Carter Cruise Talks Finding 'Control' as ABP Contract Star

LOS ANGELES—When an adult performer starts her career off by achieving something only Jenna Jameson has done before, where do you go from there? In 2015, Carter Cruise became the second performer ever to win both Best New Starlet and Best Actress at the AVN Awards in the same year, following Jameson in 1996. So for 2016 she had to go big ... because this Southern gal clearly has no intention of going home. Going big meant joining the select group of adult performers who still enjoy contract star status. Specifically, Cruise signed with Axel Braun Productions (ABP), which releases its movies through Wicked Pictures, where Jameson herself signed as a contract star in 1995. The backstory for Cruise, the sexy college student turned adult star, is well known. Born in Atlanta, Cruise always knew she wanted to work in entertainment. After ending her time at East Carolina University in 2013, she began working as an erotic model and made her porn debut in August of the same year. Since then, Cruise has landed many major roles in such features as American Hustle XXX and Cinderella XXX, as well as the lead in Braun’s upcoming Supergirl XXX, set to release this month. Cruise recently talked to AVN, and she was particularly excited about her showcase with Wicked Pictures, titled Cruise Control, which was the first movie released under her contract with ABP. Showing just how much range this 25-year-old has to offer, the movie is 133 minutes of “an unabridged, unadulterated, total fucking overload of Carter,” said director Braun. For the movie, Cruise and Braun put their heads together on how to approach her debut under the exclusive contract. Cruise praised the director, saying the ideas mostly came from his “brilliantly twisted mind.” Added Cruise, “He knows I'm pretty much down to do whatever, so we are a good team.” “The main concept was to let Carter completely loose sexually, while offering a glimpse into who she truly is and what turns her on,” Braun explained. “This was her first movie since I signed her to an exclusive contract, so it was very important for me to get as much input from her as I could. We sat down and decided to start by exploring different levels of control, which was a fitting theme since she is a switch, she can be dominant and submissive with equal intensity.”  When asked about her experience working alongside Braun, Cruise said, “Duh! Axel is the man. He's so good at what he does and he's just fun to be around on set. Forever good vibes and I appreciate that.”  With a Twitter page that includes the boast “your girlfriend's favorite porn star,” Cruise has created a sexy yet cool persona, to which Braun can attest. “She is absolutely a hoot!” Braun said. “She has an explosive personality and the most infectious laugh.” He elaborated, saying, “She really is the quintessential ‘cool chick,’ and can shoot the shit with the boys one minute and be the sexiest woman on the planet the next, so yeah, it’s always plenty of fun working with her. Never a dull moment with Carter, I can tell you that.” Cruise Control is mainly focused on Cruise, of course, but also features Asa Akira, Aiden Ashley, Steve Holmes, Tommy Gunn and John Strong. Each scene explores a new level of control, continuously getting more intense. Braun explained that while the film is centered on Cruise, “I was lucky enough to be able to pair her with some of the best male performers in the industry, as well as with Aiden Ashley and Asa Akira.” Braun pointed out that Ashley has been exclusively with him for almost five years. “I can honestly say her scene with Carter is one of the best girl/girl scenes I have ever shot in 26 years,” Braun asserted. “Asa really needs no introduction—she is a superstar and for all the right reasons,” he continued. “She and Carter shared porn legend Steve Holmes in a scorching three-way with plenty of anal. Very intense.” Cruise echoed Braun, saying, “The cast was really solid in this movie. I got to work with Asa when I first started porn but hadn't gotten to since, so that was great. Asa is just a fucking fantastic performer and so much fun to be around.” “I hadn't worked with Aiden Ashley before, but she's hands down one of the coolest chicks I've met in L.A. and playing a dominant one in this scene was a fun change of pace,” Cruise recalled. “Steve Holmes is a legend and certainly lived up to that, and Tommy and John are always great. I especially appreciate Tommy putting up with wearing a mask for two scenes. He was a champ.”  Cruise explained, “I can't really pick a favorite [scene] because they were all fun in their own way. I definitely forgot how good d.p.'s feel, though! I could barely walk after.” Braun concurred, noting, “I have to say the d.p. with Tommy Gunn and John Strong was awesomely real and pretty exceptional, if you ask me.”  The starlet explained how Cruise Control allowed her to explore her range in a fresh way. “It's a showcase movie, but it's a showcase of different types of control as well as me as a performer, which makes it more interesting than a typical showcase because I'm playing different roles instead of just only being Carter Cruise.” And of course it also offered her an opportunity to work with the notoriously perfectionistic Braun: “Axel is so precise with his directing and really makes beautiful stuff, so that's the icing on the cake.”  After their experience working together closely, Cruise and her director clearly have developed an easy rapport. When asked why he decided to direct this movie, Braun jokingly said, “Carter threatened to anally rape me with a bowling pin if I didn’t, so I really had no choice!” Cruise Control is available now from Wicked Pictures. To find out more, go to WickedB2B.com or Wicked.com. Pictured above: Carter Cruise in Cruise Control (Axel Braun Productions/Wicked Pictures)