Jackass Forever


Jackass Forever is a 2022 American reality slapstick comedy film directed and produced by Jeff Tremaine, along with producers Spike Jonze and Johnny Knoxville, and was released by Paramount Pictures. It is the fourth main installment in the Jackass film series, following Jackass 3D. The film stars original Jackass members Knoxville, Steve-O, Dave England, Wee Man, Danger Ehren, Chris Pontius, Preston Lacy, as well as newcomers Sean "Poopies" McInerney, Zach Holmes, Jasper Dolphin, Eric Manaka, Rachel Wolfson, the Jackass film crew, and celebrity guests. This is the first Jackass film not to feature Ryan Dunn following his death in 2011, and the first without Bam Margera being a primary cast member as he was fired during production, appearing in only one skit.
Jackass Forever premiered at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, on February 1, 2022, and was theatrically released on February 4. The film was well-received by critics, with many considering it the best film of the franchise. It was also a commercial success, grossing over $80 million worldwide against a budget of $10 million.
Unused footage from the film was compiled separately, titled Jackass 4.5, and released on Netflix on May 20, 2022.
A sequel is set to release on June 26, 2026.

Synopsis

Jackass Forever is a compilation of stunts, skits and pranks intercut with on-set talking heads with its cast. The film begins with a tribute to kaiju cinema, in what appears to be a city being overrun by a giant green monster. In reality, it is Chris Pontius' penis painted green over a small set of a city, intercut with the cast members running through a life-size set of the same city. The intro ends with the "monster" bitten by a snapping turtle and Johnny Knoxville's intro, "Hello, I'm Johnny Knoxville! Welcome to Jackass!"
Stunts and pranks with the main cast include Knoxville facing a bull resulting in dangerous consequences; Dave England unsuspectingly getting pig semen dumped on him during a fake interview about the movie; Steve-O having his penis used as a beehive; Ehren McGhehey being subjected to painful tests with an athletic cup; Pontius' penis being used as the paddle for paddle ball; a vulture eating pieces of meat off Wee Man's body; and Preston Lacy's testicles being used as a miniature punching bag. The newcomers are also featured in many of the stunts and pranks, including Poopies trying to kiss a Texas rat snake; Jasper Dolphin being shot off a ramp by large industrial fans while he's holding a parachute; Zach Holmes gliding down into a bed of cactuses; Eric Manaka riding a bicycle full speed into a false wall; and Rachel Wolfson having a scorpion sting her lips.
The final stunt, the Vomitron, features Zach, Dave, Eric, Poopies, Steve-O and Jasper drinking milk while strapped to a high-speed carousel. As they start vomiting, Knoxville and the rest of the cast initiate an attack involving paintball guns, a tennis machine and multiple explosions. After assuming the stunt is over, one big explosion is set off, surprising the victims of the stunt.

Cast

The cast from the previous films return, with the exception of original Jackass member Ryan Dunn, who died in 2011, but does appear through archival footage in the end credits and the movie is seen as a tribute to him.
It is the first Jackass film to feature new main cast members. Bam Margera was terminated from production in August 2020, for breaking his contract due to mandates related to substance abuse. However, he appears in one skit, "The Marching Band", filmed prior to his firing, as well as being seen in archival footage. Margera also filmed the segment "Silence of the Lambs", but his scenes were not included in the final cut. He was also in the background of "The Triple Wedgie", but was removed for the most part. He can also briefly be heard in "The Brick Drop" in Jackass 4.5, but was again removed for the most part.

Guest appearances

in the intro sequence include Arthur H. Spiegel III, Errol Chatham, Alia Shawkat, Jalen Ramsey, Otmara Marrero, DJ Paul, Sean Malto, Mike Carroll, Breana Geering, Rick Howard, Compston "Dark Shark" Wilson, Tyler, the Creator, Lionel Boyce, Travis "Taco" Bennett, Louie Anderson, Syd tha Kyd, Vincent Alvarez, and Tony Hawk.

Crew

A significant portion of the film's crew appears onscreen:

Development

In 2018, Johnny Knoxville said that he was open to making a fourth Jackass film that may feature some new cast members, "just to bring in some fresh blood into it". He said that he had continued to write ideas for stunts and that "a ton" have been set aside for the project, should it receive the green-light. In July 2019, former cast member Chris Raab said that he had interviewed the Jackass crew on his Bathroom Break podcast and noted that everyone was still open to a fourth film should Knoxville, Jeff Tremaine, and Spike Jonze agree. In late 2019, Knoxville met with Tremaine and released a 200-page document of concepts for a fourth Jackass film. They agreed to film for two days with the entire cast to determine "if it still feels right" to make Jackass 4. "Honestly, after just five minutes of filming, we were ready to commit to making a movie", Tremaine said. In September 2020, Steve-O had said he was surprised the film "even came to fruition".
During Knoxville's July 12, 2021 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, he revealed the film's title and showed the first official photos.

Bam Margera's firing

In January 2021, Bam Margera claimed that Paramount Pictures regarded him as a liability, owing to his behavior leading up to and during production. He indicated that Tremaine had fought with the studio to keep Margera in the film, but Margera was uncertain that Paramount was going to allow him to partake in filming. On February 11, Margera posted several videos to his Instagram account, in which he admitted to breaking his sobriety and claimed that he had been officially fired from the filming of Jackass 4. Throughout the video, Margera could be seen crying, vomiting, and alluding to having looked up "how to tie a noose" before his move to Oceanside, California. Margera alleged that Paramount had been forcing him to take antidepressants, submit to random urine tests, and to check into two rehabilitation facilities using his own money. He also expressed disdain for Tremaine, Knoxville, and Jonze before asking his fans to boycott the film. He then solicited his followers to send him money in order to film his own movie to compete with Jackass Forever. The videos were removed from Margera's Instagram account soon after being posted. On May 25, 2021, Tremaine filed a temporary restraining order against Margera due to Margera's harassment of Tremaine and Knoxville via Instagram. Tremaine was granted an additional three-year restraining order, extended to Tremaine's wife and children, after Margera allegedly sent his family death threats. On August 9, 2021, Margera officially filed a lawsuit against Knoxville, Jonze, and Tremaine, as well as against Paramount Pictures, MTV, Dickhouse Entertainment, and Gorilla Flicks, alleging that he was wrongfully fired from the film's production. Margera also said that the film makes use of contributions he made before his firing and is seeking an injunction on the October release of the film as a result. On January 12, 2022, Knoxville said that one scene Margera filmed will remain, despite the lawsuit. Both parties came to terms on a settlement after Margera asked to dismiss the lawsuit on April 14, 2022. The details of the settlement remain private.

Casting

On May 25, Knoxville confirmed six new cast members: Jasper Dolphin of Odd Future, and one of the stars of Loiter Squad; Jasper's ex-convict father Compston "Dark Shark" Wilson, who made recurring guest appearances throughout the film; Eric Manaka, who had a role in Knoxville's film Action Point; stand-up comedian Rachel Wolfson; Zach Holmes from Too Stupid to Die; and surfer Sean "Poopies" McInerney who had previously appeared in the Jackass Shark Week special. The project was initially presented as a possible anniversary special, and the new cast were later told it would be a movie.

Filming

stated that the original plan was to film in different locations around the world, which was ultimately thwarted by the COVID-19 pandemic. He also claimed that Paramount Pictures used Jackass Forever to see how film studios could potentially resume filming during the pandemic. Because the majority of the film was filmed during the pandemic, all cast and crew members had to be tested for COVID-19 daily during filming. On January 6, 2022, Jeff Tremaine stated that all of the testing combined had a cost of "about over one million dollars".
Test filming began on December 10, 2019. During the two days of test filming, professional skateboarder Aaron "Jaws" Homoki broke his hand, and suffered a concussion. Principal photography started on March 3, 2020. On the first day of filming, the cast threw snakes on Bam Margera in the dark in order to induce his fear of snakes. Two days after the movie was greenlit, Steve-O and Johnny Knoxville were hospitalized. Filming was halted in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resumed seven months later on October 19, 2020, with Dimitry Elyashkevich serving as cinematographer.