The Most Pause-Worthy Moments In The Jackass Franchise

The "Jackass" franchise stands alone. So many television series rise to prominence through the worlds they create, the stories they weave, or the characters they hook us on. "Jackass" took its own route, dropping all pretense of artistry and instead focusing on one simple idea: delivering memorable moments. From the first few minutes of the very first episode of "Jackass," all the way back on October 1, 2000, it was obvious that this show and this crew were going all-in on making moments we'd never forget.

Two decades later, after multiple series, movies, documentaries, spinoffs, and even a video game, Johnny Knoxville and company can consider their mission a success. By now, compiling a list of legendary moments from the "Jackass" franchise is like shooting fish in an ice barrel or taking candy from baby alligators. Some moments, though, deserve to be watched, slowed down, watched again, and paused right at the moment of impact.

With the release of "Jackass: Forever," which sees the gang once again try and top their past punishments, now is the perfect time to look back on the most pause-worthy moments throughout the "Jackass" franchise.

Truth be told, the "Jackass Number Two" segment "Toro Totter" has a ton of separate moments that are worthy of a pause and subsequent empathic clenching. Just hearing the game's rules should make that obvious. Knoxville, Pontius, Dunn, and Margera sit on a four-person seesaw while an angry bull rampages around them. The last person to remain seated on the seesaw –- in other words, the last person not plowed by the bull -– wins the game, and more importantly, wins the chance to run away without serious injury.

No one is safe. Dunn is the first to go after finding himself in between a charging bull and an unyielding metal gate. With his counterweight eliminated, Bam becomes stuck on the ground and wisely flees the area. Pontius follows suit and runs, which should be no surprise since he once told Rolling Stone that he is"afraid of bulls more than any other animal." Then, all that is left is Knoxville, who gets more one-on-one time with the bull than everyone else combined. Though it hits Knoxville again and again, one slam in particular, thanks to the magic of close-up camera work, looks, sounds, and just feels like a car crash.

Not exactly a gross-out segment, not quite a pain segment, and not really a daring stunt segment, the infamous "Butt X-Ray" bit falls somewhere in between them all. It is gross at times, was somewhat painful (at least initially), and it did require a certain daring, but the entire premise and its aftermath play out not quite like any other "Jackass" bit. Likewise, its most pause-worthy moment is unlike any others.

As the segment's title hints, Dunn inserts a toy car up his backside and then heads to a hospital to have X-rays taken. Though the actual insertion is worthwhile viewing, it's the ensuing visit to a doctor's office for X-rays that earns the most pause-worthy title –- at multiple times. The beauty of the toy car segment is not in its realization, but rather in the effect that it has on every unfortunate soul forced to bear witness.

The nurse who first views the X-ray of Dunn's nether regions, and the blatantly car-shaped object within, shares a look with the camera that paints a rich emotional picture. In her scowl, furrowed brow, and watery eyes, she expresses disbelief, fear, grief, heartache, and worry for the planet's future. Likewise, after the doctor points to the car in the X-ray and tells Dunn, "That's not part of you," his stilted silences say so much more than words ever could.

We mentioned the tendency of the "Jackass" cast to create unnaturally close relationships to animals earlier, and it wouldn't be fair to leave that dangling over the rest of these entries. Yes, some of the animal segments over the years have sailed as uncomfortably close to sexual territory as international treaties allow, but many have been more curious than perverse. Such is the case with "The Goldfish," a sequence from the very first season of "Jackass."

Steve-O, a trained circus performer and alumnus of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, always knew his goldfish party trick would make it onto "Jackass." He planned on saving it for a special occasion, as he considered it "a real banger" (via IndieWire). He did indeed manage to save the stunt –- all the way until Season 1, Episode 2.

In the segment, Steve-O swallows a live goldfish and regurgitates it back into its bowl, still alive and still swimming. After minutes of retching, Steve-O finally manages to induce vomiting, and the moment of release makes for a fascinating -– albeit nauseating –- pause point. It's a few seconds before it becomes clear that the fish is still alive and well. In those moments, we're stuck with Schrödinger's goldfish.

As Knoxville, Pontius, and England sit down to relive "The Anaconda Ball Pit" from "Jackass Number Two," Knoxville sees his blood-soaked arm and laughs. This, just seconds after admitting, "I had electric tape around my wrists because I didn't want the snake to bite through my arteries."

"The Anaconda Ball Pit" scene, in which Knoxville, Dunn, and Acuña hung out in a ball pit that contained two adult anacondas, went better than it could have, all things considered. The world's largest snakes are inhumanly strong and even their smaller cousins, pythons, have been known to kill prey larger than humans, as reported by the BBC. That's why the torrent of blood that dripped from Knoxville's arm wasn't viewed as a failure. If all parties leave the ball pit with (almost) all of their flesh and no broken bones, then the bit was a roaring success.

Despite Knoxville's lackadaisical views on his blood streaming from his body, It's worth pausing to see the snake bite that caused it. The bite lasts about one second and is still enough to tear a portion of Knoxville wide open. Pausing to reflect on that moment only makes it hit harder that the three actors continued the stunt until –- and even a little beyond -– Knoxville getting bit again.

Since "Jackass" is a stunt show, prank show, and circus act all rolled into one, most of its best moments come when things go right –- or at least go wrong in an expected way. One piece of "Jackass Number Two" offers a rare, pause-worthy moment when things go utterly, dangerously wrong.

For the "Big Red Rocket" stunt, Knoxville is meant to cling to the top of a motorcycle-sized rocket and hang on tight as it blasted off over the open water. Then, he is expected to fall as the rocket's trajectory sank, landing with a harmless splash. That is exactly what happened, but only on the second take.

During the first take, the rocket misfired and exploded on the launch ramp. The miniature rockets housed inside it all shot outwards in different directions, each with enough force to kill someone. As Knoxville explained to Vanity Fair, one rocket nearly decapitated two crew members and another almost did Knoxville himself in. As he breathlessly put it just moments after the incident, "if [the rocket] had been [just a few inches higher], that would have been a picture wrap on old Knoxville." Morbid fascination alone is enough to demand a pause at the moment of explosion, in which the rocket that nearly killed Knoxville is clearly visible.

One of the most pause-worthy moments in "Jackass" history is seen in the trailer for the newest installment, "Jackass Forever." In a clip of teaser footage for the film, McGhehey volunteers to test the durability and efficacy of a sports cup through some pretty creative means. Since being struck in the crotch isn't quite enough torment for poor McGhehey, Knoxville also lies to him about exactly who will be doing the striking.

Knoxville tells McGhehey that a lightweight boxer will be punching him in the groin. When the real striker turns a corner and comes into McGhehey's view, he yells, "That's not a lightweight!" However, even then, he has no idea.

The man that punches McGhehey in the laps is none other than Francis Ngannou, a UFC Heavyweight Champion and world-record holder for the hardest recorded punch. Officials asserted that his punch is "more powerful than a 12-pound sledgehammer getting swung full force overhead," which is the equivalent of "getting hit by a Ford Escort going as fast as it can."

The ideal pause point is clear, and it is the second Ngannou's fist connects with McGhehey's groin. It's worth it for the sole purpose of placing bets at McGhehey's reaction before continuing through a moment that McGhehey will never forget for the rest of his days.