I was excited to speak with Jonah Wheeler – his character-driven performances deliver exactly the kind of porn that I like to watch.

We spoke via video call – Jonah’s energy and enthusiasm resonated through the screen. He’s a fun guy to chat with.

The origin story

I thought that I had a pretty good idea of how he’d got his start in the adult entertainment industry, but I wanted to hear from Jonaha if it was true that a hook-up with my porn-crush Joel Someone was actually what got the ball rolling.

“Absolutely, that is genuinely what happened…” confirmed Jonah. “I was at The Cock in New York with Hans Berlin – I was working as the orchestrator on his production of Shooting Star. I was about to dive into a bit of a group scene that was developing near us, when I came face-to-face with this guy – he said, ‘let’s get in a cab and go to my place’, so I did. I didn’t know who he was at the time, but it was Joel.”

“Joel suggested that we film our hook-up, and we talked about what was holding me back. Although it was instinctively something I wanted to do, I was a bit shy about putting that side of myself out there – I was also worried what impact it might have on my other work. But I agreed that he could set up a camera and take the reins. Afterwards, Joel posted to Twitter a 30 second clip of the two of us. Within two days, it had really got some traction – a lot of people had seen it and there was a lot of positive reaction.”

“Having felt the buzz of that, I sat down with my partner and said – ‘I think I need to make porn’. We talked it through – they were great about it. That was in March 2019, but I didn’t really start filming anything until around 18 months later. During that period, I did a lot of research and talked to a lot of people. I volunteered to work as a tech assistant at Hustlaball in Las Vegas, just to see that side of the industry. Plus, I was worried that I didn’t have the physique that people wanted to see on screen – I spent some time working on my fitness.”

A passion for role-play

Jonah’s on-screen performances are clearly resonating with porn audiences and he’s picking up industry awards for roles where he plays a sports coach or a scoutmaster.

“Role-play scenarios are one hundred percent the type of content that I wanted to create when I was thinking about getting into porn…” confirms Jonah, when I ask if he has a bit of an affinity for character-based roles.

“My early sexual experiences were those archetypal encounters – it’s what I’m drawn to. I love the power dynamic when we’re exploring something like a coach in the team’s locker-room – there’s so much concept to play with.”

Talk dirty to me

For me, one of the real turn-ons of whatching Jonah on-screen is the verbal he brings to an encounter. Beyond the set-up dialogue of a scene, I love the way Jonah talks to the guys that he’s fucking – urging them on, heightening and intensfying the fantasy.

“The verbal has been practiced…” confirms Jonah, when I ask whether he has go-to lines or if he is an improv master. “I felt a bit weird about initially, but what got me there was remembering how hot I found it when people did it to me. I don’t care how strange it is – a bit of dirty talk is just hot.”

“There’s a guy that I used to hook-up with in New York – the sex was great but his dirty talk was really obscure and abstract. I still loved it.”

Committed to cruising

“I use Squirt.org whenever I’m visiting a new city…” volunteered Jonah, when first asked him if he’d be up for an interview.

“For me, cruising was a big part of figuring out my sexuality…” adds Jonah. “The secret eye moments by which we tell each other what we want. Growing up, I just kind of assumed that all men are attracted to other men – cruising is kind of a way of manifesting that fantasy.”

“I’m very much a woods cruising guy. I know how cruising works in the woods – it’s somewhere I feel safe and in control. I’m very interested in understall cruising, but it’s not really something that I’ve explored yet.”

Heroes and inspirations

“Joel is obviously a big one…” says Jonah, when I ask him about his gay porn role-models. “I love his ethos of making porn – he gets an idea and goes for it. He’s goofy and friendly and excited and inclusive. We have a big brother/little brother vibe going. I often think to myself, when I’m presented with something that I’m unsure about, ‘what would Joel do?’ I often don’t do what Joel would do, but it helps me to consider his take on things.”

“President Oaks is one of the authority figures in the Mormonboyz studio scenes – I have imprinted like a duckling onto that guy. He gives the perfect confident dad vibes – you know that he’s in charge but deep down he cares for you.”

“Plus I really admire both Legrand Wolf and Davey Wavey. They have a very specific point of view on the content that they’re creating and they’re relentless with that.”

“Then there’s Clifford Packer. I have thought about making that style of role-play POV porn, but he’s got that space covered. I think it’s his Canadian charm – he creates these very ordinary dudes that we all know and can identify with – everyday guys that you know that you can fuck.”

Accessible porn

“Studio porn is often about creating fantasy-level porn – I want people to feel that they can be where I am…” explains Jonah, when I ask him what he hopes that people feel when they’re watching the content he creates. “I want people to feel that they can be as horny and slutty and vulnerable and as seen and as sexual as I am. I want to make the experience that I’m having accessible to people.”

“A lot of people have repression about not being able to express our desires. We often feel that there’s so much that we have to keep secret, that we can’t really explore how broad our sexuality is and how large our desires are. Sex is a great way of connecting – it’s a healing interaction. I want people to feel that they can let down a bunch of their barriers about sex. I want people to embrace sex – to really enjoy it and make more of themselves.”

Plans for the future

“I can’t stay a performer forever…” says Jonah, when I ask about his plans for the months ahead. “I can lean into the Daddy role, but I have to think about where I go after that. Maybe I could move into directing – I think there’s a useful space for someone who has creative ideas and a sense of storytelling. I need to work on my camera skills and my production skills.”

“But I’m also trying to find and maintain a solid emotional balance. I’m a bit of a workaholic – I have a compulsive need to constantly be professionally productive.”

“I need to remember to take time for my sexuality where it is not work. I need to go to sex parties and just have fun. My therapist says that I need activities that are not work and also that are not about being better at my work. I need hobbies that are not sex.”

“I’ve taken up video games, and I’m doing a lot of yoga. I like the progression of video games – that feels productive. The yoga is helping me with mindfulness – it also means that my back isn’t hurting all the time.”

“Life is huge…” concludes Jonah, his smile beaming. “Life is huge.”

Follow Jonah Wheeler on Twitter

Written by Gareth Johnson