I don't believe there's one way only to stay alive in porn biz for actresses.
Personally I think it is insane to not performing the scenes for what an actress is requested because this helps her getting connections and work opportunities.
Of course some choices are harder than others but even niche markets are now developing (look at Kink or old&young scenes).
And getting recognised is the only way to overpass porn-biz limits and eventually jump over (general public entertainment or, more recently, high end escorts) by leaving a good souvenir to many people.
On the other hand if in the past few naught guys couldn't had shoot the ass of just-18 ladies in some extreme performances we wouldn't have experienced the last years porn which offered high quality entertainment with freshly found actresses showing stunning bodies that old perverts but also young teenagers and even women enjoyed to see in hardcore movies.
Alexis may survive only by doing scenes and not playing with the guys around...
