Like Father, Like Son: Rikki Braun Directs ‘Riley Goes Gonzo 2’
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, even if it’s wickedly rotten to the (hard)core.
Axel Braun, himself the son of the late Italian pornographer Lasse Braun, has already built an impressive legacy with his award-winning career of parodies and features. That legacy is now expanding in the form of his son Rikki Braun, who has followed in his father’s footsteps by forging a porn career of his own. First up? Riley Goes Gonzo 2, a sequel whose tagline boldly promises that the movie is “totally harder and nastier than the first.” The movie is exclusive to AxelBraun.com until March 24th, so don’t miss your chance to be among the first to see it!
The most basic step to a sequel that outstrips its predecessor is retaining the star who made the original so popular in the first place. Rikki sees Riley Steele as occupying a 
position in porn that is close to being unique. “Riley is probably the last of the true porn superstars,” he told XBIZ. “I think a lot of people focus on the fact that she’s so beautiful, and forget what a terrific sexual performer she is. Being able to capture her on camera was an honor and a privilege. And did I mention how beautiful she is? I did? Okay, well, she is even hotter than that!”
“I’m super excited, this is so awesome!” said Steele, whose work in Riley Goes Gonzo part one (2014) was one of her first major efforts after becoming an Axel Braun contract star. “My fans will absolutely love this one — Rikki did a fantastic job and allowed me to be as unhinged and depraved as I wanted to be. And I got to fuck Abella Danger, who had been on my wish list forever, so yay!”
The second step to crafting a movie with the “hard” and “nasty” feel the tagline zestily proclaims is making it a non-
condom movie, an aspect that helps set Riley 2 apart. The third step is having a fearless director who can bring the movie to life. Rikki isn’t shy about admitting that his directorial break in porn came thanks to his famous father, but he also attempts to convey the same scrupulous attentiveness that his dad is so well known for. “The way he approaches pornography is not unlike any mainstream director, there’s a lot of groundwork, a lot of passion, and of course his meticulous attention to details,” Rikki told AIPDaily. “I shot camera for him on a few movies, I edited, I PA’d and I was Assistant Director on Batman v Superman XXX. When he felt that I was ready he asked me if I wanted to try directing, and here I am. Nepotism at its best.” (Exposed, an upcoming movie starring Asa Akira and written by Axel, marked Rikki’s first behind-the-camera work, though the movie will be preceded in release by Riley Goes Gonzo 2.)
Nevertheless, a Rikki Braun movie isn’t just Axel Braun redux, even if there are certain commonalities. “I like using a saturated color palette, and I like moving the camera as much as possible,” Rikki told AVN last month. “My father has taught me the importance of storyboarding, preparation, attention to detail, and having a clear vision of what you want … and especially what you don’t want. I’m still developing my own style, and of course because I’ve been working with my dad for years and because we share very similar filmmaking sensibility I’m sure there are plenty of ‘Axel Braun shots’ in my first movie.”
