As The Deuce comes to an end after three moving seasons, actress Sepideh Moafi is exploring the very real struggle former sex workers endured through her character of Loretta. When the final season began, Loretta filled the shoes of the late Dorothy, joining the fierce feminist group Women Against Pornography as a leader. However, as fans have seen, the group aligned themselves with Christian conservative groups and right-wing Republicans, which was somewhat problematic. “It was a dilemma for Loretta because she wanted to be active, she wanted to help Women Against Pornography, but one of the only few groups that actually acknowledged these sex workers and acknowledged the abuse and the misogyny around the industry and sex work, were conservative groups,” Sepideh explained in an EXCLUSIVE interview with HollywoodLife.com. “But at the same time they weren’t super LGBTQ friendly, they weren’t very inclusive with people of color, Loretta being an exception. By the end of the season, she dissociates with them and most of her advocacy work and her activist work is just by being a good human being and taking care of people at her bar.”
As Sepideh prepares to say goodbye to the character of Loretta, she also revealed that through playing the role, her outlook on the porn industry has drastically developed. “I’m definitely much more aware of how sex and sexuality is influenced by the porn industry. How the sexual norms are heavily influenced by the porn industry,” she said. “Though I know so many incredible pro-sex activists and advocates and people like Annie Sprinkle or Veronica Vera, who have made a career of advocating for this freedom of expression and sexuality and I advocate for that as well, but I think it’s indisputable the mass influence and the negative effects that have come from porn.”
She continued, “I’m grateful to this show for bringing light on that, but at the same time not doing it in a didactic way. You see both sides of the spectrum and it’s up to you to choose. Personally, and especially living through Loretta’s journey, it’s really hard to have a positive view on porn.” The Deuce’s final episode airs tonight at 9 PM ET on HBO.