Everybody has to start somewhere, and legendary horror director Wes Craven kicked off his cinematic career working in the realm of adult movies. It's no secret that many, if not most, people who go on to Hollywood success started off at the bottom of the entertainment ladder. Some started working behind the scenes as assistants, others toiled away as script doctors, or spent years directing no-budget indies before they finally got noticed. Still others began as background extras, or yes, even worked within the adult industry.

Not everyone who works in the realm of pornography appears on camera though, although a fair few celebrities did take that route, such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone. For instance, Mad Men star Jon Hamm spent his early years working as a set dresser for adult film shoots. While it's unlikely to be something future stars end up boasting about publicly, working in the adult industry can at least serve to put food on the table while trying to make it in the harsh world of Hollywood.

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Wes Craven, who sadly passed away in 2015 at the age of 76, was a true horror icon, with his biggest claims to fame being the A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream franchises. He also directed cult classics like The Last House on the Left, and The Hills Have Eyes. Before all that though, Craven directed adult films.

Wes Craven Got His Cinematic Start From Adult Movies

Horror legend Wes Craven

Unlike many successful directors, Wes Craven actually didn't pursue a filmmaking career until later in his life, directing his first film, 1972's The Last House on the Left, in his early 30s. Up until 1971, the well-educated Craven had been working as a college professor in New York, but decided to leave the academic field behind for something more potentially lucrative. Craven's first job in film was as a sound editor at a production company, but in his early career, Craven ended up directing multiple hardcore porn films.

Not wanting to become associated with the adult industry, Wes Craven admitted years later that he had worked on porn projects using various fake names. He even had a role in the production of infamous porn film Deep Throat, although it's not clear what exactly he did on the project. Thankfully for Craven, The Last House on the Left was a hit, and kicked off what would become a storied career in mainstream movies. One wonders though if Craven's time working in adult movies prepared him for most of his early horror films, which were made on low budgets and required lots of ingenuity and creativity to make things work. Say what one wants about porn, but there are likely lots of scenarios where those involved just have to make due with what's available to use.

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