Earlier this summer, Paramount struck box office gold with Jackass Forever, the long awaited legacy-quel in the series of reality comedy films. Unfortunately, the main downside to the fourth film in the MTV-spawned franchise is that it came at the cost of the participation and friendship of original cast member Bam Margera. After all of the drama and legal proceedings that saw the OG series star removed from the roster, Margera has shared his feelings about not being involved in the 2022 movie release.
Showing that not all of his friendships with the crew have dissolved, Bam Margera was a recent guest on the podcast Wild Ride with Steve-O. While chatting about how close he got to actually returning for the film, and the rehab journey he’s been embarking on, Margera had some reflections about not remaining in the cast for the film. Those thoughts, as seen below, also apply to any potential future, should more big-screen installments get made:
Everything [was] meant for a reason, and I’m much better off not being in it. I’m happy to not be in it. I don’t want to do that anymore. I don’t want to be a part of it. I’m much happier without it.
Perhaps even more revealing than the former TV personality and skateboarder’s acceptance of a Jackass-free life is just how close he came to coming back to the fold. While discussing a pointed acknowledgment that Margera made about how behaviors that are currently unacceptable were practically seen as “good press” in the earlier era of the franchise, Steve-O admitted that the process to reinstate Bam into Forever got pretty far. Unfortunately, the way that Steve-O tells it, it all came down to a Zoom call that Margera ended up missing, due to being intoxicated.
When the movie started filming in late 2020, he was still involved and, at the time, Margera was taking part in his one and only Jackass Forever stunt in the finished product. If you watch carefully, you can still see Margera as part of the lineup in “The Marching Band,” the stunt often featured in the trailers — and it was one where the gang wiped out pretty hard.
As concerns over breaking sobriety clauses in his contract seemed to be correct, Bam Margera was kicked off of Jackass Forever. Anger, legal actions, and his own press tour would follow, laying down a tale that seemed to see Margera massively disappointed for being on the outs.
Knowing the path that events took after Bam Margera was removed from Forever, which included Margera suing over compensation, hearing him arrive at that conclusion is freeing. 2022 has been a time of growth for him so far, with Margera celebrating a year-long sobriety milestone earlier this year. Here’s hoping that this better headspace continues to prevail, allowing him to further make progress in his personal journey.
Fans who want to catch up on the latest antics have two big choices on the market. Naturally, Paramount+ subscribers can watch Jackass Forever, as well as almost the entire franchise’s contents. However, if you want to watch Jackass 4.5, you’ll have to have a Netflix account to get to that specific title.