Bonnie Rotten

Early life

Rotten was born in May 1993 in Cincinnati, Ohio and was raised by her grandparents. She claims to have had her first sexual experience with multiple male partners at age 16.

Career

Rotten started her career as a fetish model for the magazine Girls and Corpses, which took note of her after she won the Ms. Dead Indiana Beauty Pageant at the Indianapolis Days of the Dead convention. She entered the adult industry in early 2012. The company Digital Sin produced two films focused entirely on her, Meet Bonnie, which was a sales-chart-topping success Rotten credits adult video performer Nina Hartley with helping her make the transition from modeling to porn.

In May 2014, Rotten filed a lawsuit against pornographic film actor and producer, Max Hardcore, alleging appropriation of her identity, defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress, over his publication of a scene the two had recorded together in 2012. In July 2014, Max Hardcore filed a countersuit over image rights, alleging that Rotten had breached the agreement that she signed.

In October 2014, the German-based company Digital Sports Innovation announced the availability of Bonnie Rotten figurines, ranging from five to fourteen inches tall.

In February 2015, the sex toy manufacturer Pipedream announced that it was shipping the "Bonnie Rotten Signature Collection". In April 2015, Rotten generated publicity in Manhattan by going topless in Times Square, Washington Square Park and on the subway.

In June 2015, the daily fantasy sports company Draftster announced that it had signed Rotten to an "exclusive sponsorship and promotional deal."

Starting in 2013, Rotten appeared as a featured performer at strip clubs in numerous cities. In October 2015, The Lee Network announced an exclusive agreement with Rotten to represent her for her dance engagements.

In May 2015, Rotten reported her pregnancy, giving birth to a girl later that year. Since she quit performing in February 2015, she initially had no plans to return to the adult film industry. However, she returned to porn in 2018 until her final retirement in 2020.

Mainstream appearances Rotten appears with pornographic film actresses Asphyxia Noir and London Keyes in the music video for the 2013 song "Kiss Land" by The Weeknd.

In January 2014, Rotten was featured in a music video for the song "Let's F**k" by Los Angeles band Piece by Piece along with Terror drummer Nick Jett. The video debuted on Vimeo.

In 2013, LA Weekly ranked her fifth on their list of "10 Porn Stars Who Could Be the Next Jenna Jameson". She was also placed on CNBC's list of "The Dirty Dozen: Porn's Most Popular Stars" in 2014 and 2015.

In 2014, The Daily Beast referred to Rotten as "Porn's current 'It' girl" in an article about the annual AVN Awards at which she won "Female Performer of the Year". Though declaring that the porn industry had "died," performer Joey Silvera is quoted as saying: "there is still enough magic left that the awards can make a difference for Bonnie if she wins."

Other ventures

In January 2014, Rotten launched her own production company (Mental Beauty, Inc.) and signed a distribution deal with Girlfriends Films. She made her directorial debut with the film To the Core. She also directed Sisters of Anarchy for Digital Playground.

Tattoos

Rotten has over thirty tattoos, In one instance, she claimed that her favorite tattoo is the one on her stomach, featuring a zombie from the comic book Night of the Living Dead: The Beginning, Issue 1. It was her first ever tattoo and took 13 hours to complete. In June 2013, she said that her favorite tattoo was of Frank Sinatra on her leg.

In 2017, she opened a tattoo shop called Bonnie Rotten's Best Kept Secret, staffed by the artists Ryan Stoner, Gentle Jay and Mark Matthews. The shop was open for one year. Citing differences between her and Jay, the shop was closed in early 2018.

Personal life

After her career, Rotten became passionate about shooting and now advocates for gun rights.

Rotten married television host Jesse James in June 2022. They have a son. The couple later reconciled, filing a joint notice of nonsuit in 2025 to dismiss their divorce proceedings.

Starlet of the Year DVD of the Year

Best All Sex Release (Editor's Choice) Social Media Star (Fan's Choice)

Best Ink (Fan's Choice) Sex Award Hottest New Girl

Female Performer of the Year Scene of the Year

XBIZ Award Best Scene – Non-Feature Release

Best Group Sex Scene Female Performer of the Year

XCritic Award Female Performer of the Year Fanny Award Kink Performer of the Year XRCO Award Superslut TLARaw Award Best Female Newcomer Exotic Dancer Award Adult Movie Entertainer of the Year NINFA Award Special Award

Best Female Performer (Fan's Choice) Best Ink (Editor's Choice) Best Fetish/Specialty Release (Fan's Choice) Bonnie Rotten is Squirtwoman Venus Award Best Actress (International)

XCritic Award Queen of Porn AVN Award Kinkiest Performer (Fan Award) Spank Bank Award Super Squirter of the Year NINFA Award Best Scene of the Year Bonnie Rotten en ActricesDelPorno NightMoves Award Best Ink (Fan's Choice) Inked Award Girl/Girl Scene of the Year Twisted Lesbian Anal Spit Play 2016 NightMoves Award Triple Play Award (Dancing/Performing/Directing)

2017 Inked Award Hall of Fame