Asia Carrera

About Asia Carrera

Asia Carrera, born Jessica Andrea Steinhauser on August 6, 1973, in New York City, New York, was raised in Little Silver, New Jersey. She's an actress and a nude model, having posed for multiple men's entertainment magazines such as Penthouse and Playboy. Her father was German-Swiss and her mother was Japanese. She is the firstborn daughter and the eldest child of four, being the older sister to her two younger brothers and one sister. Director Bud Lee was her husband. In 2003, he and his wife Asia Carrera, divorced each other and seperated.

A gifted girl, during her childhood and a very talented woman, she taught herself to read at age four, performed piano at Carnegie Hall twice before age 15, and scored over 1440 on the SAT, earning a National Merit Scholarship and a Garden State Scholarship. At 16, she taught English at Tsuruga College in Japan but ran away from home at 17 due to parental pressure, later experiencing homelessness. She attended Rutgers University on a full scholarship, majoring in Japanese and business, but did not graduate due to financial struggles, turning to exotic dancing to support herself. Her dancing career led her to nude modeling and, subsequently, the adult entertainment industry in Los Angeles in 1993 at age 20.

Of German and Japanese descent, Carrera used pseudonyms like Asia, Jessica Bennett (for a Playboy pictorial), and intentionally misspelled her stage surname after actress Tia Carrere for legal reasons. Her adult film career, spanning 1993 to 2003, included over 400 films with studios like Vivid Entertainment (where she was a contract performer from 1994 to 1999), VCA, and Evil Angel. She appeared in magazines such as Playboy, Hustler, and Penthouse. Notable films include A Is for Asia (1995), The Dinner Party (1994), Bad Girls 6: Ridin’ into Town (1995), and Appassionata (1997). She is best known for her role in The Dinner Party for its narrative depth and her lesbian scenes in Bad Girls 6 for their chemistry. She performed anal scenes sparingly, with her first in A Is for Asia. Carrera worked with performers like Jenna Jameson, Kobe Tai, Rocco Siffredi, Tera Patrick, and Nina Hartley.

After her contract with Vivid expired in the mid-1990s, Asia wanted to break free from her "Vivid Girl" image. She was quoted as saying that there was a stigma about Vivid contracted girls being pretty to look at, but boring and safe. She wanted to change that and hoped it would lead to a lot more work with different companies. She wanted to get many tattoos, and get her eyebrow and lip pierced, but was discouraged by her husband and porn director Bud Lee. But she did have her right labia minora pierced and would later add a variety of 1/2" gold rings. At this time she also had her first breast enlargement, going from a medium B to at least a full C cup. She has had at least one subsequent breast surgery and is now a D cup or larger. She also underwent rhinoplasty on her nose. Asia has performed only a few anal sex scenes, again waiting for her contract with Vivid to expire to do her first scene in the movie A Is for Asia (1995). While anal sex pays better, Asia stated that, while she found it enjoyable, it wasn’t something she did in her personal life a great deal and she had no interest in becoming an “anal queen” in the industry.

Physically, Carrera has long black hair, brown eyes, and a statuesque 5'9", 138-pound frame with 36C-26-36 measurements. Fans on platforms like The Rialto Report and X describe her as a “gorgeous intellectual” and “exotic beauty,” praising her intelligence and charisma. Ranked second on Complex’s 2011 list of “The Top 50 Hottest Asian Porn Stars of All Time,” she is seen as a trailblazer for Asian-American performers.

Asia said she enjoyed having sex with women, but never felt any connection with them. While she rejected the "gay for pay" label, she said she could be described as a straight woman who could have sex with other women and had no feelings for them.

Controversies include a 2015 DUI arrest in Utah, where she was found passed out at her daughter’s school with a blood-alcohol level of 0.254, three times the legal limit, with her daughter in the car. She was sentenced to house arrest and joined Alcoholics Anonymous, achieving sobriety. In a 2024 Reddit post, she discussed her diagnoses of autism, ADHD, anxiety, and clinical depression, shedding light on personal struggles. Her income during her career peaked at thousands per scene, contributing to a net worth estimated at $500,000, per Celebrity Net Worth. She also earned from her self-designed website and voice acting in hentai anime like Inmu (2001) and Shusaku (1999).

As of July 6, 2025, Carrera lives in St. George, Utah, focusing on family, having raised two children (a daughter born in 2005 and a son in 2006, the latter was born after her husband Don Lemmon’s death in a 2006 car accident). In June 2012, she gave birth to a boy whom she placed for adoption with friends. She was married to Bud Lee (1995–2003) and Don Lemmon (2003–2006), and has been married to a private non-industry partner since 2010. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Utah Tech University, a Master’s in Education from Texas A&M University, and a Juris Doctor from St. Mary's University School of Law in San Antonio, Texas. Currently, she engages in community work, supports education and animal welfare causes, and enjoys hobbies like gaming, reading, and writing. She maintains a low-profile online presence, occasionally connecting with fans on social media, and is celebrated as a “90s icon” and advocate for sex-positive feminism.

🥇Awards & Honors: Asia Carrera
🔥 AVN (Adult Video News) Awards
1995: Winner: Female Performer of the Year
1995: Best Actress, Film for The Masseuse 2
1995: Best New Starlet
1996: Most Outrageous Sex Scene for The Foot Fist Way
1998: Best All-Girl Sex Scene, Film for Satyr
1999: Best Actress, Video for Search for the Snow Leopard
2000: Best Actress, Film for The Bet
2000: Winner: Best Couples Sex Scene – Film for Search for the Snow Leopard
2000: Nominee: Best Actress – Film for Search for the Snow Leopard
2001: Inducted into the AVN Hall of Fame
2003: Nominee: Best All-Girl Sex Scene – Video for My Father’s Wife
2003: Nominee: Best Supporting Actress – Video for My Father’s Wife

🎬 XRCO (X-Rated Critics Organization) Awards
2007 – Inducted into the XRCO Hall of Fame

🌟 Legacy & Recognition
First Asian performer to win AVN Female Performer of the Year
Celebrated for intelligence, having a Mensa-level IQ
Recognized for musical talent as a trained classical pianist
Regarded as one of the top adult performers of the 1990s