By all accounts, Riley Reid had it all. Fame, fortune, a global fanbase, and the title of the most popular adult entertainer on Earth.
But behind the scenes, the 33-year-old — born Ashley Matthews — was wrestling with personal battles that even millions of followers and a spot in multiple Halls of Fame couldn’t fix.
Riley Reid is an American pornographic film actress who worked as a stripper before she entered the adult industry at just 19.
She quickly skyrocketed to the top and her cheerful on-camera persona and natural energy made her a standout in a crowded space, leading LA Weekly and CNBC to name her one of the top adult stars in the business.
”I think it’s just like I’m relatable and I smile in my videos,” Reid explained when asked about the secret behind her rapid rise to the top.
With 15 years of experience and accolades like the AVN and XRCO Hall of Fame inductions under her belt, it seemed like she was unstoppable.
But her success came at a high price.
“I don’t have a mom anymore”
In a 2020 podcast interview, Reid got brutally honest about how her career fractured her relationship with her mother.
The two stopped speaking altogether, and Reid admitted the pain never fully left her. “I miss having a mom,” she said. “I don’t ever think I will [have that relationship again] and that bums me out.”
That wasn’t the only personal fallout. The star has long been candid about how her work complicated her love life — and in one case, left her feeling ashamed of herself.
A moment that broke her
In a gut-wrenching 2018 interview on Impaulsive, Reid recalled a moment with an ex that haunted her.
“He didn’t want to kiss me when I came home from work,” she said. “He made me feel like a disgusting person.”
That experience planted seeds of self-doubt and made her question if she could ever be loved for who she really was. “He made me feel like maybe I should quit,” she admitted.
Chasing love, not just clicks
Reid eventually made a decision that shocked fans: she stopped filming scenes with men altogether.
“It was really hard to find love while performing,” she said. “I made that choice because I was lonely and I wanted love and affection… and I wasn’t gonna find that in the life I was living.”
In a 2021 episode of Jordyn Jones’ What They Don’t Tell You podcast, Reid opened up about the identity crisis that came with being known as “Riley” to the world, while simply being “Ashley” at home. That disconnect only intensified the strain on her romantic life.
She added in a separate 2022 interview on No Jumper that a toxic ex nearly drove her out of the business entirely. “I thought I hated porn, but then I realized I just hated him,” she said.
Finding peace, finally
Today, Reid is married to Latvian freerunner Pasha Petkuns. The couple tied the knot in 2021 and now share a daughter — proof that, despite all the setbacks, love found a way.
Motherhood has completely transformed Riley Reid’s perspective on life. While navigating her new role, the former top-ranked adult star has opened up about the emotional journey of rediscovering who she is outside of the porn industry.
“It’s been really fun,” Reid shared. “It’s definitely been a different identity process of me trying to figure out who this new version of myself is.”
She reflected on a time during her adult film career when she also struggled with her sense of self: “I remember having my identity crisis when I was in porn, being like ‘who am I?’ and like ‘what is this?’”
Now, she says, that process is unfolding all over again—but with a new set of challenges. “I’m trying to re-navigate myself within, trying to parent as well as be like a business person and so that’s been really interesting.”
Stepping away from filming
Part of that re-evaluation includes stepping away from filming adult scenes.
Reid admits that her relationship with the work has shifted dramatically since giving birth.
“Yeah, as well as like trying to adapt to the adult world because, to be honest, I don’t love shooting content now that I have like a c-section scar,” she explained. “Cos it puts like a date and a time stamp.”
She went on to say that while the scar doesn’t bother her personally, she worries about how her daughter might feel about it one day. “I don’t care, but like I only care in the sense of where I worry that if it bothers her in the future then it’s going to bother me. If it doesn’t bother her, then it doesn’t bother me but I’m like, I know that there’s a time stamp so I can’t lie and be like ‘that was all before you.’”
She may no longer be the face of every scene, but Riley Reid is still commanding attention in a very different way: by showing the world the woman behind the performer.
