LOS ANGELES — One year ago, no one knew who Carter Cruise was. A college student/sorority girl at Eastern Carolina University, she was living the normal college life when she started thinking about entering the adult industry. On Jan. 15, Cruise took the stage at the 2015 XBIZ Awards at the J.W. Marriott at LA Live to accept her award for one of the most competitive awards in the business, Best New Starlet.
The 23-year-old entered the JW Marriott with eight nominations including Best New Starlet, Best Actress in a Feature Movie, Best Actress in a Couples-Themed Release, Best Actress in an All-Girl Release, Best Supporting Actress, Best Scene in a Feature Movie, and Best All-Girl Scene. In addition to her individual accolades, her showcase feature "Meet Carter" from New Sensations was also nominated for All-Sex Release of the Year.
As Cruise sat next to the stage with her agent Mark Spiegler of Spiegler Girls and her fellow performers, she anxiously waited as the categories leading up to Best New Starlet were called.
“I was so nervous,” Cruise said. “I was up against some incredible performers, many of who are good friends. I would have been just as excited to see them win! When they called my name I was in utter shock. I don’t think it really hit me until later, because in the moment it was so surreal.”
On top of winning Best New Starlet, Cruise took home three more awards including the award for Best Actress in a Feature Movie for her performance in Director of the Year Jacky St James’ movie "Second Chances" for New Sensations. She also won Best Actress in an All-Girl Release for her performance in "Lesbian Vampire Academy" for Hustler Video. Finally, "Meet Carter" received the award for All-Sex Release of the Year.
In December, Cruise's rise was the subject of a feature in Cosmopolitan.
Photo by Jeff Koga.
