wonderful that people with different statuses can be intimate without fear.

You’ve become known for your political work with Israel and Russia. Are you going to keep progressing with other countries too?
It depends on what you are talking about. I write about Russia, Israel and countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
I care deeply about the mistreatment of women, sexual and religious minorities in Muslim countries.
I believe that we do not speak enough about that. But if you are talking about me filming another documentary then no, I do not have any current plans to do so yet.

Has anything happened to the people you interviewed for Campaign of Hate for being involved with the film? What could happen?
A lot of the people I interviewed left and I helped many of them with getting to America and up on their feet. As for what can happen? It’s Russia, you never know. But keep in mind this movie will never be released in Russia.

Were you worried when you were filming the documentary?
I was more disgusted and depressed. For one month I was locked in this vile country surrounded by hate, listening to terrifying stories and talking to ignorant bigots.

What can we all do to help move Russia forward?
As history has taught us, it’s impossible. We tried to fight Communism for seventy years and this was a major effort by the United States and the Western World. Giants like Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and the Pope dedicated their careers to the cause. It took three generations till the collapse of the Soviet Union.
As you can see, nothing of what we have done since the anti-gay laws have been implemented has helped. In fact, lots of things backfired and made the lives of LGBT russians more dangerous. Russian authorities filmed and showed protests held in front of Russian embassies all over the world but chose to highlight drag queens and people in leather so that a majority of Russian people would not be able to relate to them. This footage was used as a scare tactic – ‘The West is trying to replace Russian values with Western values.’ We can’t always fix the problem immediately. I made my documentary not to change the position of the Russian government but mainly to bring awareness of the lives of gay people in the third world countries. And through out this film I hope we will appreciate our society more. I think the West does not like itself enough. We do not value enough what we have, what we have fought for and what we have achieved. We are not perfect but there are a lot of things we should celebrate, be proud of and defend.

You moved your family out of Russia. Why was that? Were they happy to leave?
I brought my family here because they are a great family. I am very close to my parents, grandparents and my brother and we all wanted to be together. Were they happy to leave? That is is a complicated question. Immigration is not an easy thing but I made the experience as easy as possible for them.

You’ve likened the Qur’an to Mein Kampf. Do you still stand by those statements?
Absolutely. It’s a horrible, barbaric, dusty old book. It is more cruel and hateful then the Bible and the Torah combined. The problem is that many Muslims read this book literally. They use it as a guidance and that is one of the main reasons for Muslim violence.

It’s not Islamic countries that seek to attack the US and the LGBT crowd. It was terrorists who happened to be Islamic, right?
Let me point out that Islamic countries are in no way friends of America, the West nor of LGBT people. Muslims living in the Middle East hate America. How else would you explain the burning of the American flag 24/7 and hateful speeches from their Muslim leaders? And by no means do Muslim governments or citezens like LGBT people or anyone who looks or thinks different. In fact, in most of the Muslim countries homosexuality is punished by hanging, stoning or imprisonment.
And yes you are right, terrorists happen to be Islamic. And while not all Muslims are terrorists, an overwhelming majority of terrorists attacks that have been committed in the last 50 years all over the world are done by Muslim extremists.

What’s your favourite Mariah Carey song?
Forgive me, this is the only question I don’t have enough knowledge to answer.

The shaaaaaaaade of it all!

Photo Credits: Christopher Logan

For more on Michael see www.lucasentertainment.com or catch up with him on Facebook.