Jackass boys bring the pain to theaters

By Bridget Konczyk
Collegian Reporter
September 20, 2006

On Sept. 13 at the Four Seasons in Center City, eight college students had the opportunity to sit down and discuss Jackass: Number Two, now in theaters, with stars Johnny Knoxville and Bam Margera in a round table discussion. Donning high top Jackass sneakers, cut off pants, sunglasses and hat, Knoxville, with two beers in hand, started the interview solo.

Round Table: I recently heard Steve-O was diagnosed with a heart condition. How is he doing?
Johnny Knoxville: He did get diagnosed with a heart condition. But, he went to see another doctor and he’s cool. If anyone’s heart deserves a condition, it’s Steve-O’s. But I think he’s good. Thank God.

RT: Do you have any markings or injuries as a result of the stunts you pull?
JK: Yeah, I’ve got scars [Bam Margera enters the room] Here’s Bam Margera. He’s famous… but yes, I have scars. I don’t think I have any permanent damage but ask me again in 10 years. I’m sure both of our livers are in pretty bad shape.
Bam Margera: Yeah, I’ve had 12 of these [beers] already.

RT: Do you guys have a limit on when enough is enough in regards to stunts?
JK: No. You know there used to be a line, but everyone keeps drawing over it and drawing a new line. I don’t know if we’re driving the ship.
BM: I cracked my head open and got 50 stitches and that wasn’t even on Jackass.

RT: Bam, when you play Tony Hawk (on Playstation, XBOX), do you play as yourself?
BM: No, I play as Geoff Rowley. Rowley is better than me, so I figure I might as well support him.

RT: So whose idea was it to promote the movie using a billboard for a gay cruise?
JK: Ah…um…it was kind of, I guess…
BM: You.
JK: When I showed Dimitry and Jeff the billboard, they were so happy and touched.
BM: Didn’t Dimitry go, “That actually kind of looks like me?”
JK: I showed the guys; they were looking at it. It looks like me. One, two, three…it is me! BM: They Photoshopped them on these handsome bodies. They were like, “Wait, that looks like me, but I’ve never looked that good.”

RT: Johnny, what’s that bruise on your leg from?
JK: I was on Letterman the other night and I swung in from the catwalk and I went into the thing behind his desk.

RT: I noticed that the original cast of the movie is back. How does that make the movie flow better since you’ve all worked together before?
JK: The whole cast, this movie is so much better than the last. The first movie, 30 minutes of it maybe would have made it into this one. Bam comes across huge. I mean, everyone from top to bottom comes through.

RT: After “number two,” do you think there will be a “number three?”
JK: I don’t know. We said we wouldn’t do another one.
BM: We’ll die if we do another one.
JK: So I don’t know. I don’t know how we topped the first one. I don’t know how we could top this one. But with that said, I made a deal with Jeff Tremaine, the director, to get me to stop shooting because we had too much footage and I didn’t want to quit. So I said I’ll stop shooting if you let me shoot two more weeks in November. So I get to shoot two more weeks in November.
BM: You’re going to die in November.

RT: What were the extent of the injuries in this movie?
BM: Well, when I broke my tailbone.
JK: Yea, I almost bite it a couple times. The crew members almost died.
BM: Yeah, but breaking your tailbone sucks.

RT: Is there anything that scares you? Is there a stunt you won’t attempt?
BM: I don’t like bulls and snakes.

RT: Do you think you thrive on negative criticism?
JK: No, we don’t give a [darn] either way. You got to do some kind of ad campaign. We started this show just trying to make each other laugh and that’s all we’re still doing so whatever happens outside of that.

konczykb1@lasalle.edu