This Is What Is Wrong With "Not The Cosbys XXX" (And By Extension, Porn)
by, & reprinted with permission of, Lux Alptraum, of Fleshbot.com
As a general rule, I’m pretty difficult to offend (when you work adjacent to the porn industry, you sorta have to be). But this morning I received a press release that pushed me over the edge.
What was the offending press release? Why, the plainly titled "Do White Girls Make Not the Cosbys XXX 2 Sequel Better?"
To be honest, I shouldn’t have been that surprised by the press release. The adult industry makes no secret of the fact that white women are seen as the default sexual fantasy: with rare exception, black porn actresses are relegated to niche titles that fetishize the color of their skin. (Not that this makes the adult industry any different from, say, the fashion industry, but that’s a topic for another article entirely.)
But still: to take "The Cosby Show"—a sacred cow of blacks in mainstream entertainment—and to suggest that it could be "improved" with the addition of a few more white faces (and bodies)? Well, that was a bit too far for me.
Let us not forget that the original "Cosbys XXX" was not exactly a, ahem, black movie. Despite the smiling black faces adorning the box cover, there was more than enough white flesh to make this a bonafide "interracial" feature. Of the five (non-masturbation) sex scenes, only one featured two black performers; what’s more, due to the—predominantly white—six person orgy scene that clocked in as the first major sex scene, there were actually more white women than black women getting naked and sexed up in this ostensibly black movie. Not that that’s how director Will Ryder recalls things:
"What many don’t realize is that we had white girls in the first movie and even a cute Asian but most still think of it as a black movie and not even an interracial movie but that is not true," Ryder remarked.
Not that Will Ryder is racist or anything:
"Black is beautiful baby but we love women of all colors so we tossed in some more white ladies and a cute girl from Miami into this sequel and as you can see by the box cover Cliff is loving it," Ryder joked.
While the sentiment that "we love women of all colors" is a nice one, Ryder’s never been compelled to demonstrate his love of diversity by adding some extra flavor to a predominantly white movie. "Not The Bradys" doesn’t provide us with a scene of the boys going to work on a team of black women, no dark skinned beauties pop up unannounced in "Not Three’s Company." Granted, one could argue that scenes like those wouldn’t be true to the original sitcom—but then again, a six person, predominantly white orgy involving none of the show’s characters isn’t exactly true to "The Cosby Show," either.
What it feels like, ultimately, is that Ryder—and Porn Valley at large—feels the need to apologize for featuring black performers, for giving them time in the (mainstream) sun. Because black movies are seen as niche movies, any film that wants to be perceived as mainstream plays up its "interracial" angle, or its white performers—without any concern for what kind of message this sends about the film’s black talent (hint: it doesn’t make them look awesome).
And the longer we keep doing this, the longer we refuse to promote a predominantly black movie as mainstream in its own right, the more we relegate black porn performers as second class citizens. "Not the Cosbys" had the opportunity to shatter this glass ceiling, to make a black movie that was also mainstream because of its "Cosby Show" connection. And yet Will Ryder gleefully squandered the opportunity—and, with this press release, shat on any hope that he might, one day, come forth with a semi-enlightened perspective on race in the adult industry.
Sitcums (sitcums.com)
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Here’s the original press release- Do White Girls Make Not the Cosbys XXX 2 Sequel Better?
(Hollywood, CA) It takes a monumental effort in the movie business for a sequel to be better than the original movie but apparently that’s the case with X-Play’s porn comedy Not the Cosbys XXX 2 which has been garnering impressive critical reviews and early sales than have topped the 2010 AVN Award winner Not the Cosbys XXX which went on to win a slew of trophies including best parody in Las Vegas.
“Some sequels aren’t worth making and even less worth watching. That couldn’t be more untrue of this movie,” wrote Roger Pipe for www.rogreviews.com in his review of Not the Cosbys XXX 2.
“Any time you get sex this good in features it is a bonus. To get it on top of a great script, a dead on parody and a funny movie it’s the recipe for a huge hit. As they have done with the Bradys, Will Ryder and X-Play have made the Cosbys into a porn franchise that I can’t recommend strongly enough.”
“Not The Cosbys XXX 2 by director Will Ryder was an even more polished up effort than the original release from last year,” wrote Don Houston of XCritic.com in his recent movie review.
“The sex flowed better and the writing upgraded so I felt that it earned the status of an Xcritic Pick that a great many people are going to want to see. In short, Not The Cosbys XXX 2 was a winner from beginning to end, providing superior fuck for the buck, technical quality, casting, and all the other factors that enhance a porno, the hard work behind the scenes certainly making it all happen. Great job!”
Strong praise indeed for a movie and a porn franchise that many say has become the greatest interracial sex comedy series of all time but Will Ryder suspects one of the other reasons the sequel is flying off store shelves is the addition of some extra white meat sprinkled around the movie like salt at a pepper party.
“What many don’t realize is that we had white girls in the first movie and even a cute Asian but most still think of it as a black movie and not even an interracial movie but that is not true,” Ryder remarked.
“Black is beautiful baby but we love women of all colors so we tossed in some more white ladies and a cute girl from Miami into this sequel and as you can see by the box cover Cliff is loving it,” Ryder joked.
Check out the PG rated movie trailer on YouTube www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEQytnz1AMQ
Fans seem to agree as porn customers and fans of the original 1980s NBC Television series are picking up both volumes of Not the Cosbys XXX making this one of the most wholesome adult families ever rivaling Not the Bradys XXX.
“We have that option to continue the series just like Not the Bradys XXX but really if you want an entertaining movie to introduce your wife or your girlfriend to the wonderful world of porn, Not the Cosbys XXX is a great entrée but it is also fun to watch when you are home alone.”
2010 AVN Female Performer of the Year Tori Black, Jenny Hendrix, Kelly Skyline and cutie Emy Reyes are all in the sequel along with the entire Huxtable family that returns intact including Monica Foster, Cassidy Clay, Melody Nakai, Nina Devon, Tyler Knight, Tee Reel and the 2010 AVN Award winning Thomas Ward as Heathcliff Huxtable.
“We wanted to create something special and so far fans and critics love both volumes of Not Cosbys XXX,” remarked X-Play co-producer Scott David. “We are really proud of this series and if you put it on your store shelves customers pick it up.”
“I really think that Hollywood should take some lessons from Will Ryder because he is consistently able to create a sequel that more than lives up to the original,” stated Georga of Adult Movies Today.net. “If you loved the original Not the Cosby’s you are sure to love part two.”
Not Mash XXX will be in stores later this spring and X-Play’s next movie to hit stores is the highly anticipated sequel Not Married with Children XXX 2 March 23rd from X-Play/LFP Video.
NBC Television, Carsey Werner Productions and/or Bill Cosby do not endorse or sponsor Not the Cosbys XXX or the sequel.
They should make Not Sanford and Son XXX, you know Sanford wouldn’t put his mack down on no white piece of flesh. What about remakes of the blaxploitation pimp movies like Willie Dynamite, Dolemite or The Mack.
“I’m with Dolemite”
“WHO????”
“DOLEMITE MOTHERFUCKER!!!!!!”
“to suggest that it could be “improved” with the addition of a few more white faces (and bodies)?”
He wasn’t suggesting that whites are a superior race, Lux. The press release ASKS if having whites makes it better than it being an all black movie. Integration is not a racist concept, last time I checked.
What is wrong with being white? Being of color does not make one immune from being a disgusting racist. Racism of any kind if terrible and wrong.
When the lights go out we’re all black anyway.
Wow this story got a lot of reaction on Fleshbot and when I read the original post by Lux I felt a need to respond. Here is a copy of my reply which is also on Fleshbot.com (It might be long but here it is)
Lux,
Your story on our movie Not the Cosbys XXX 2 while well-written is very misleading to your audience that I felt I had to respond. First off, read the PR story once again without looking at the ‘shocking title’ and see if it doesn’t read a whole lot differently.
When we did our parody of the Cosby Show, we certainly gave every character the respect and dignity that they deserved and made sure to write a story that was not typical of what many would think that the porn industry would create. I championed every single performer especially Misty Stone who I believed was a great actress from the first time I ever shot her for a series that I created for Hustler called Barely Legal Black Chicks.
I remember talking to Hustler about making a very well-produced movie featuring beautiful black girls in gorgeous nicely shot settings. I thought there were enough ‘junk in the trunk’ type black movies and I wanted to give a stage to up and coming black girls so that they could have the same high quality movies that the white girls had. I had to really push hard and long to finally get them to agree and that result led us to creating Not the Cosbys XXX.
For you to make me seem racist is so laughable to me that I don’t know if I should smile or cry. Not the Cosbys XXX put black performers on an equal stage with their white peers and truly shed a light that black could be a part of the awards parade and gain additional fans. The sad part is that we do live in a black and white world where I sadly found out that no matter how good or well-produced Not the Cosbys XXX would become it would not sell nearly as well as our other white parodies. I thought it would sell in Brady Bunch type numbers but my reports from retail stores all carried the same message which was “too many blacks on the cover”.
I am a guy that grew up in one of the most racially polarized cities in America yet I always had black friends. I made a twenty year career as a musician working mostly with other black musicians of which I lived, shared meals, rode thousands of bus hours with and enjoyed life with yet you suggest that I am a racist? I won’t even tell you about the girl I was involved with for a 16 year relationship because then I would sound a bit self-serving.
The point is I wrote a PR story that needed a shocking title and yes I bowed down to the powers of retail by creating a cover that might intrigue more buyers because we do live and die by the sale but there are not many white people in porn industry that has championed the black performer more so than me and I say that not expecting any pats on the back or special words. I just wanted to make a great parody of a wonderful television show and we succeeded. I also wanted to shed light on some truly unique talent like Thomas Ward as Cliff and Misty Stone as Denise who deserved every award, nomination and critical rave they have and continue to receive.
I think it is very unfair for you to even suggest that I set porn back with this PR story. I am glad that people will now read it because we are in the business of getting exposure which usually results in move movie sales. More money means we can continue to create what could be considered risky projects by many including more black shows.
I am quite proud of what we have accomplished and the recognition we have received and our actors who have shared the spotlight by being in a movie that we put our heart, soul, love and money into. The fact that I want to sell a ton of Not the Cosbys XXX 2 does not and never will make me a racist or taint the tiny legacy that I hope we have created with this wonderful porn franchise. I appreciate your words but I must say you missed it this time.
Thank you,
Jeff Mullen
AKA Will Ryder
Let there just be hot black girls, we dont need any white girls here. Monica Foster could perform in every scene and that would be fine with me. Though it is a parody of the Cosbys and they were the ideal white family of the 80’s, in the same way that George Lopez was the ideal white family of the late 90’s. Does Thomas Ward get his freak on and spread some Cliff seed? That would make a sequel, black, white, asian or latina. I just hope no one ever makes a Not Cotton Comes to Harlem XXX a parody, the original had two of the baddest cops ever, the great Godfrey Cambridge and Raymond St Jacques.
“I won’t even tell you about the girl I was involved with for a 16 year relationship because then I would sound a bit self-serving.”
“I have fucked a black girl/black guy” has become the new “I have black friends”.
When the lights go out… I glow in the dark
Look, there has been a recent thread of crazy with Mullen. The weird press release chastening the Urban Spice Awards, the fight with Derek, and now this..
With Not The Cosbys XXX being made for less than what you spend on the usual porn parody, why would you expect to make the same amount in profit? Its not like you had Marie Luv and Jada Fire in it.
OK, I gotta say something on this one, and unfortunately considering that I’ve had a few glasses of wine tonight, I’m probably not in the best state of mind to do so – but here goes…
Jeff Mullen / Will Ryder is not a racist – and neither is anyone who works with him as far as I can tell. Mullen/Ryder is partial to (if any color) the green – and I’m not talking about the green you smoke, I’m talking about the green that is deposited into your bank account.
As someone who was a part of the “Not the Cosbys XXX” and “Not the Cosbys XXX 2” cast, yea, I was a little miffed that the box cover of the second (sequel) didn’t have any of the female cast on the cover, but honestly – who cares. I’m over it. Anyone who buys the movie will see the hot black cast members so if it takes white and tan ass to sell it – so be it. We live in a racist world – since moving to the west coast I’ve come to accept that (though I don’t like it).
The first “Not the Cosbys XXX” was enough of a “launch pad” for everyone in the cast who had enough sense to capitalize off of it, so I can’t complain too much (and I’m known for complaining – extensively).
If this particular parody had been made by ANY other studio out here in the L.A. area it would NOT have been done with the class and to the level that X-play took both the of the “Not the Cosby XXX” flix too.
Do NOT attack Mullen / Ryder for ANYTHING in this particular situation, because himself and Scott David and the rest of his staff put a tremendous amount of time and effort into this piece of work. I was there so I KNOW.
I still question whether or not this piece of work is even true porn. I, as an individual performer in the piece of have received a wide array of feedback on it. Some people were angry as they thought it desecrated a “fine african – american institution” (which initially effected me negatively emotionally, but currently I think that thought is ridiculous considering the blaxploitation films I’ve become a fan of recently) – while others – in fact over 80% of the feedback I’ve received LOVED IT.
I give major props to Ryder / Mullen to have more balls and business savvy than others in “porn world” to make this flick and market it as effectively as he has.
Yea, Marie Luv and Jada Fire were NOT in it, but guess what – they’ve had their time to make their mark. Let other up and comers have a shot. Misty Stone really shined in this series, and though I might sound narcissistic I DID TOO. Hell, Cassidy Clay ROCKED IT as Sandra , Tyler Knight did a GREAT job as Theo , Melody Nakai was the PERFECT Vanessa, the original “Cockroach” probably WISHES he was as fly as T-Real’s version of the character and Nina Devon…well I’m not sure where she channeled her “Rudy” from but she was PERFECT for the part and I can pretty much guarantee that will be a scene that MANY will watch over, and over and over.
Don’t turn this one particular adult movie into a black/white thing. If ANYTHING lets look at the current state of the PORN INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE as having a serious issue with hiring black performers.
As I’ve questioned publicly before WHY doesn’t studios like VIVID, WICKED, ADAM and EVE or DIGITAL PLAYGROUND have even ONE black female performer under contract?!?!?!
When I entered the world of porn, my initial GOAL was to be a contract girl, but evidently I didn’t have a chance in HELL.
The above mentioned studios had better PRAY that I don’t get the funding that I personally need to produce and release the works I’ve written, because if (and most likely WHEN) that day comes, their monoracial boring vanilla shit will be put to shame.
Don’t attack Ryder/Mullen when he’s done more for the black performers who have ambition and that you’ll see in the industry for the next few years to come than ANY OTHER FUCKING STUDIO OUT THERE in the current market who OBVIOUSLY has racial issues.
I strongly suggest that other industry professionals who are reading this who are instumental in the continuation of the adult entertainment world to get off the KKK stage coach and get with the times.
Sorry but having just ONE black face on your agency roster doesn’t cut it nowdays mother fuckers.
My point with mentioning Jada and Marie not being in the movie is that sales would have been better had well known female talent been used in the larger parts. That is the trend in the other XPlay sitcums (the Brady Bunch had Hilary Scott, Aurora Snow, and Teagan in the first one).
Jeff is nuts.
“We live in a racist world – since moving to the west coast I’ve come to accept that (though I don’t like it).”
You didn’t accept that this is a racist world before moving to Cali? Just curious Monica, regarding the general whereabouts you are from originally, and do you mean the west coast is more racist than other places? Is it a racist world, or are there just some racist people? Race is an issue when someone makes it an issue.
I wouldn’t be too pissed about there not being more of the family cast in Cosby’s 2. A repeat of the first Cosby’s cover would’ve been a bit redundant if it’s the same exact core cast. Also how many times do you see a guy (black or white) dominate a straight video boxcover? Of course he should, I think, because he looks and behaves just like Bill Cosby. On the first boxcover he’s not prominant at all and after his performance in the first Cosbys he’s proven that he deserves to be.
(huh, why did this comment go to required “mod approval”? I wonder what word triggered it.)
Monica does make a great point about the race of contract girls and some agencies rosters…The Earl’s: Zero point Zero, Type 9: Seven in LA, OC: 4, Metro: 2, Lisa Ann: 1, Foxxx: 2, A List: 8, Girlz Inc: 5, World: 12, Spiegler: 1, though some of the girls are listed on more than one agency’s site.
Did anyone read this AP story?: A male voice came over the public-address system Sunday evening at a Walmart store in Washington Township, in southern New Jersey, and calmly announced: “Attention, Walmart customers: All black people, leave the store”… it was unclear whether a rogue patron or an employee was responsible for the comment…
In other news, Bernie Madoff Madoff, while serving his 150 year sentence for multibillion dollar fraud was reportedly assaulted by another inmate and treated for a broken nose, fractured ribs and cuts after the attack.
Also, Sandra Bullocks, beloved by all of porn valley for her Oscar comments regarding loving children of pornstars “no matter where they come from”, has canceled her appearance at the London premiere of “The Blind Side” days after Internet reports alleged she was having trouble in her marriage due to her husband’s infidelity, and that she had left the couple’s Southern California home. Sounds like she was blind-sided, herself. LOL.
You forgot Goldstar, Larry. I counted 1/2 a dozen.
Spiegler reps only 20 girls so that must mean he discriminates against all races (He only has 1 asian, as well). Looks like Ol’ Jim South from Texas is the King of Integration!
I tried to look at Goldstar but couldnt gain access. At least Spiegler has one, the Earl has 113 models listed but not one black girl. Of course we’re all in a huff over condoms.
Them condom nazis need to go huff into a big condom, then fit it over their heads. Schweinhund!
Thank you Monica for your very well written piece and I appreciate your words.
So Will loves your piece Monica, jury still out on Jeff. More I think about the Agency situation more I get rattled. The Earl has one girl, of 113. Monica, keep writing, keep performing too, you’re a class act.