I've always wondered, but I've never met a pornstar to ask, and the internet is too bloated with random shit for a clear answer.
Does anyone know, do pornstars get financial support or backing from the companies that hire them past the initial pay? I'm including things like 401(k), matching for any other retirement or investment portfolios, or a pro bono/already paid for financial advisor.
Also, on a related note, do pornstars get benefits like health insurance, and if so, how much coverage?
I am only familiar with indie escorts and, yes, some of the better-off ones do have accountants and financial planners helping them. It is tricky up here though because while being a prostitute is legal here (selling sex is legal, buying sex is not), working for one has sometimes fallen afoul of "living off the avails" laws. Escorts skate around the laws a bit by charging for time spent with them, rather than actual sex, (and most put riders that time spent may or may not include sex, but there's a bit of a knowing wink there) but try telling that to some straitlaced, puritanically-inclined judge.
The only pornstar I've ever known personally was Cory Lane, and she never got anything more than the initial pay-out per performance.