The adult entertainment world has lost one of its true titans. Paul Thomas, the award-winning director and actor known affectionately as “P.T.,” has passed away at the age of 76. His death marks the end of a chapter for the industry, a time when big-budget, story-driven features shot on film were king, and P.T. wore the crown.
The Man Who Put Story First
For nearly 25 years, Paul Thomas was the creative engine behind Vivid Entertainment, one of the most iconic studios in adult history. He wasn’t just pointing a camera; he was crafting worlds, building characters, and insisting that a great adult movie needed more than just great sex—it needed a great story.
Steven Hirsch, the co-founder and CEO of Vivid, told AVN just how fundamental P.T. was to the studio’s legacy.
“P.T. always believed in storyline. The storyline was most important, he was definitely not an all-sex movie director… He believed very strongly in the power of acting and storytelling and that was of utmost importance to him, sometimes more important than even the sex. He was super talented and really easy to work with.”
This commitment paid off, earning him a staggering 12 AVN Awards for Best Film or Best Director, including a record seven wins for Best Director – Film. Movies like The Masseuse, The New Devil in Miss Jones, and Layout weren’t just adult films; they were cinematic events, thanks to his vision.
“A True Original and a Real Character”
Before he ever stepped behind the camera, Thomas was a performer on stage and screen, appearing in Broadway and touring productions of Jesus Christ Superstar and the original run of Hair. That theatrical background infused everything he did. He knew how to get a performance out of people, a skill that made him beloved by actors.
AVN Hall of Famer Christy Canyon, a Vivid contract star during its heyday, shared her memories with AVN, calling him a “piece of my youth.”
“He was a brilliant director with a vision like no one had ever seen before. He went more for the storyline and the aesthetics of it. When it came to the sex scenes he didn’t care about them as much, he wanted it to be more cinematic… He was adorable, wonderful, magnificent. He was a genius.”
His colleagues remember a man who was as eccentric as he was brilliant. Shylar Cobi, his production manager for over a decade, recalled to AVN how he and P.T. once pitched the blockbuster remake of The New Devil in Miss Jones to the studio by scribbling the budget on a bar napkin at a party.
An Unforgettable First Impression
Tributes have poured in from across the industry, with many sharing personal stories that capture P.T.’s unique and unforgettable personality. Fellow legendary director Axel Braun shared a particularly wild anecdote with AVN about their first meeting in 1990.
“My father [Lasse Braun] took me to the apartment that Henri Pachard had arranged for me, and right next door, his son Ralph Parfait had an editing studio. We walked in, and Ralph was cutting a movie. Behind him, on a couch, a guy was watching—and masturbating. My father turned to me and said, ‘Axel, this is Paul Thomas.’ And P.T., without missing a stroke, casually switched hands and extended his right hand to me, ‘Oh hi, you can call me P.T.!’ What an absolute legend.”
Braun also noted that Thomas was a generous mentor who recommended him for a job at Hustler without even telling him, a move that launched Braun’s own storied career.
A Legacy That Shaped the Industry
Paul Thomas retired in 2012, but his influence never faded. He represented an approach to adult filmmaking that felt more like Hollywood’s golden age—a focus on craft, narrative, and larger-than-life productions. He mentored countless people, from production assistants who became producers to performers who gave their best on-screen work under his guidance.
As AVN founder Paul Fishbein put it, P.T. was the “last link to the Golden Age of adult films.” His passing isn’t just the loss of a great director, but a reminder of a time when the industry’s biggest dreams were being captured on 16mm film, one story at a time.
Axel Braun’s final sentiment seems to capture what everyone is feeling:
“‘You’re the new P.T.!’ he used to tell me all the time as my career started to take off. But as flattering as that was—and as much as I may have achieved—I know he was wrong. There will never be another P.T.”
* Thumbnail from avn.com
