LOS ANGELES—Adult studio Wicked Pictures announced Friday that it has signed an exclusive deal with AVN Hall of Fame writer, producer and director Michael Raven to helm a series of high-budget features. Returning from a 13-yr hiatus, the Texas-born moviemaker created acclaimed adult pictures during his first decade-long tenure with the company including Breathless, Beautiful, The Visitors, Supernatural, The Wicked and Highway.
"Michael is an incredibly talented filmmaker, a true legend in the industry, and a pivotal figure in the history of Wicked," said studio Head of Production Axel Braun. "As a director, I have always looked up to him and I am absolutely stoked that I was able to convince him to come back. Having him on board is an honor and a privilege, and I can’t wait for everybody to see what he has in store!"
Raven’s first feature for Wicked was Heroin, a strong plot-driven vehicle written for Wicked Girl Sydnee Steele. He followed that effort with Breathless, a big-budget crime drama starring Wicked Girl Devinn Lane that won the AVN Award for Best Director, as well as a Best Actress award for its star and a Best Supporting Actress award for co-star Sydnee Steele. Beautiful, Raven’s elaborately gothic showcase for Wicked Girl Julia Ann, became an AVN Editor’s Choice and brought the director some of the finest reviews of his career. It received AVN Awards for Best Video Feature, Best Director, Best Actress (Julia Ann) and Best Screenplay. The Visitors, an examination of extraterrestrial phenomena with philosophical overtones, earned over a dozen AVN nominations, including Best Video Feature, Best Screenplay and Best Director. The spectacular follow-up, Supernatural, saw Raven exploring the spirit realm with the same seriousness that The Visitors brought to the world of alien abduction.
Since his voluntary departure from the industry in 2009, Raven has produced and directed over a dozen successful independent projects across multiple genres, which aired on mainstream channels such as Syfy and NBC Universal.
"I am beyond thrilled to be back with the Wicked family," said Raven, "and I am very much looking forward to working with my friend and colleague Axel Braun. The 10 years I spent at Wicked left me with some amazing memories and a strong emotional attachment to the company, and I love Axel’s vision of bridging past and present to build a stronger, evolutionary future. He is definitely very protective of the brand, just like myself, which is why we share the common goal of making Wicked better than ever."
Raven's first production under the new deal will be Monarch, set to shoot next month and adapted from a 75,000-word erotic espionage novel written by the director, which will be published in the last quarter of 2022 through Amazon/Thomas & Mercer.
“This one is personal,” Raven said. “Inspired by my real-life experiences, Monarch is the story of Nikki Feral, a free-spirited, sex-addicted adrenaline junkie who finds her calling serving in the US Navy. She is introduced to the world of international espionage through the Monarch Program, a special division of the American intelligence community that trains men and women to carry out various covert operations using sex and subterfuge to achieve their goals. Like the infamous MKUltra Project which has been namechecked in such pop culture hits as The X-Files and Stranger Things, the Monarch Program allegedly used mind-control techniques to create and manipulate super-soldiers. It’s a dark romantic drama with plenty of adventure, and it will feature exotic locations, stunning visuals and an engaging storyline. Great efforts and attention to detail have been taken to ensure the accuracy of uniforms, sets and seamless visual effects. Combined with some of the hottest sex performers in the business today, this should prove to an entertaining experience that will continue to help Wicked maintain the level of respect they have enjoyed over the past 25 years.”
Monarch will be available in August exclusively on Wicked.com.
