Tia Kai Talks Mainstream Projects, AVN Stars

LOS ANGELES—The dream of many who get into the adult industry is to go mainstream and start working in Hollywood productions.  Sometimes it works and Tia Kai is a recent example of mainstream success even while still working in adult. She has two credits in recent Hollywood films even while she is an active girl/girl performer and shoots regularly for her fans on AVN Stars. Tia’s Hollywood debut was Bikini Girl in Stay Off the App. This smaller role quickly led to a lead role as Pam in The Country Singer. The Bikini Girl role is based on Gigi Wu, the infamous Taiwanese “bikini hiker” known for hiking mountains and photographing herself on top of the peaks in bikinis. The social media star died in early 2019 after falling into a ravine. The film aims to show the dangers of social media and is about a dangerous app that pays people to use it but also puts them in danger of losing their lives. Directed by Dan Frank, the movie also stars Richard Grieco (21 Jump Street), Mindy Robinson and Kirk Fox (Forgetting Sarah Marshall). That role was quickly followed by The Country Singer, which was directed by Grieco and featured many actors from Stay Off the App. In The Country Singer, Tia portrays Pam who is scouting for the next big country singer, who turns out to be a Jewish rabbi named Bucky Goldstein who becomes Max Nightly. No stranger to being on set or in front of the camera, Tia says the experience on a Hollywood set isn’t that much different than a Porn Valley set, though there are differences (beyond the nudity!). “I feel like mainstream and adult are very similar in how they produce films,” she says. “The adult industry has helped prepare me for what it's like being on set and being in front of the camera. The main difference in my experience between adult and mainstream is the food! I rarely eat when I'm on an adult film set, but when I'm on mainstream I feel like I'm eating all the time. Plus, the food they provide is amazing, plentiful and free!” The opportunities presented themselves when a casting director discovered her and offered the role in Stay Off the App. She worked hard to memorize her lines and make the most of her mainstream movie debut. From there she was cast in The Country Singer. While some would look at these credits, the screen time and craft services splendor and quickly shut down their porn career, that’s not Tia’s way. She likes what she does and she’s too smart to go all-in after a couple movies came out during a year where theaters have mostly been closed. And even though so much has been shut down this year, Tia took full advantage of it by beefing up her AVN Stars content as well as other social media. In fact, she says the pandemic has actually turned out to be an advantage. “I feel like my relationship with my fans has actually improved because quarantine has given me more time to get to know them,” she says. “I genuinely love sharing my life through AVN Stars because it helps cultivate the relationships I have created with my fans through there. The main difference is I'm the director. I do all the planning and hiring and I get to choose the girls that I want to work with. Choosing the girls is the best part because it gives me the opportunity to have sex with my friends. “Through AVN Stars I share various aspects of my life from everything from daily life to photoshoots to adult videos. This gives my fans the opportunity to get to know me on a personal level, which is what I really want.” Considering she has posted to her AVN Stars about 800 times – more than 400 videos and 2000 photos – it’s clear that she really values the opportunity to express herself and to connect with fans. For the moment, she will continue to straddle both industries. The next mainstream movies she’ll be working on are a horror anthology series directed by Ace Fillmore and The Christmas Dick directed by Max Nightly. And while the latter might sound like a Porn Valley offering, it is not. Though if someone decides to shoot an adult parody, that should put Tia in a pretty good position to get a sweet role. Stay Off the App and The Country Singer are currently streaming on Amazon. To see more of Tia Kai, visit her AVN Stars at stars.avn.com/tiakaidotcom.  Photos by Legend One & Tia Kai