‘Castfishing’ is the latest scam, and it’s eerily similar to sextortion

When my partner, actor and writer Tom Ward-Thomas, applied for the Amazon series Powerhe was asked to send a test tape, often called a “self-tape.” The role called for the actor to strip down and do a scandalous dance. Nudity was implied, not shown – yet the “brand” wanted her to undress for testing.

“I did the tape, just the head and shoulders, and I took my top off. They liked the tape but now they want a full body shot and they told me, ‘Feel free to go all the way.’ “I was happy to come down in my underwear, not naked,” Ward-Thomas recalled. “I never heard from them again.”

More recently, in December 2025, Ward-Thomas was approached directly, not through her agent, on another occasion, for a “test” that required a 30-second clip consisting of full frontal nudity, which she saw as nudity. scam.

“I wasn’t sure at first if it was above water, but when he insisted that it was naked self tape, I realized it wasn’t above the board.”

The rise of this practice, which we call “fishing for fishing,” has become a problem for the industry. Mashable spoke to actors and other experts about these scammers and who they’re exploiting.

What is a ‘fishing’ scam?

Castfishing is a big break offering for nude video.

A former unknown actor who left the industry told Mashable that they have experienced more than one scam with actors in sexual situations. In one of their descriptions, the actor had an insatiable bloodlust and spent most of the film getting others ready for sex.

“The ‘self-tape’ was waiting for my interpretation…and it had no lines. Nudity had to be included! The production notes under the treatment say ‘no performance experience necessary,'” they said.

While fishing — online impersonation — isn’t new, the exception here is the entry point, says Anna Rowe, founder of dating fraud education site Catch a Catfish and fraud and fantasy agency LoveSaid.

“Instead of dating or flirting, criminals exploit the ambition, authority, and power imbalances in the creative industries. They groom victims under the boot of technology, using industry language, fake opportunities and implied expectations to make increasingly inappropriate requests,” said Rowe.

When nudity is introduced, Rowe continued, the victim doesn’t feel exploited, but explored.

“That’s what makes this so dangerous,” he said. “It takes away the internal alarm system that people often have with sextortion, because it doesn’t feel like a sexual interaction. It feels like a career opportunity, which might be unusual.”

Nudity-promoting exploits predate the advent of self-tape, according to one Redditor sharing their knowledge for a personal test that requires full nudity on tape.

For a long time, art has been plagued by abuse of power, the scandals are always in the headlines. Many allegations of abuse arise Hollywood producer Harvey Weinsteinwhich had an effect #MeToo movement in 2017, they are just a few examples.

But now that self-tapes are so common, so is fishing.

Self-tapes are the new trend in Hollywood

There was a shift toward tapes that happened right before COVID, and it became a big trend after that, actress and agent Lydia Piechowiak told Mashable.

“Technology has increased opportunities, but it has also increased the opportunity for bad actors,” said actor Jonah Xiao, who said that at the age of 12 he faced a fraud test, seeking financial gain.

Increasing the accessibility of democracy through self-recording, he said. Actors no longer have to live in LA or New York to audition, and that’s powerful. But, “it also created a new risk. It’s easier than ever for someone to create a false divide. [summary of the project and roles]petition tapes, or present themselves as legitimate without personal accountability.”

Equalitythe British performing arts workers’ union, saw an increase in complaints there testing with self-tapes in 2020. Actors find their time wasted, being auditioned and not being watched, needing to improve their filming skills, and generally needing a scene partner. Despite this, the self-tape boom has continued, both for better and for worse.

An industry standard for preventing abuse of players’ time and so on has been established, thanks to many organizations acting or working with actorsbut the standard must be raised.

In 2023, a group of UK actors got together to publish their own song your practice self-tape documenthoping to control what they call a “main route to work.” Talking to Varietythe group said, “If we’re going to have self-tapes, they need to be done in a transparent, controlled and unbiased way.”

It’s easier than ever for someone to create a fake split, ask for tapes, or present themselves as legitimate without personal accountability.

“Often they will [casting directors] say, if it’s a scene that requires you to be topless, ‘please don’t shoot this topless’ or you’ll say, ‘please don’t move the actors [who] I’m not comfortable with this,'” Piechowiak said of his experience as an agent.

However, unrepresented actors may not have this level of protection, or actors may be contacted directly.

Real life test scandals

Joey Gugliemelli, better known as Sherry Pie, will compete in the twelfth season RuPaul’s Drag Raceit hit the headlines in 2020 after that Five young actors came forward with allegations that Gugliemelli had exploited them while posing as a casting director via email.

Gugliemelli reportedly encouraged actors to strip for the cameras, even encouraging one man to masturbate on camera, according to BuzzFeed News. The show was intense and confusing for the actors, encouraging them to strip down and saying that other testers were doing the same thing.

very soon VH1 rejected by Sherry Pie from Drag Race after the allegations surfaced, and he was heavily edited out of the season. Despite admitting inappropriate behavior, he remains he did drag from this year.

Another public example of fishing is the first Doctor Who actor Noel Clarke, who was accused filming nude auditions again showing them to others in 2021, as reported by The guard. Clarke later lost the civil disobedience case The guardas the Court receives allegations of sexual misconduct “it’s very true.”

“We have received a number of these types of cases over the past few years,” said a representative of the organization. Revenge Porn Helplinesupporting adults in the UK who have been affected by pornography.

A representative told Mashable that these were fake modeling opportunities, which involved contacting women and asking for fully clothed and nude photos “to build a portfolio.” Once spoilers find this content, they blackmail women into not sharing it or asking for more intimate content. In some cases, the representative says, the robber will stop the woman, leaving her worried about what might happen. “The purpose of this is unknown,” said the representative.

“Abusors are very good at controlling not only their victims, but also people and institutions that should be following security laws. Once the attacker finds a place where he can get away with minor crimes, misconduct increases,” he said. Mick Grewalan attorney with experience in sexual assault cases. She represents more than 100 survivors of Larry Nassar over time $500 million settlement case against Michigan State University.

How to spot castfishing or other scams

“Your instincts are usually right. Trust yourself,” advises Grewal.

“If you believe a crime has been committed, you can contact law enforcement. An attorney can help you navigate the justice system and discuss civil remedies such as injunctions and injunctions, privacy claims, and seeking accountability for economic and non-economic damages,” Grewal continued.

Equity self-tape guidelines (again SAG-AFTRAin the US) prohibit nudity in self-tapes, Equity TV CEO Natalie Barker told Mashable. But formal casting practices may continue to call for nudity. In 2022, director of intimacy with actress Katrina Stelk wrote that guidelines are a good stepbut that the simulated directors may not know.

Multiple sources in the UK Mashable spoke to confirmed that another Equity guide, a three-day return window for self-tapeit is usually not followed, even by an agent. This also represents an abuse of power by influential decision makers in the industry.

Apart from this, it would be down to the directors to ensure that the actors are protected.

“Because the context is so different from self-tape, you have to give constructive direction to help the character. [to do] work,” says Ellie Heydon, BBC actor and director It’s sad.

“When we’re shooting a scene, or a kiss, I usually write a note along with it that says don’t worry about physical intimacy, or rubbing it in, and you don’t leave it up to the actor to interpret,” Heydon said.

Without proper enforcement and regulation, there is still a long way to go. “The industry didn’t eliminate exploitation. It just evolved,” Xiao said of the bad actors who focus on self-tape screening.

“We have always advised members to contact ours issuance of test guidelines and do your due diligence — make sure it’s a reputable production company/casting director; confirm that nudity is required for the role; that if they decide to post video or images that contain nudity, they do so through a secure data transfer service and that there is a security policy that outlines how the data will be kept private and deleted,” said Barker.

However, until we see more regulations, especially in the age of AI, it will take time to ensure protection against fake broadcast calls – and perhaps a long time before it is implemented.