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In the year 2000, Jackass premiered on MTV and took the world by storm for reasons that many fans still don’t understand twenty years later. Thanks to how popular Jackass became pretty much overnight, the show’s cast became famous.
The Jackass franchise has also continued in several more forms, just like some other series that have spawned multiple spin-offs, including four feature films to date. When plans were being made for the fourth of those films, Jackass star Steve-O tried to get a raise but failed in dramatic fashion.
How Rich Is Steve-O From Jackass?
Throughout film and television history, there has never been a franchise like Jackass that has enjoyed so much success. Able to develop a remarkably devoted fan following that has stuck around for more than two decades, Jackass continues to garner new generations of fans.
Many years before Jackass became what it is today, the show that started it all was produced on a shoestring budget. As anyone who has seen the show Jackass will already know, it looked like it was filmed on a cheap family camera and that was part of its charm.
Just like corners were cut during the filming of Jackass, MTV made sure to pay the show’s cast as little as possible. As Steve-O has revealed in the years since, he was paid next to nothing for the stunts he performed during the filming of Jackass’ first season.
“I didn’t make very much money on the first season of Jackass. I got paid per bit that I shot, and if the bit was dangerous where I could get hurt, I was to be paid $500. If it was just kind of funny, I was to be paid $200.”
Fortunately for Steve-O and his Jackass co-stars, many of them were able to accumulate fairly healthy fortunes. The reason for that is two more seasons of Jackass were produced, they starred in several movies, and then they were able to make opportunities for themselves.
As one of the most popular members of the Jackass cast, Steve-O should have accumulated tens of millions dollars. Sadly for him, however, it is well known that Steve-O dealt with serious addiction issues for many years.
When Steve-O was in the worst years of his addiction, he wasted a staggering amount of money. Of course, there are lots of other stars who have notably lost a lot of money like Steve-O did in the past.
To Steve-O’s immense credit, he has been sober for many years, and he seems to making the most of his life. According to Celebrity Net Worth, that has allowed Steve-O to build a $4 million fortune.
Since the richest people can spend their money very differently, what Steve-O wants to do with his money is amazing. As Steve-O has revealed publicly, he wants to use his money to build an animal sanctuary.
How Rich Is Johnny Knoxville From Jackass?
From the very start, the Jackass franchise has been possible because of its ensemble cast. While Steve-O and Bam Margera were able to become more popular than most of their peers, only one of the franchise’s stars has been consistently presented as the biggest deal.
As the person who uttered the line “Hi I’m Johnny Knoxville, Welcome To Jackass”, he always came across as the franchise’s main star. What many Jackass fans didn’t realize is that Knoxville was more than that.
Alongside Spike Jonze and Jeff Tremaine, Knoxville has always served as one of Jackass’ producers. Since he worked behind the scenes as well, Knoxville cashed in more than the other Jackass stars.
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Knoxville also became the Jackass star who has enjoyed the most success in Hollywood. A legitimate actor, Knoxville has starred in a long list of movies over the years, many of which he was paid good money to headline.
Knoxville’s most notable film acting credits include his roles in Men In Black II, The Dukes of Hazzard, and The Ringer. Knoxville has also managed to make a living from movies he performed stunts for and acted in like Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa and Action Point.
Thanks to the success that Knoxville has enjoyed as an actor and producer, he has amassed an impressive $50 million fortune as of this writing.
Steve-O’s Failed Attempt To Get A Jackass Pay Raise
After Jackass 3D was released in 2010, most fans assumed it wouldn’t be too long before it was followed up with a sequel. Once Ryan Dunn tragically passed away, however, it seemed like the main Jackass franchise had come to an end.
To the surprise of just about everyone, a fourth Jackass movie was released in 2022 and became a huge hit. A major portion of the reason why Jackass Forever became so successful is most of the franchise’s original stars were a major part of it.
During an interview with MMA Junkie, Steve-O revealed that his journey to Jackass Forever was fraught with drama because he tried to get a pay raise.
“I was in disbelief when I learned that Knoxville was trying to make a fourth Jackass movie after an entire decade of inactivity with the Jackass brand. The contracts have never been fun but this time around, it was even less fun.”
As Steve-O explained, by the time production on Jackass Forever began, he’d spent years building up his brand. As both a touring comedian and a social media influencer, Steve-O’s fan following loves to watch his antics and seeing how much heart he has. Feeling he was worth more than before, Steve-O wanted compensation for the increased value he brought to Jackass Forever.
“I felt that over the last 10 years that I’d really worked extremely hard to build momentum for myself as a brand in my own right. I wanted to retroactively stick up for myself. Over the course of Jackass, I had never so much as countered. I never pushed back. I built myself up. I deserved more now because I worked for more. When my entertainment attorney says ‘OK, go for it,’ then I’m going to go for it.”
While Steve-O asking for a raise seems reasonable, things went awry when he spoke about his negotiation during interviews.
As Steve-O explained to MMA Junkie, talking to the public “pissed off Knoxville” and caused “a little rift”. Furthermore, Steve-O’s attempt to get a raise went nowhere.
“My lawyer finally called me up and said, ‘Hey, take it, dude. This is going to get ugly. It might have gone up the smallest fraction of a number. But it did not go up in any sense for me to call it a win.”
Considering all the lawsuits Knoxville has faced because of Jackass, it makes sense he didn’t want more bad publicity.
