Alla Montchak (born December 11, 1981), known professionally as Nikki Benz, is a Ukrainian-born Canadian pornographic actress. She was also a 2010

Penthouse Pet This is a list of the models who have appeared in the American edition of ''Penthouse'' magazine and were either named Pet of the Month or Pet of the Year from September 1969 to the present. Pet of the Year names are in bold type and are typica ...

who was selected as the 2011

Pet of the Year This is a list of the models who have appeared in the American edition of '' Penthouse'' magazine and were either named Pet of the Month or Pet of the Year from September 1969 to the present. Pet of the Year names are in bold type and are typic ...

Early life

Benz was born in

Mariupol Mariupol (, ; uk, Маріу́поль ; russian: Мариу́поль) is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius River. Prior to the 2022 Russian i ...

, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union; her father's family is Canadian. At age seven, she immigrated to Canada with her parents. She was raised in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Career

Benz worked as a swimsuit model and

stripper A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. M ...

prior to her porn career. She entered the adult film industry by e-mailing porn director Jim Gunn, who introduced her to Frank Kay, the president of Pleasure Productions. She signed with Pleasure Productions in January 2003 and made her first on-screen sex scene in ''Strap on Sally 20'' with

Gina Lynn Tanya Mercado (born February 15, 1974), known professionally as Gina Lynn, is an American former pornographic actress, model, and stripper. She was inducted into the AVN Hall of Fame in 2010 and is the '' Penthouse'' magazine Penthouse Pet for Ap ...

, and her first boy-girl scene with

Ben English Derek Andrew Hay (born 12 August 1964), also known by his stage name Ben English, is a British pornographic actor and the founder and owner of the adult talent agencies LA Direct Models and Miamp Direct Models. He semi-retired from performing i ...

in ''The Sweetest Thing''. After completing her contract, Benz moved to Los Angeles and signed with

Jill Kelly Productions Jill Kelly (born February 1, 1971) is an American pornographic actress, director and producer. Kelly is an AVN Hall of Fame inductee. Career Kelly's stage name was derived from the names of the ''Charlie's Angels'' characters portrayed by Farr ...

in September 2004. Benz signed a contract with TeraVision in September 2005. She was the

Penthouse Pet of the Month This is a list of the models who have appeared in the American edition of '' Penthouse'' magazine and were either named Pet of the Month or Pet of the Year from September 1969 to the present. Pet of the Year names are in bold type and are typic ...

for April 2010, and the magazine's cover girl and feature in the May 2008 issue. Benz was named ''Penthouse'' Pet of the Year 2011. In June 2016,

Brazzers Brazzers (, company name: MG Premium Ltd.) is a Canadian pornographic video production company with headquarters in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and legal domicile in Nicosia, Cyprus. With an online network consisting of thirty-one hardcore pornog ...

signed Benz to be its first brand ambassador to promote their products. Several months later, Benz alleged that she was assaulted on a shoot for the website. She alleged that the director of the scene, Tony T, choked her after she asked the shoot to be stopped. A representative for Tony T denied the charges, and Brazzers ended its relationship with him after the allegation. After the accusations, several other performers including

Dana DeArmond Dana DeArmond (born June 16, 1979) is an American pornographic actress and director. She entered the industry in 2004 and is a member of the AVN and XRCO Halls of Fame. Career DeArmond grew up in Orlando, Florida. DeArmond had gained populari ...

, Carter Cruise, and

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

came forward with their stories about the director. Tony T and Ramon Nomar filed a lawsuit against Benz and Brazzers for

defamation Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...

Appearances

Along with

Lisa Ann Lisa Ann Corpora, known professionally as Lisa Ann, is an American pornographic film actress and radio personality. She has also worked as a director and talent agent. She parodied former Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin in six adult films and a m ...

and Sean Michaels, Benz co-hosted the

XRCO Award The XRCO Awards are given by the American X-Rated Critics Organization annually to people working in adult entertainment and it is the only adult industry awards show reserved exclusively for industry members. Once every calendar year, XRCO ...

s in April 2010. Benz has made several appearances on the

FoxSports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...

.com show ''Cubed'', playing a wise-cracking, sports-savvy cleaning lady. In 2012, Benz was featured in a video game, ''Saints Row: The Third – Penthouse Pack'', released by Volition. She also was in a music video, ''Lose Yourself''. In 2013, she appeared briefly in the film ''

Pain and Gain ''Pain & Gain'' is a 2013 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay and starring Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, and Anthony Mackie. It is based on the activities of the Sun Gym gang, a group of ex-convicts and bodybuilders convicted ...

''. She appears in the dramatic film '' My Trip Back to the Dark Side'', which was directed by filmmaker

Shane Stanley Shane Stanley (born June 15, 1971 in Encino, Los Angeles) is a filmmaker and founder of Visual Arts Entertainment, a film and television production company based in Los Angeles. He is best known for producing '' Gridiron Gang'' starring Dwayne ...

Other ventures

Benz hosted a show on KSEX called ''Contract Superstars'' alongside Lacie Heart, Ashley Steele,

Stormy Daniels Stephanie Gregory Clifford (born March 17, 1979), known professionally as Stormy Daniels, is an American pornographic film actress and director, and former stripper. She has won numerous industry awards, and is a member of the NightMoves, AVN ...

, and Tyler Faith but quit citing "time constraints". She and fellow adult performer

Alexis Texas Alexis may refer to: People Mononym * Alexis (poet) ( – ), a Greek comic poet * Alexis (sculptor), an ancient Greek artist who lived around the 3rd or 4th century BC * Alexis (singer) (born 1968), German pop singer * Alexis (comics) (1946–197 ...

decided to advocate for gender equality, supporting female

toplessness Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is barechestedness, also commonly called shirtlessness. Expose ...

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

performers, by exposing their breasts in Times Square.

Toronto mayoral campaign

In May 2014, Benz announced her candidacy to run for

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of the Canadian city of

via her Twitter account. She decided to fight against

Rob Ford Robert Bruce Ford (May 28, 1969 – March 22, 2016) was a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the 64th mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. Before and after his term as mayor, Ford was a city councillor representing Ward 2 Etobi ...

for Toronto mayor. The announcement was subsequently covered by the ''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

'',

TMZ TMZ is a tabloid news website owned by Fox Corporation. It made its debut on November 8, 2005, originally as a collaboration between AOL and Telepictures, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. On September 13, 202 ...

, and in a

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

.com interview. The news also gained international attention via Yahoo France, Britain, and Finland. On May 28, 2014, Benz tried to submit her application to run for Mayor of Toronto, but the city would not accept her application because her Ontario driver's license had already expired. It was not known at the time whether she would reapply to run for mayor. In the Playboy interview, Benz discussed various campaign issues including

gay rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 3 ...

, economic stimulation for the city, and public transportation. Her platform included supporting and raising funds for the

Downtown Relief Line The Relief Line (formerly the Downtown Relief Line or DRL) was a proposed rapid transit line for the Toronto subway system, intended to provide capacity relief to the Yonge segment of Line 1 and Bloor–Yonge station and extend subway service co ...

, a proposed addition to Toronto's mass transit system. She also commented on former mayor

's substance abuse and his break from campaigning while he attended to his drug rehabilitation. In the interview, Benz cited her honesty and transparency, her love of her home town city, and concern for its people. She also vowed to donate half of her salary as mayor to a cause chosen by its citizens.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Benz, Nikki 1981 births Living people Soviet emigrants to Canada Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Canadian pornographic film actresses Penthouse Pets Penthouse Pets of the Year Actresses from Toronto American people of Ukrainian descent American people of Canadian descent