The dawn of another Jackass movie is something most people probably hadn't even dreamed about. Yet here we are, a little over a decade since the release of the last film, preparing to have our minds blown by the forthcoming release of Jackass Forever. It’s something that’s surprised even the most cynical of admirers, but in the case of legacy cast member Steve-O, a fourth installment left him very apprehensive. So much so that when he talked about it in a recent interview, he couldn’t help but fill his thoughts with only the most choice profanities.
During his guest spot on CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast, one of the stars of Jackass 4 laid a lot of thoughts bare. One such notion was the thought process he went through with deciding to rejoin Johnny Knoxville and the rest of the crew to once again put their lives on the line in the name of comedy. Physically, Steve-O knew he was ready to go, especially since he’s continued to do crazy stunts for his own comedy career. Surprisingly enough, he admitted to ReelBlend that his concerns stemmed from another matter:
I thought that for us to make another one, over a decade later, all it would take is just one fucking thing: one accident, one injury, just one terrible thing to happen, and the entire totality of the legacy would be out the window. And we would be a shit stain on history, ‘those assholes got what they deserved.’
Leave it to a dedicated OG from the Jackass crew to bring such a matter to light. Throughout the run of the MTV show, as well as the Paramount film franchise that arose in the wake of its popularity, the physical toll has never been a question when mounting up for another ride. Rather, as shown above, the real heart of the matter was how the world would react to folks like cast member “Danger” Ehren McGhehey engaging in stunts that could rupture a testicle.
In the wrong eyes, the entire brand could be tarnished by a stunt gone terribly wrong. Legacy-quels are hard enough to land when the franchise you're returning to is fictional. Coming back to Jackass after a decade between movies somewhat amps up the pressure not to leave anything to chance. Were that huge set piece with Johnny Knoxville and the bull shown off in the latest trailer to have ended differently, there may not have even been a movie to look forward to.
Further fleshing out his reservations connected to the production of Jackass Forever, Steve-O laid down two questions that he had in mind. The first was mentioned above, which was whether or not these sorts of shenanigans would still be funny with the original crew hanging out with all the young blood added to the cast. Connected to that query was another that’s closely related, which was whether or not the world would see the older cast members as “creepy” in doing these sorts of things. Seeing as Steve-O admitted he wanted one of the stunts to go a little harder than it did, it looks like the creep factor wasn’t an issue at all.
As far as the man himself is concerned, Steve-O seems pretty confident in the movie that’s heading to theaters this weekend. So much so that in another portion of the interview, he sang the praises of Jackass Forever pretty loudly. It’s probably a good thing that Jackass 4.5 is already in the works, as whatever didn’t make it to theaters will probably be just as good, if not better, than the antics that did.
Should the overall reaction to this new bounty of nut shots and exploding portable toilets land as all involved would hope, everyone may have to ask themselves all of the same questions exhibited above. That won't be too far behind, as Jackass Forever is aiming straight for the crash pad that is the audience’s heart once it opens on the big screen this weekend. That’s just the beginning of the upcoming movies headed to theaters throughout the year, so be on the lookout for what could be your next stunt filled night out.
