Most people know Dan Benson from his role as Zeke Beakerman on the Disney Channel show Wizards of Waverly Place.
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However, a new fan base is emerging for the actor. He is becoming better known for his work on OnlyFans (OF).
How Did This Disney Actor Become an OnlyFans Star?
After Wizards of Waverly Place ended in 2012, Benson struggled to find work, according to PEOPLE. This marked the beginning of a challenging period for him, during which he became severely depressed, as he shared in a recent episode of Hollywood Demons, "Child Stars Gone Wild."
While he stated that Benson never considered harming himself, he "definitely got low enough to the point where I understood it."
"There was like a five-year period where I just couldn't book anything. And then my agent dropped me," he said.
Benson decided to leave acting behind. But while working in a marketing and sales job, his boss told him he had been seeing photos of him on Reddit.
"I remember the shock and just the fear of losing my job instantly over this," he said. "When I saw the pictures, I immediately knew where they came from. I remembered the person that I sent them to, and this was a person that I'd been casually flirting with online, virtually, as an adult.
He added, "That progressed slowly to sending each other [photos]. And there's a part of me that felt so stupid."
Despite his efforts to remove the leaked photos, Benson soon realized it was an uphill battle. The situation became even more dire when he lost his job during the pandemic, making it hard to afford vital treatments for his aging dog.
"He was barely able to walk, so the only relief was these expensive shots that he would get directly in his back hips," he explained.
Benson Knew He Would Never Be Able To Work for Disney Ever Again
Benson knew that he was willing "to do whatever it takes to not have to make" his dog suffer. So he began making adult content on OF.
He added, "It was like, 'Okay, if this gives me the opportunity to provide that to him, who gives a s*** what people think?"
But the Disney star said he knew that he was "closing the door on any opportunity I had to work with Disney ever again."
Although Benson believed Wizards of Waverly Place would not return, some of the cast reunited in 2024 for Wizards Beyond Waverly Place. Benson was left out, and he admitted feeling "broken" about it.
Reacting to fan criticism of his adult career, Benson attempted to remove the content but ultimately decided to restore it.
He said, "When I got into this, I knew there were going to be things that were never going to be the same for me personally, but the benefits greatly outweighed the downsides for me. Before I started doing [OF], I had never been able to have any money at the end of the year. I have never had a savings. Never, even when I was on the show working full time on Wizards of Waverly Place."
