Three women have made sexual assault allegations against a male adult film star who built a reputation in the industry for his ‘good boy’ looks, ‘nice guy’ persona and publicly-stated respect for women.

Bryan Sevilla, better known by his stage name James Deen, made a name for himself as an exception to the brawny male actors who usually appear in hardcore pornography.

After entering the porn industry in 2004 as an 18-year-old, Deen built a highly-successful career on his everyman image. He crossed over into mainstream cinema, co-starring in a 2013 film alongside Lindsay Lohan. He has been profiled in GQ magazine, invited to speak to students at his old school about his career and at universities about sex. He also counts New Zealand pop star Lorde among his fans.

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But that reputation has been brought into question in recent days after three women – who are also former co-stars – claimed to have been raped and assaulted by him.

On Sunday, Deen’s former girlfriend and adult performer Stoya alleged Deen “held me down” and forced her to have sex with him, as she asked for him to stop and “used my safeword”.

She said she published the claims because “I just can’t nod and smile when people bring him up anymore”.

Deen denied the claims and said they were “egregious” and “both false and defamatory”.

“I respect women and I know and respect limits both professionally and privately,” he said in a statement.

Former girlfriend Joanna Angel also weighed in on the allegations and, although not making any herself, said she supported Stoya.

He’s dead on the inside and dead to me . He’s literally the worst person I’ve ever met . That’s all I’ll say for now #solidaritywithstoya

— Joanna Angel (@JoannaAngel) November 29, 2015

Deen entered the sex industry in 2004, when he was just 18 years old, and had since built up a large following, particularly among teenagers, who “hold for Deen a place in their hearts alongside Timberlake and Bieber”, a 2012 GQ article stated.

He was also applauded for his statements on consensual sex in the adult industry and philanthropic efforts, which included support for breast cancer awareness.

‘He almost raped me’

Tori Lux said she had not spoken sooner as many people “tend to believe that sex workers have placed themselves in harm’s way, and therefore can’t be assaulted”. Photo: Getty

Since then, two other women, adult performer Ashley Fires and former performer Tori Lux, have come forward to make similar claims.

Lux detailed an alleged incident on the set of a film in June 2011, when she was lewdly approached by Deen.

She claims he hit her “in the face and head with an open palm” five or six times after she rejected his advances.

“Disoriented and nursing a sore jaw, I stood up – but before I could collect myself, he grabbed me by my hair and shoved me to my knees, forcing my face into his crotch several times before shoving me to the floor,” she wrote for The Daily Beast.

She said she did not pursue legal action due to stigmas attached to workers in the sex industry.

Meanwhile, Fires said she had put the 29-year-old on her ‘no list’ because “he almost raped me” as she stepped out of a shower at a studio, holding her against a sink and pressing himself against her, before listening to her protests.

‘The pattern is alarming’

Adult performer Ashley Fires said she refused to work with Deen. Photo: Getty

Just three days after the allegations, Deen’s reputation seemed to have been dismantled.

The Adult Performer Advocacy Committee, where he was the chairman, said he had “voluntarily resigned” his role on Monday.

“We stand with performers and other sex workers who are victims of any sort of sexual assault,” APAC said in a statement.

The 29-year-old was also dropped from film production company Kink.com, which said in a statement although the claims were not proven, “the pattern is alarming”.

Women’s lifestyle website The Frisky also dropped a sex advice column by Deen due to the allegations.

It remained unclear if any of the accusations would lead to a criminal investigation or charges.