Are The Jackass Stars Friends In Real Life?
Every few years the crew of "Jackass" emerges from the shadows to take another wild ride down memory lane. By that, of course we mean they film another movie where they perform outrageous stunts, gross and obscene acts, and get seriously injured for the purpose of our entertainment. As you might expect, a troupe of unhinged fellows willing to put their physical health on the line have some pretty wild lifestyles, the kind where friendships cab be made or broken by one stupid stunt. Through it all, so far, the majority of them have managed to stay tight enough to keep making "Jackass" movies.
However, filming a movie together isn't necessarily the same thing as being friends with someone. That begs the question, are the "Jackass" stars friends in real life? The short answer to that question is that some of them undoubtedly are, while others might not be. No matter the case, however, it's rare to see a member of "Jackass" openly dislike one of his co-stars.
Steve-O certainly regards most of the Jackass crew as friends
As reckless as all of the guys in "Jackass" get, few could compare to Steve-O, whose unhinged antics were always pretty extreme. It's not just that he was willing to do things that other "Jackass" stars were not, but with years of unchecked drug abuse and partying behind him, Steve-O has some incredible stories. In fact, a healthy portion of his YouTube channel and his podcast are about the numerous obscene scenarios he got into. And it is on that channel that Steve-O revealed how he really feels about many of his "Jackass" cohorts.
In his video, "Exploiting My Most Famous Friends," Steve-O explains that while not every celebrity he has hung out with qualifies as a friend, he is more likely to put them in that category if he is willing to do a podcast with them. After all, sitting down and having a lengthy, casual discussion is something friends do. If that's the case, then we can safely put the likes of Bam Margera, Chris Pontius, Tony Hawk, Jason "Wee-Man" Acuna, Danger Ehren, Dave England, and "Jackass" co-creator Jeff Tremaine in that category because they have all been present in episodes of "Steve-O's Wild Ride!" podcast at least once.
Johnny Knoxville has love for everybody
As the progenitor of "Jackass," it's part of Johnny Knoxville's job to keep a relationship with his co-stars. Thankfully, Knoxville doesn't seem to have any bad blood with the rest of the crew. In a "Hot Ones" interview with First We Feast (via YouTube), Knoxville referred to the "Jackass" cast as his daughter's uncles, solidifying the degree to which they are all involved in his life.
Knoxville also went into detail on his relationship with Steve-O, and even recalled the first memories he had of meeting Steve-O on the set of "Jackass." By Knoxville's account, Steve-O "grows on you" despite how intense he was during the peak of his drug addiction.
"When we first met him, he drove us up the wall because he can be a lot," Knoxville said. "I think the first time Dimitry [Elyashkevich] and Tremaine shot with Steve-O, they were shooting with him and on the way to the next location they were like, 'F*** this guy. Let's lose him.' They were trying to get away from him but they couldn't shake him. He's unshakeable."
The real proof of Knoxville and Steve-O's friendship, however, is in the story of Steve-O's rehabilitation. In an interview with Graham Besinger, Steve-O recalled how Knoxville was the one who organized his final intervention. After Steve-O sent out a mass email to over 200 people requesting that Knoxville come film him jumping out of his own window, Knoxville came and checked Steve-O into rehab for good.
Many Jackass cast members were friends with the late Ryan Dunn
Both the fans and crew of "Jackass" were hit hard in 2011 when one of the franchise's stars, Ryan Dunn, died in a fatal car accident at age 34. Dunn, who had been driving under the influence after a night drinking with "Jackass" production assistant Zachary Hartwell, had veered off the road in West Goshen, Pennsylvania, where the car crashed into a tree and burst into flames.
After hearing the news, much of the "Jackass" cast came out of the woodwork to express their remorse. According to Ladbible, Bam Margera took the news especially hard, breaking down into tears at the site of the crash. Likewise, MTV reported that "Jackass" producers Dickhouse Entertainment — which includes the franchise's co-creators Jeff Tremaine and Johnny Knoxville — posted a message on the company's official site, stating that "the entire Jackass family" thought of Dunn as a brother. Later, other "Jackass" stars, including Knoxville, Wee-Man, and England took to their personal social media accounts to grieve.