Former Boy Meets World star turns to porn

Rachel Maitland (second from right) has moved into the world of adult entertainment. Photo / Alamy

An actress who starred in the hit '90s teen sitcom Boy Meets World has opened up about her move into the porn industry.

Maitland Ward, 42, who played Rachel McGuire from 1998 to 2000 on the popular show, also played Jessica Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful and appeared in films and TV shows including Home Improvement and White Chicks, reports news.com.au.

She has been posting racy images to social media since 2013 but first made the move into professional porn after signing with an adult talent agency in May this year.

Ward told In Touch Weekly she was starring in her first adult feature film, Drive.

"They asked me to be a part of this, and I thought, 'I never knew there was anything in adults or porn or whatever that was this well done'," she told the magazine.

Maitland Ward has ditched her former good girl persona. Photo / Getty

"I read the script, and I was like, 'This is really, really well written. This has so many themes in this and just my character is so different than anything I have portrayed before'."

Ward said her character starts out as "innocent" but comes out of her shell.

"I really got to set myself free with this and really express myself in a way that I haven't done before," she said.

"I don't think my fans have seen me like this before — really, they haven't. It's just very deep sensuality, and I think that is a really fun way to play an explorer, and I got to do things that I wouldn't have thought in the past. Just these sexual situations that are sort of taboo."

Ward said her move into the adult industry "started slowly".

"It all started when I was doing cosplay, which I really genuinely love doing and people started giving me attention for it, and I wore sexy outfits," she said.

Maitland Ward (c) starred as Rachel McGuire in the hit series. Photo / Supplied

"I have always sort of been an exhibitionist, like always. I love dressing sexy in public and things like that. I started doing this kind of film, professional stuff, not very long ago — only a couple months ago. I felt ready. It wasn't like I was saying, 'Oh, I want to do this all along', but it was like, 'I need to do this'."

She added, "I really feel that quality stuff and the hot sex stuff can be together, and I really want that. I hope my past and stuff can add any legitimacy to a great project, to get attention or to get people to actually watch and say, 'Oh yeah, it is really good'."