“Have a lot of positivity around”- Former Disney star Maitland Ward reportedly feels more respected as adult filmmaker

Maitland Ward, 48, became a household name in the 1990s for her role as Rachel McQuire in Disney's Boy Meets World. However, she transitioned her career graph around six years ago and shifted to the adult filmmaking industry.

In a recent conversation with Fox News Digital, the actress claimed that she felt more empowered and respected after her transition. She stated:

"I really think people treat me with more respect now, honestly, especially even in Hollywood right now."

At the same time, Maitland Ward is working on making a TV format of her memoir, Rated X: How P*rn Liberated Me From Hollywood, and spoke about this new journey with the outlet:

"I'm pitching my memoir into a TV format and talking with people. They're so respectful, and they're so positive about my story, especially younger people and different people that I speak to in Hollywood and stuff. They're just much more receptive to the story. And I really feel like I have a lot of positivity around it. I'm able to create my own brand, my own content, the way I want to create it."

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Maitland Ward revealed about pursuing p**nography and her work as an adult filmmaker

While speaking with the outlet, the former Disney star emphasized and talked about the projects she is working on in the adult industry:

"I’m creating full-length movies. I’m doing things like making projects that I really feel passionate about. I work with a female director, who has been amazing. And I think people are always surprised by that, that two women are creating these long erotic, p**nographic art pieces. And I think that’s really special."

The jump into the p**n industry from being a renowned Disney star is unusual. However, Maitland Ward was surrounded by positivity while she made this significant life decision:

"I didn't get anybody coming out hating me for it or anything. I really got a lot of positivity overall, which shocked everyone I knew. Everybody thought people were just going to rip me apart, and I was going to be judged and raked across the coals, but I got so much positivity and I think it's because I was so positive about it, and I was so happy about it."

Maitland Ward's career shift influenced her to dismiss body image issues and gain confidence.

"Just to be n**ed by myself and be confident in my body and myself, I would never have been able to do that [before]. P**n has really given that to me, that empowerment, to be able to stand in my own skin, to be able to create projects that I want to create and be proud of, to go against the mold and do something that other people haven't done or have been too scared to do and to have the courage and confidence to do that."

Ward feels the most comfortable she "ever felt on a set" on the p**n shoot sets. She further added:

"I have felt the most comfortable I have ever felt on a set, especially in an intimate situation, because I really feel there's a lot of conversation, and nobody is shy to have the conversation or backs away from it."

In a 2022 conversation with Fox News Digital, Maitland Ward acknowledged that this "break out has been so liberating." Calling her story "a little more scandalous," she said:

"I think it’s an empowering story for women and everyone really. It’s about living your truth and not listening to what everyone is telling you to do. For so long, Hollywood was telling me that I could only be a certain way. The industry wanted to keep me in some box. I reached a point where I just wanted to do my own thing. I’m now my authentic self."

Maitland Ward did not cease to highlight how "there are always going to be people who will try to pigeonhole you, especially as a woman." Despite all these hardships, she is working in the adult industry liberatingly.