Mana Sakura was recently admitted to hospital, suffering from pneumonia.
When Sakura shared news about her health on social media earlier this month, it sparked a lot of unfounded online speculation that she found offensive. Some netizens even claimed that she had AIDS.
Sakura has reacted with fury to these allegations, issuing the corrective and promising to consult with her agency about launching a lawsuit against the people who spread the rumors about her having AIDS.
The 31-year-old Sakura, who is also a novelist (four and counting, and one was adapted into a movie) and director, is one of the most famous JAV stars of the 2010s and still active in the industry, releasing several AV titles this year and a photo book.
Former porn star Yua Mikami has also reacted angrily to online criticism of her post-AV work with fashion brands.
For Mana Sakura, though, this is more than just a personal attack: a rumor that she has AIDS might seriously impact her professional reputation and opportunities in the AV industry, her sales, and thus her livelihood. Because of this, she might succeed if she did choose to pursue a lawsuit, though such defamation suits in Japan do not in general reward especially high levels of compensation. People pursue such litigation out of principle rather than an expectation of financial reward.
Most porn stars disappear into obscurity when they retire. A few of the very prominent performers maintain a degree of fame and fandom after they leaving the industry, but some have also experienced unpleasantry when they announced that they were starting a family. Sora/Sola Aoi is one of the most infamous examples of this, suffering online abuse for becoming a mother.
