“As the founder of Helix Studios, Keith Miller has done more than create a gay adult entertainment studio. He’s created a lifestyle. Call it Helix World—a universe in which everyone is beautiful, charming and free from the hang-ups of the sex-negative society around them.”
At least that’s what AVN wrote around the time Miller was inducted into the GayVN Hall of Fame in 2019. But that universe started to crumble over the weekend, when models Eli Bennet and Jordan Lake announced they would no longer work for the studio—echoing 2019, when Joey Mills, Angel Rivera, and Blake Mitchell all announced their departure from the studio. At the time, Mills said only his decision came from “poor management.”
Mills and Rivera have both tweeted in support of Bennet and Lake.
On May 3, #TTB Network posted a video interview with Bennet and Lake, in which the former Helix models alleged a culture of drugs, underage drinking, and uncomfortable sexual advances, including accusing Miller of drugging Bennet and having sex with him.
Helix’s response May 5 was to explain that Miller had suffered a domestic violence incident May 1, and was sent to the hospital. According to the official statement from the studio and Miller, “The stress from the scuffle resulted in my heartbeat becoming dangerously abnormal. Shortly after arriving at the ER and just after Helix directors Casey and Max were let back to see me, hospital staff cleared the room and administered a defibrillator shock to restart my heart.”
The statement also included a denial of the allegations from Bennet and Lake. “I absolutely deny every single one of the awful accusations claimed by Eli and Jordan. Dating or having sexual relations with models has always been my red line. It is known within the company that models are strictly off-limits and I have fired employees over taking advantage of our talent in the past. The rule has always been if you are sleeping with me you can’t also be a model, no exceptions. It has been this way since I started the business 19 years ago. I am devastated to have discovered the accusations upon my return home from the hospital. In no way did I take advantage, drug or behave with misconduct towards anyone; especially the most important part of my business, the models.”
Miller was sufficiently recovered by May 4—prior to releasing a statement denying rape allegations—to tweet a photo of himself with Skyelr Blue.
Bennet and Lake both responded to the statement on Twitter, with Lake directly calling out additional toxic workplace behavior he experienced at the hands of director Casey Roman, including being mocked for his lisp and being told he dresses and talks like a “WeHo fag.”
Roman denied mocking Lake’s lisp or acting abilities, and apologizes for “the WeHo thing,” saying it was a “joke.”
As Miller and Helix, as well as Miller’s employees, continue to deny the accusations, director Max Carter tweeted that their statements were an example of men looking for “clout.”
Bennet replied directly to that in a May 5 tweet, stating:
Helix has since blocked both Bennet and Lake on Twitter.
1 comment
I have always been curious to know why models left Helix only to join another studio. As recent as Trevor Harris, soon to join Next Studios, could it be for the same reason Jordan and Eli left Helix? Previously, I thought when a model left one studio it was because they were leaving the industry, as so many have done before. But, I find many of the recent Helix models joining other studios like Cocky Boys and Next Studios, among others. Something is amiss.