Clifton Todd Britt (born November 28, 1969), better known by his stage name Lexington Steele, is an American pornographic actor, director, producer, and former stockbroker. He is the owner of the adult production companies Mercenary Motion Pictures and Black Viking Pictures Inc.
In 2003, Steele became the first actor to receive the AVN Award for Male Performer of the Year three times. He has been inducted into the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame. Steele has also made several mainstream appearances, including the film Crank: High Voltage (2009) and episodes of Weeds and Nip/Tuck.
Early life Steele was born and raised in Morristown, New Jersey. After graduating from Morristown High School, he attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. After two years, he transferred to Syracuse University in New York. In 1993, Steele graduated from Syracuse's College of Arts and Sciences with Bachelor of Arts degrees in history and African American studies.
Career Steele started out in finance as a stockbroker trainee at a brokerage firm. After earning his Series 7 trading license, he transitioned to working for Oppenheimer Financial at the World Trade Center. Steele believes he would've been a victim of the September 11 attacks had he continued working as a stockbroker.
In a 2015 interview in AVN magazine, Steele commented about his transition into the adult industry, "Once I was licensed, it opened the door to a whole new recreational side of the industry. The guy who trained me invited me to a party in a hotel suite, and it ended up being a sex party like the ones in [the film] The Wolf of Wall Street. It wasn't long before a bigger director from Los Angeles gave me a job and suggested I attend the annual porn industry convention in Las Vegas" and with regard to his decision to switch careers and industries and in consideration for how lucrative securities trading can be, Steele stated, "I tell them it's not like I was already a master of the universe. I was working 12 to 14 hours six days a week. I made six figures, but my quality of life wasn't commensurate".
Steele has said that his stage name came about back during the days when he worked as a stockbroker when he took the subway to visit a client (at that time, he had already decided to move in the adult film industry and use the last name Steele), who was located in Midtown Manhattan and, Steele said, "I got off the subway at Madison [Avenue], [...] on the corner of Madison and Lexington Avenues" [sic], where he was struck by the sound of Lexington as a first name.Madison Avenue and Lexington Avenue do not intersect, but run parallel their entire courses with Park Avenue between them. Steele moved to Los Angeles and joined the industry full-time, initially shooting mainly for companies such as West Coast Productions and director Spunky, before appearing on videotapes produced by Anabolic and Diabolic. At the beginning of 2008, he joined Red Light District Video for a brief period. He appeared in about 1,300 videos in his pornographic career. He is known for his highly productive ejaculation capability and is popular on set.
Directing Steele directs and performs exclusively for his own production company, Mercenary Motion Pictures (Headquarters in Encino, California), which he founded in 2009 and serves as chairman and CEO since 2009, with the company reporting annual net profits of $2.6 million in 2011. In 2013, he joined the Evil Angel roster of directors.
Mainstream appearances Steele has worked as a model on the side and acted in minor TV roles. He appeared in two episodes of Showtime's Weeds in 2003 (3x07 "He taught me how to drive by" and 3x08 "The two Mrs. Scottsons") playing himself at a movie shoot filming a scene with Jessica Jaymes and Kirsten Price. He appeared in the 2009 feature film Crank: High Voltage and also appeared in an episode of the FX series Nip/Tuck (5x05 "Chaz Darling") as a male escort at a party.
Personal life
Steele dated for several years and was at one point engaged to adult film actress and director Vanessa Blue. The two appeared together on Playboy TV and in several movies. On June 20, 2006, Blue announced that she would be leaving Steele's production company Mercenary Pictures. In 2008, Steele and Blue filed federal lawsuits against each other over the ownership of numerous videos that were released under Mercenary. The suit was ultimately settled in March 2009 after the two met with an alternative dispute resolution jurist.
In October 2016, Steele and French Canadian actress Savana Styles launched Mercenary Enterprises, a division of Mercenary Pictures focusing on fetish-themed productions. In a 2017 interview with AVN, Steele revealed he had been married to Styles for a year.
In 2019, Steele underwent hip replacement surgery. During recovery, he experienced complications that required another operation. In November 2019, a crowdfunding campaign through GoFundMe was launched to help pay Steele's medical expenses.
Politics During his time studying African-American studies, Steele developed an awareness of American politics and African-American rights. In 2008, he expressed his support for Barack Obama's presidential campaign.
Filmography Film YearTitleRoleNotes1999Private Dicks: Men ExposedHimselfTelevision documentary 2000 Last Breath Gambler 2004Thinking XXX2009Crank: High VoltageStriking ActorCredited as Lexington Steel2010This Ain't Avatar XXXTsu'tey2017KusoJodyHorror anthology film
Television YearTitleRoleNotes2003Lex in the CityHostTalk show2007Meet the FaithHimselfEpisode: "The Sex Show (Sleeping with Stereotypes)"Weeds2 episodesBaisden After Dark1 episodeNip/TuckKid's Bedroom SwingerEpisode: "Chaz Darling"2016Not Safe with Nikki GlaserHimselfEpisode: "I Miss David Bowie"
Awards and nominations
+ List of accolades received by Lexington SteeleAwards and nominationsAwardWonNominated AVN Awards NightMoves Awards FOXE Awards XRCO Awards Venus Awards Hot d'Or Awards Urban X Awards Urban Spice Awards XBIZ Awards Other awards Total number of wins and nominations
+ AVN AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2000Lexington Steele Male Performer of the Year 2001West SideBest Couples Sex Scene - Video2002Lexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2003Babes in Pornland: Interracial Babes Best Anal Sex Scene (Video) Lex the Impaler 2 Best Couples Sex Scene (Video) Balls Deep 5Best Director - Non-FeatureLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2004Chasing the Big Ones 17Best Sex Scene Coupling - VideoInitiations 12Best Three-Way Sex Scene - VideoLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2005Lex Steele XXX 3Best Anal Sex Scene Invasion!Best Couples Sex Scene (Video)2006Lex Steele XXX 5Best Anal Sex Scene (Video)Lexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2008Lexington SteeleThe Jenna Jameson Crossover Star of the Year2009AVN Hall of Fame inductee Lex the Impaler 3Best Couples Sex ScenePole Position POV 8Best POV Sex SceneLexington SteeleThe Jenna Jameson Crossover Star of the Year2010Breast Worship 2Best Anal Sex SceneLex the Impaler 4Best Couples Sex Scene2012Lex the Impaler 6Best Anal Sex SceneLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2013Alexis Ford DarksideBest Anal Sex SceneMassive Asses 6Best Boy/Girl Sex SceneThe Avengers XXX: A Porn ParodyBest Supporting Actor2014Double Black PenetrationBest Double Penetration Sex SceneLex Turns EvilSlutty & Sluttier 19Lex Poles Little HolesBest Three-Way Sex Scene - B/B/GLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2015AllieBest Anal Sex SceneThe Lexecutioner 2Rump Raiders 5Nikki Benz Jungle FeverBest Boy/Girl Sex SceneLex's Point of ViewBest POV Sex SceneAnal Boot Camp 2Best Three-Way Sex Scene - G/G/BLex the Impaler 82016Angela 2Best Double Penetration Sex SceneLex's Point of View 3Best POV Sex SceneLex Is Up Her AssBest Three-Way Sex Scene - G/G/BLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2017Orgy Masters 8Best Group Sex Scene
+ XRCO AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2004Up Your Ass 18Best Threeway Sex Scene Lexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2005XXXSex Scene (Couple) 2009Lexington SteeleXRCO Hall of Fame inductee
+ AFW AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2004Lex the Impaler 2Best Sex Scene (Video) Up Your Ass 19Best Anal Sex Scene (Video)Lexington SteeleAmerican Male Performer of the Year
+ FOXE AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2005Lexington Steele Male Performer of the Year Favorite Male Performer Male Fan Favorite
+ Venus AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2005Lexington SteeleBest Actor (USA) 2006Best International Director
+ NightMoves AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2004Lexington SteeleBest Actor (Fan's Choice) 2014Best Male Performer 2015
+ Urban Spice AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2008Lexington SteeleCrossover Male Urban Spice Award – Visionary
+ Hot d'Or AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2009Lexington SteeleBest American Male Performer
+ Urban X AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2010MILF Magnet 4Best Couple Sex Scene Lexington SteeleBest Gonzo Director 2011Director of the Year2017Lex'dBest Couples SceneLexingtonSteele.comBest Male Website
+ Inked AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2015Lexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year
+ XBIZ AwardsYear Nominated work Category Result2008Lexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2010201120122014Samantha Saint is Completely WickedBest Scene - Vignette ReleaseLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2015AllieBest Scene - Non-Feature ReleaseLexington SteeleMale Performer of the Year2017Suicide Squad XXX: An Axel Braun ParodyBest Actor - Parody Release2018Interracial FiendsInterracial Release of the Year2024Lexington Steele: The Connoisseur 2Best Sex Scene - Performer Showcase
References
External links