Farrah Abraham discusses hate, pay equality and life after fame in A&E docuseries Secrets of Celebrity Sex Tapes

A new A&E docuseries revisits some of the most infamous celebrity sex-tape moments and their cultural impact, including Farrah Abraham’s involvement with James Deen. The program, Secrets of Celebrity Sex Tapes, traces how leaks and deals surrounding high-profile tapes have played out in public, often affecting the women at the center of them. Abraham, who rose to fame on 16 and Pregnant and later Teen Mom, discusses her own experience with a sex tape made when she was 22 and how the arrangement unfolded. The show also looks at other tabloid-heavy cases, including Rob Lowe and Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee, to examine how tapes reverberate long after the initial release. Abraham says the discussion remains relevant because women frequently bear a disproportionate share of the fallout from such disclosures, regardless of consent or financial terms.

The interview, conducted with Decider for the docuseries’ rollout, captures Abraham addressing the tape’s public exposure, the financial aspects of selling rights, and the personal toll. She notes that she did not intend for the tape to become public and says her decision to sell the rights to Vivid Entertainment for more than a million dollars changed the direction of her career. She also points to the ongoing legal and personal scrutiny she has faced, including a contemporaneous sexual assault case with a seven-day trial looming in the near term.

Upon reflection, Abraham emphasizes the role of misogyny in the backlash she received. She recalls being booed at the 2015 AVN Awards, an incident she attributes to peers’ belief that the man involved in the tape, the adult-film performer James Deen, should have earned a similar payday. “Why didn’t the porn star get paid as much as that reality star?” she quotes as a line of critique she heard at the time. She argues that the crowd’s anger reflected broader tensions in the industry over pay equality, but insists the blame for the public exposure lay with the circumstances surrounding the release, not with her alone. The current conversation around pay and consent remains central to her narrative in the docuseries.

Away from the public eye, Abraham describes how the tape’s aftermath shaped her personal life and her approach to parenting. She and her daughter Sophia are navigating a world in which conversations about sex education and autonomy are increasingly prioritized. Abraham says Sophia is homeschooled, and she frames their parenting around open dialogue, realistic expectations, and a focus on contraception and protection. She emphasizes that her daughter understands there is no safety net if problems arise, but that she is committed to teaching resilience, self-esteem and healthy relationship habits. Abraham adds that she has always sought to bring her own experiences into a constructive parenting narrative, so Sophia can date with confidence and make informed choices.

The doc also touches on broader industry discourse. Maitland Ward, another alum interviewed for Secrets of Celebrity Sex Tapes, questions Abraham’s honesty about the tape’s intent, a sentiment Abraham dismisses as a tactic for attention. Abraham characterizes Ward’s remarks as driven by insecurity and mental-health struggles, and she says her focus is on healing, not public feuds. She notes that she now tries to avoid environments she views as toxic and that she has distanced herself from sensationalism surrounding celebrity sex. She says her goal is to preserve her mental health, her relationship with her daughter, and her ongoing projects.

The conversation turns to how the media framed the story of women in sex-tape cases compared with men. Abraham says the show points to a gender imbalance in public reception and suggests that the narrative around male perpetrators and female victims or participants often diverges in ways that unfairly spotlight women. She cites her own experience with public judgment and insists that her focus remains on learning from the past and moving forward.

Today, Abraham has built a business and following on OnlyFans, describing it as a space for creativity, consent and self-expression. She blends traditional content with new technologies, including AI-assisted offerings, and says the platform can be a safe, consensual space for fans while remaining a source of income. She suggests that a portion of the stigma around OnlyFans persists, but notes that the industry is evolving with better understanding of privacy, safety and boundaries. She adds that some creators’ actions have complicated the industry, and she urges users and platforms to uphold standards that protect both creators and consumers. For younger creators, she offers practical guidance: own what you do, be selective about where you publish content, and prioritize safety and legality.

Abraham also highlights how the experience shaped her current creative plans. She has a strong interest in performing and storytelling, and she says she would welcome a scripted adaptation of her life—ideally with her daughter portraying her at a younger age in a Lifetime-style project. While she acknowledges the challenges of translating real-life trauma to screen, she says she would embrace the opportunity if a producer reached out. The conversation ends on a note of forward-looking family collaboration and a desire to help audiences understand the complexity of fame, consent and resilience.

Secrets of Celebrity Sex Tapes airs Mondays at 9 p.m. PT/ET on A&E and is part of a broader look at how famous people navigate the consequences of intimate content leaking into the public sphere.