The long and strange saga of Sense8 just took a turn for the even weirder. The show, from co-creators Lana and Lilly Wachowski (The Matrix, V for Vendetta, Cloud Atlas) and J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5, Jeremiah), amassed plenty of fans during two seasons at Netflix, but was cancelled in June. After outcry from fans, though, Netflix offered the creators a two-hour movie to wrap up storylines. And now, they’ve been offered a full third season, but from a surprising source…porn website xHamster.
Porn websites have been known for plenty of publicity stunts, of course, such as plowing businesses’ lots after snowfalls or commenting on their videos being played on public terminals, but this one appears to be a serious offer. xHamster vice president Alex Hawkins sent a letter to the Wachowskis where he offered to fund a full third season, and explained why Sense8 (which is about eight people across the world who are mentally and emotionally linked, and has had plenty of sexual content) could be a fit for his site:
Beyond that letter, Hawkins told GQ that while the show could possibly be more sexual outside of Netflix’s boundaries, xHamster wouldn’t plan to apply any pressure in that direction:
Hawkins told GQ that while he wouldn’t expect Sense8 to be traditional porn, with the storyline taking a back seat, he does feel that creating a series for Netflix can be limiting. “Sense8 is already a very sex-forward show,” Hawkins told me, “but I do think that it could be more explicit. But really, that’s up to the Wachowskis and the actors. We just want to be a platform for their vision.”
Hawkins explained that xHamster is built on choice, and he imagines Sense8 as a more user-driven experience. “Some viewers may want to see more aggressive, extended versions of the sex scenes, while others may find them slow-moving. On a platform like ours, it’s really easy to give people options.” That agency, Hawkins said, is what Sense8 is all about. “When you think about it, a site like xHamster IS a sensate. We are millions of people, connected by sexuality, from across the world.”
Would the Wachowskis and Straczynski really take this offer seriously? Would xHamster really be willing to pony up the funds needed to shoot a multiple-location, extremely-expensive (one of the cited reasons for its cancellation) series like Sense8 in a style that would work for the creatives? Who knows. But it certainly is possible that a deal here could work for both sides.
If the creative team doesn’t mind being associated with a porn site, and if xHamster really doesn’t plan to restrict them too much, they might be able to get a full third season instead of just a wrap-up movie. Sense8 has been quite a sexual show, too, and one very open to different representations of sexuality; it’s won a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series. And while this is well outside the boundaries of what’s usually on a site like xHamster, and probably much more expensive, it could pay off in terms of publicity and attracting new users. It’s possible that this may be just a way for the site to get more attention, and it’s possible that they’re serious but will be shot down, but there’s also a chance that this could benefit all involved.
