US adult film actress visits Iran where porn carries death penalty

U.S. adult film actress Whitney Wright visited Iran, where pornography is illegal and punishable by the death penalty and women are forced to cover their hair in public under the threat of incarceration. 

Wright, who has advocated for Palestinians and spread false information about Israel following Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, said Monday on Instagram that she is no longer in Iran. 

Iranian authorities denied any involvement in Wright's visit and said she was granted a visa typical for foreign citizens and officials unaware of her profession at that time, according to Agence France-Presse.

Wright posted pictures of herself following the mandatory Islamic dress code, including a headscarf, as she visited sites such as the former U.S. Embassy, which is now a museum. 

Women who appear without the Islamic hijab in public can be fined or sentenced to jail, according to the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center. People involved in producing pornography can be sentenced to death in Iran.

Wright's visit comes more than a year after protests wracked the country following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was in the custody of Iran's "morality police" for allegedly not following the country's strict dress code. Additionally, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi remains in Iranian prison for her work fighting for human rights.  

Iranian human rights activist Masih Alinejad criticized Wright's comments about her trip in a post on X, formerly Twitter. 

"American porn star Whitney Wright is in Iran, my birth country, where women are killed for simply showing their hair and being true to themselves," Alinejad wrote. "Whitney has published several photos [of] herself completely covered up on Instagram. On her post she called me a warmonger and tells women: 'If you respect the law, you will be safe in Iran.'"

Follow Madeleine Hubbard on X or Instagram.