A viral rumor claims Armie Hammer is into sexual cannibalism, blood play, and vorarephilia. Here's what those kinks involve, according to a sex expert.

• An Instagram account posted screenshots of sexual messages, claiming they were sent by Armie Hammer to various women. Hammer has not confirmed that to be the case.
• The messages involved requests to drink blood, and cut off body parts in a sexual manner.
• There are certain kinks that involve these kinds of fantasies and can be practiced in safe, consensual parameters within the law.
• Dr. DJ Williams, former director of the Center for Positive Sexuality, spoke to Insider about what these kinks involve.

The internet is awash with speculation about Armie Hammer and sexual fetishes.

Last week, an Instagram account posted screenshots of messages that are rumored, but not confirmed, to involve the "Call Me By Your Name" actor.

The account claims it was Hammer who authored messages such as: "I need to drink your blood, I crave it," "I want to eat you," and "If I wanted to cut off one of your toes and keep it with me in my pocket, so I always had a piece of you in my possession." Since, a woman Hammer dated in August told Page Six: "He said to me he wants to break my rib and barbecue and eat it."

Hammer has never said he is into these kinds of sexual kinks. The most he has shared about his sex life was in a 2013 interview with Playboy magazine, when Hammer self-identified as a "dominant lover."

However, the internet storm sparked a conversation about the sexual kinks described in the screenshots, which fall under the umbrella of BDSM, blood-play, cannibalism, and vorarephilia.

Read more: 4 myths about BDSM you need to stop believing, according to kink experts

Insider spoke to Dr. DJ Williams, former director of the Center for Positive Sexuality, to find out more about these kinks and what they entail.

It is important to note before exploring kinks, Williams said, that, as in any kind of activity, people who engage in them are expected to stay within the bounds of the law. "Typical standards for play include what we call the 4Cs of negotiation: communication, consent, caring (ethic of care toward participants), and caution. It is essential that, whatever people are doing erotically, they follow such standards."

BDSM

BDSM is the most commonly known kink in popular culture, most recently popularized by the books and movies, "50 Shades of Gray."

Short for bondage-discipline, dominance-submission, and sadism-masochism, BDSM is in fact a broad term referring to a variety of things.

In general, it is a consensual sexual dynamic that hinges on power.

Typically, one person acts as the "dom" (dominant person) and the other acts as a "sub" (submissive). The dom typically performs sexual acts on the sub including breath-play (choking), rigging (getting tied up), and impact play (being spanked or flogged).

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A key factor of BDSM is that the relationship between subs and doms is consensual, Williams said. Just as assault is not sex, nonconsensual power-play is not BDSM.

As Phillip Hammack, professor of psychology at University of California Santa Cruz, previously told Insider: "It's really about consensual role-play and power exchange."

Blood play

Blood play is the sexualization of someone bleeding and possibly drinking their blood, consensually and without abuse.

Williams said it is quite a common kink.

"Blood fetishists may be sexually aroused by the sight, feel, and/or taste of blood. Some blood fetishists enjoy sexual activity during a female partner's menstruation," Williams told Insider.

"There is tremendous cultural symbolism in blood, which can be empowering for those who enjoy play with it. Numerous people enjoy regularly playing with blood, safely and consensually, with their partners."

Vorarephilia (or, vore)

Vorarephilia is the erotic desire to swallow someone whole or be consumed. It is often practiced by people swallowing dolls or miniatures in the presence of their partner.

The fantasy does not involve chewing or murdering someone.

A community exists for people who vore, though it's relatively small compared to some kinks. For example, on Reddit, one of the most popular places for kink communication on social media, the r/Vore subreddit currently has around 31,600 members globally, compared to 500,000 on the r/BDSM.

Sexual cannibalism

While vore is the fantasy of swallowing someone whole and alive, sexual cannibalism is the fantasy of eating and/or cooking parts of a person.

The act of consuming human flesh is illegal in the United States and generally viewed as morally reprehensible.

But, according to Williams, sexual cannibalism can be role-played in a less drastic, consensual way that taps into that desire without harming the other person.

"Such fetish again emphasizes closeness and shared power between participants," Williams explained. "One person may become aroused by 'completely giving' themself to the partner, while the cannibal may be aroused by fantasies of the consumed partner becoming an actual part of them."