The 10 Most Dangerous Jackass Stunts, Ranked
The idea of Jackass came to Johnny Knoxville when he was working for skate magazine Big Brother.
He pitched an article on self-defence, for which he would test personal protection equipment so that he could weigh in on which was the most effective method. From there came the concept for a television show with similar silly stunts, and so Jackass was born.
Since the debut episode in 2000, Jackass has transitioned to the big screen, with the fifth and final film, Jackass: Best and Last, arriving in cinemas this June. Over the years, Johnny Knoxville and his ragtag crew of like-minded folk have tirelessly put themselves in harm’s way, all in the name of entertainment. With close to 200 stunts and pranks across the movies, the Jackass clan have risked life and limb on countless occasions.
Having rewatched all of the movies in preparation for Jackass: Best and Last, we’ve compiled a list of the most dangerous stunts. Do not try any of these at home!
10. Anaconda Ball Pit (Jackass Number 2)
During Jackass Number 2, Steve-O, Johnny Knoxville, and Ryan Dunn decided that wrestling with some anacondas sounded fun, and so ‘Anaconda Ball Pit’ was born. To try and make it a fair fight, the three of them took on just two anacondas, but the trio had clearly learned nothing from the J-Lo movie.
As they attempted to find and remove the creatures from the pit, the anaconda fought back, showing off how fierce their constrictions really are. Ryan Dunn, in particular, was lucky to survive the stunt with both his arms, as one of the anacondas took great delight in wrapping him up.
9. The Marching Band (Jackass Forever)
Although only a very minor part of Jackass Forever, the ‘Marching Band’ stunt caused carnage. Dressed in marching band regalia and each armed with a musical instrument, the plan for the skit was that the group would try to play their instruments and stay in formation whilst mounting a treadmill going full speed.
The result saw bodies flying everywhere as the group all tried, and immediately failed, at getting onto the treadmill. By the end of their attempt, the guys were all piled in a heap together, Johnny Knoxville bleeding from his head, and Steve-O being taken away in the back of an ambulance, strapped in a neck brace, having blacked out.
8. Fireworks Wake-Up (Jackass: The Movie)
Throughout his time on Jackass, Bam Margera was known for his love of pranking his poor parents, April and Phil. The couple were tormented throughout Jackass: The Movie, and although coming home to find a gator in your kitchen must have been terrifying, the middle-of-the-night fireworks were worse.
During his prank ‘Fireworks Wake-up’, Bam and several others stormed his parents’ bedroom in the middle of the night, armed with paint guns and fireworks. Setting fireworks off in a contained area is never a good idea, and a stray firework could have caused a very bad injury. Also, given the age of his parents, the shock awakening could have caused a heart attack.
7. Beehive Tetherball (Jackass 3-D)
Africanised bees are not to be messed with, and so, of course, the Jackass crew have played with the flying stinging machines on more than one occasion.
The most memorable is in Jackass 3D, during which Steve-O and Dave England play tetherball with a beehive. Scantily clad in bear hats and Y-fronts for maximum stinging potential, the duo were stung countless times during the stunt as the very angry bees sought vengeance. The bees, though, could not distinguish between the perpetrators and bystanders, and so everyone on set wound up with dozens of bee stings.
6. Butt X-Ray (Jackass: The Movie)
Originally intended for Steve-O, the ‘Butt X-Ray’ is one of the best remembered moments of Jackass: The Movie. With Steve-O passing on the idea, Ryan Dunn stepped up and inserted a toy car into his rectum, before popping along to a local doctor for an X-ray.
The physician was horrified and urged Dunn to get himself to surgery ASAP. Dunn opted for a DIY removal, and thanks to some pre-planning of inserting the matchbox car inside a condom, the stunt was performed somewhat safely.
5. Flight of Icarus (Jackass Forever)
Having already ridden a rocket in Jackass Number 2, for Jackass Forever, Johnny Knoxville decided to get thrown out of a cannon. It's an old circus stunt, but in typical Jackass fashion, they took it to the extreme. Dressed as Icarus, Knoxville climbed into the cannon and was shot into the air above a lake.
Whilst his brief time in the air looked somewhat graceful, his hard landing on the water left him unable to sit properly for weeks afterwards.
4. Riot Control Test 2 (Jackass Number 2)
After performing the ‘Riot Control Test’ in Jackass: The Movie, Johnny Knoxville decided to up the stakes for the sequel. Reluctantly joined by Bam Margera and Ryan Dunn, ‘Riot Control Test 2’ saw the threesome shot at with a less-lethal variation of the Claymore mine, which fires out hundreds of small rubber balls. So rather than the single projectile that Knoxville took in the original, the trio were pelted with numerous bullets.
The stunt caused Dunn to have a panic attack, and each man was instantly covered with bruises. Footage from the stunt can be seen in the trailer for Jackass: Best and Last, so it looks like there are more stories to tell about this one.
3. The Flaming Gauntlet (Jackass 3.5)
One of the most insane things about Jackass is that there are nearly as many stunts that don’t make it into the movie as do. This means that the group risks their lives on the chance that what they are filming might make it in the final cut. With so much footage shot, there eventually came some .5 movies that offered a glimpse into some stunts that had to be cut for pacing.
Of them, Jackass 3.5’s ‘The Flaming Gauntlet’ is one of the worst. Steve-O was tasked with walking across a high beam, placed over hot coals, while others swung flaming balls of fire at him. During the stunt, Steve-O was knocked onto the coals and suffered third-degree burns across 15% of his body.
2. Lamborghini Tooth Pull (Jackass 3D)
The third Jackass movie was released during the 3D cinema boom. As such, Jackass 3D was full of stunts that saw things fly out of the screen at the viewer. One such item that was sent flying was a tooth belonging to Danger Ehren McGhehey. During a stunt called ‘Lamborghini Tooth Pull,’ McGhehey had a string wrapped around one of his teeth. The other end was attached to Bam Margera’s Lamborghini, and as the car hurtled off at speed, the tooth was wrenched out of McGhehey’s jaw.
While on screen, the stunt looks very silly, the resulting injury was one of the worst in Jackass history. The force of the car's pull essentially broke Ehren McGhehey’s face from tooth to eye in an instant.
1. The Magic Trick (Jackass Forever)
When it comes to Jackass stunts, they come no more dangerous than the one that almost killed Johnny Knoxville. Infamously known as ‘The Magic Trick’, the Jackass Forever stunt saw Knoxville once again playing with angry bulls.
Whereas in previous stunts he’d been bruised and battled, during this attempt, the bull clipped him and threw him into the air. Knoxville sustained broken ribs, a broken wrist, a concussion, and a severe brain haemorrhage. The stunt was also a wake-up call for Knoxville, who then cancelled the rest of his planned stunts for the movie.
