Jackass: Best And Last is heading to cinemas this week, but why is it being billed as the final Jackass movie? Find out below.
The new film is the fifth in the franchise and reunites Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Jason “Wee Man” Acuña and the rest of the crew for one last big-screen outing, 26 years after Jackass first launched on MTV.
Directed by Jeff Tremaine, who co-created the original series with Knoxville and Spike Jonze, the film mixes new stunts with unseen footage from across the franchise’s history.
Among the stunts previewed in the trailer were a robot-assisted rectal exam, a penis shock collar, an “escape room from hell”. Check it out here:
The film is being released into cinemas worldwide on Friday (June 26) by Paramount Pictures.
In a four-star review of 2022’s Jackass Forever, NME described it as “pure, prank-filled fun (plus a lot of testicles),” adding: “There’s a kindness and companionship – and freedom – to Jackass Forever that makes for 90 minutes of pure joy. Remember joy?”
Why is Jackass: Best And Last the final Jackass movie?
The short answer is that the cast are older, the stunts have taken their toll, and Knoxville has said this feels like the natural place to end.
“Oh, it’s it,” Knoxville told Reuters. “I think it’s time. You know, like, stuntmen and milk both have an expiration date, and, so I feel like it’s time to stop.”
He added: “I think we’re older, I don’t know about wiser. We didn’t start with much, nor pick up much along the way. If we did, we wouldn’t get the footage we get.”
He also told Rolling Stone that “this is the natural place to end, so it’s going to be absolutely awful.”
Paramount has also described the new film as “one final fling at the big screen”, combining “all-new stunts and stupidity” with greatest hits and unseen moments from the past.
The decision also comes after years of serious injuries. Knoxville suffered a concussion and brain haemorrhage while filming Jackass Forever, later saying he could no longer do stunts that risk another concussion.
Jackass first launched as an MTV series in 2000 before spawning a run of hit films, including Jackass: The Movie, Jackass Number Two, Jackass 3D and 2022’s Jackass Forever.