When Jackass 4 finally arrives this October, one of the founding members of the team will be absent, as Bam Margera was fired from the project thanks to a breach of contract related to his personal issues.
The reality TV star has had trouble with alcohol and drug abuse for a while now and Paramount wasn’t too keen on having him back for the fourth installment in the series. Director Jeff Tremaine fought for him, though, and it ended up being written into his contract that he had to stay clean and sober while making the movie.
Unfortunately, he failed to do so and after being let go, Margera shared a series of concerning videos on social media, blasting Tremaine and Johnny Knoxville, with the star saying they betrayed him and stabbed him in the back. Throughout it all, Knoxville has kept pretty quiet, but the actor finally decided to break the silence this week and address the situation.
Speaking in a recent interview, Knoxville kept things fairly diplomatic, saying the following:
“We want Bam to be happy and healthy and get the help he needs. We tried to push that along. I think that’s all I really want to say about it. I don’t want to get into a public back-and-forth with Bam. I just want him to get better.”
That’s fair enough and pretty much what you’d expect the leader of the troupe to say when talking about the controversy swirling around his longtime colleague and friend. But with Tremaine having recently gotten a restraining order against Bam, it unfortunately seems as if there are still problems brewing behind the scenes.
In any case, let’s just hope that none of this impacts Jackass 4. Fans have high hopes for the movie and it’ll probably be the last outing for the franchise. So with any luck, the gang will go out on a positive note and Bam Margera‘s personal issues won’t cast a dark shadow over the film.