What Ever Happened To Steve-O?
Most people remember Stephen Glover, better known as Steve-O, from his outrageous antics on the hit MTV show Jackass. While all of the guys involved may have had a few screws loose, it can be argued that Steve-O may have been the wildest of the bunch. Whether it was snorting wasabi, getting highly questionable tattoos, or tight-rope walking over a pool of alligators, you could always count on Steve-O to put on a show. Yet, since Jackass has been off of the air, Steve-O has managed to get sober, and discover other things in life that he's also passionate about. Check out what he's been up to in the last few years and his amazing transformation.
The End Of An Era
After Jackass ended its show on MTV in 2002, Steve-O wasn't ready to hang up the towel. So, he and fellow Jackass co-star Chris Pontius came out with MTV's Wildboyz, featuring the two performing Jackass-like stunts with animals and native people from all over the world. The series lasted four seasons and ended in 2006.
From there, the stuntman spent the next few years being the spokesperson for Sneax Shoes, being featured on radio talk shows, and even being a contestant on a few reality television shows. He also spent some time aspiring to be a rapper and releasing mixtapes.
He Was Arrested Multiple Times
It was also during this time that the wild boy was getting into serious trouble with the law. In July 2002, he was arrested for obscenity after stapling his private parts to his leg, as well as for being principal to a second-degree battery during a performance in Louisiana.
Then, in May 2003, he was arrested for footage of him swallowing cannabis in a receptacle to get on an airplane, only to throw it up while on stage at a live show. Only months later, he was arrested again for urinating on potato chips in public at Lollapalooza festival. He was then kicked off of the tour by the festival.
He Didn't Stop Getting Tattoos
Steve-O has always been known for his choice in tattoos. At one point, he even got a tattoo of a smiley face on his arm while off-roading with David Rollins. On top of that, his body is littered with other impulsive tattoos including a massive self-portrait that takes up the better part of his back with the caption "Yead dude, I rock!"
He was even trying to attempt to copy all of Angelina Jolie's tattoos, including a tattoo of Billy Bob Thorton's name on his arm although Angelina has since had it removed. He even dated LA Ink Star Kat Von D. who gave him a tattoo of himself as a baby before they broke up.
It Wasn't Easy To Clean Up His Act
While Steve-O was always known for being a loose cannon, things took a turn for the worse when he pleaded guilty to felony possession of cocaine on June 4, 2008. However, he avoided going to jail after agreeing to complete a treatment program. Unfortunately, in July, after 115 days of sobriety, Steve-O announced that he was going "back to the looney bin."
He said that he needed to check back into the mental institution claiming that "I've had horrible mood swings and severe depression. My brain is [expletive] up from using so much cocaine, ketamine, PCP, nitrous oxide, and many other substances."
He Was Institutionalized
On February 23, 2008, Steve-O joined the rest of the Jackass Crew for the Jackass MTV 24 Hour Takeover where he was kicked out of the studio by MTV executives for his behavior and being extremely intoxicated. Then, on March 9, friend and Jackass host Johnny Knoxville received an email from Steve-O that hinted at his possible suicide.
Knoxville and other friends then dragged Steve-O to the hospital where he was placed on a 72-hour psychiatric hold which was lengthened to 14 days. People who were close to Steve-O later received an apology email from him regarding his struggles with drug and alcohol abuse.
Steve-O: Demise And Rise
On May 3, 2009, MTV premiered a documentary titled Steve-O: Rise and Demise about his struggles with drugs and alcohol that eventually led him to be institutionalized. The film had home footage of Steve-O binging on drugs and alcohol and the outrageous acts he did that resulted from it.
In an interview, Johnny Knoxville claimed that "He's taking to sobriety as he took to drugs and alcohol, I'm very proud of him. I think we'll see him doing some stuff here really soon. As a matter of fact, I know we are." After watching it himself, Steve-O claimed that he couldn't watch it again because although it was embarrassing, it tempted him to break his sobriety.
Back In Full Force
After getting sober, Steve-O was apart of the third installment of the Jackass series, Jackass 3D, which was released in October 2010. Knoxville claimed that the stuntman's sobriety was at its best during filming with the crew banning all drugs and alcohol when he was on set.
He stated that "[Steve-O] is really going for it. He wants to prove to everyone he can do these stunts sober. It's been two years since he had a drink now. Everyone has been really supportive of him." After the movie broke box office records, it was clear that Steve-O really was just an insane person and didn't need to be intoxicated to perform.
He Got Involved In Comedy
Although we already knew that Steve-O had no problem entertaining the masses with his stunts, he decided to try his hand at comedy in November 2010. He then set off on a tour around the United States called "Steve-O's Entirely Too Much Information Tour."
According to the comic, standing up in front of a group of people and trying to make them laugh is equally if not scarier than some of his most reckless stunts. However, he didn't let his fears stop him, as he did a nine-month tour in 2011 all over the US and even in Australia.
He Wrote An Autobiography
2011 was an eventful year for Steve-O as he also released an autobiography that he co-wrote with David Peisner. The book was titled Professional Idiot: A Memoir, which chronicled Steve-O's life through all of the highs and lows of his career and personal life.
Essentially, it is Steve-O's side of the story, something that the documentary Steve-O: Demise and Rise didn't give him the opportunity to do. It also explains what he's been up to including going vegan, his involvement in the NOH8 project, and his dedication to animal rights.
Issues At The Comedy Central Roast
During the taping of the Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen in 2011, things got a little out of hand when Steve-O was behind the mic. Of course, he called out Charlie Sheen on his past issues of drug abuse and promiscuity, but he also attacked his fellow roasters. He announced that "The last time this many nobodies were at a roast, at least Great White was playing."
This was in reference to the fire during a Great White show in which 100 people were killed. This earned him some boos which led to him apologizing and asking Comedy Central to edit it out of the broadcast, which they did.
A Feud With Amy Schumer
Apparently, there wasn't a dull moment during the filming of Charlie Sheen's Roast. A long-lasting feud was ignited after comedian Amy Schumer made a joke about Ryan Dunn, a fellow Jackass star who had died in a drunk driving accident that same year. Steve-O, still mourning the loss of his friend, was evidently not amused at the joke whatsoever.
In a later interview, Steve-O went off on Schumer claiming that " [In rehab] I learned the importance of forgiveness. And I forgive Comedy Central for letting that no-name [expletive] on the show in the first place. I have zero respect for that [expletive] but I'm not mad at her for telling a joke." As of today, the two have fully reconciled.
He Has A Close Relationship With Mike Tyson
In an interview with GQ, Steve-O told a story about partying hard with Mike Tyson back in the day. Apparently, while crashing a party in the Hollywood Hills, the Jackass star found himself in a bathroom with the former boxer where the two indulged in copious amounts of cocaine and discussed subjects ranging from racism in America to how to make the world a better place.
The next time the two conversed one-on-one was when they ran into each other at the same psychiatric ward. The two were even together filming for the Charlie Sheen Roast where Steve-O intentionally jumped face-first into Tyson's fist, breaking his nose is the process.
He's Been Getting Into Acting
Even though Jackass may no longer be on the air, that doesn't mean that Steve-O stopped wanting to be in front of the camera. In 2015, he had a role in the indie action comedy Barely Legal, where he worked alongside Hailee Steinfeld and Samuel L.Jackson. Steve-O plays a henchman to the villain played by Samuel L. Jackson.
Steve-O's character is tasked with torturing a girl by injecting her with a truth serum to reveal her secrets. On top of that, Steve-O has also been doing voice-over work appearing on an episode of the Adult Swim series Mr. Pickles.
More And More Roles
In addition to his roles in the film Barely Lethal and voice-over work for Mr. Pickles, it appears that Steve-O is getting more and more work in the film and television industry. In terms of movies, most recently, Steve-O acted in the Netflix original film Game Over, Man! Alongside Anders Holm, Adam Devine, and Blake Anderson from the hit show Workaholics.
He's also featured in the film Suicide Roadtrip which is currently in post-production with no official release date. For television, he has worked on the shows Shane & Friends, The Sideman Show, Billy Dilly's Super-Duper Subterranean Summer, and Happy Together. Looks like Steve-O has been staying busy on-set!
He's A Huge Animal Rights Activist
While animal rights may not be the first thing that comes to mind when people think about Steve-O, in recent years, it's been a huge part of his life. Due to a combination of events, it led him to eventually becoming a vegan and using his popularity to help raise awareness and support his various causes.
He even narrated a short documentary on animal rights called What Came Before: The Truth About Meat and Modern Farms for the organization Farm Sanctuary. In 2011, he was recognized by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and received the Nanci Alexander Award, one of the organization's highest honors.
He's Made His Opinion About SeaWorld Very Clear
While Steve-O is best known for his unique set of talents, recently, he's been using them to speak out against SeaWorld. In 2014, he managed to climb onto a a sign over the Interstate 5 in San Diego to change the sign to say "SeaWorld Sucks." He was fined $239 for his actions. However, the activist wasn't satisfied.
In 2015, he upped the anti and climbed ip a 100-foot-tall crane on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. Once on top, he blew up an inflatable orca whale which has "SeaWorld Sucks" written on it. He then proceeded to shoot off fireworks to get the attention of the public. For this public demonstration, he received some jail time and three years probation.
He Rescued A Stray Dog From Peru
In 2018, while filming a YouTube mountaineering series titled "Ultimate Expedition," Steve-O met his future co-star. A known animal activist, he wanted to see if he could find a stray dog that would join them on his journey. While he tried giving food to many of them, only one, which he named Wendy, came forward.
After going into a building that didn't allow dogs, he feared he would never see the K-9 again until she found him on the streets. After a bath and a trip to the vet, the two became inseparable with her joining him on his expedition. He took her home with him to Los Angeles claiming that "I'm going to bring her virtually everywhere I go for the rest of my life."
He Just Completed His First Triathalon
In September of 2018, a decade into his sobriety, the man of many talents competed in the celebrity division of the 32nd annual Nautica Malibu Triathlon in Los Angeles to raise money for childhood cancer research. The race consisted of a half-mile swim, 17-mile bike ride, and a four mile run on the beach to finish off the race.
He posted on Twitter with his medal and the caption reading, "I really can't believe how far I’ve come on this journey of life... I just got tenth place in my division at my first ever triathlon! Woohoo!!! #nauticamalibutri (full disclosure— my division was "men’s celebrity", but there were tons of celebrities, so I’m stoked!)"
A Birthday Gift To Himself
In the years since he has been sober, the ex-party animal has devoted his life to healthy eating and fitness. While he's still as crazy as ever, he's also been a dedicated vegan since 2008 and more of a fitness freak with each passing day.
In an Instagram post in June 2018, he announced to the world that getting in the best shape of his life was a birthday gift to himself. He captioned the photo saying "For my birthday this year, I decided to get in the best shape I've ever been in. I may be old, but I’m healthy as [expletive]! #HappyBDayToMe."
He's Just Getting Started
Although Steve-O no longer pumps drugs and alcohol into his body or consumes meat, that doesn't mean his overall personality has changed. While he may have new goals and a different outlook on life, he will always be Steve-O and he doesn't want his fans to forget it.
Today, he can still be seen performing his wild stunts during his travels on his YouTube channel (steveo) or other social media accounts. Here, fans can still laugh at him while he wears poisonous jellyfish like a hat or being electrocuted with 50,000 volts just because he feels like it. He's the new and improved Steve-O.
Jackass Got Its Start Because Johnny Knoxville Was Unemployed
All of the members from the Jackass crew can thank Johnny Knoxville for becoming MTV stars. Both before and after Jackass Johnny Knoxville worked as an actor, having studied at the American Academy of the Arts. During a period of time when he couldn't get any work, he relied on stunt journalism to pay the bills. He would test self defense equipment such as pepper spray, tasers, and rubber bullets and then review them.
While no mainstream magazines were interested in his work, the underground skateboard magazine Big Brother was. Editor Jeff Tremaine wanted to add Knoxville's reviews to their current line of magazine videos and Jackass was born.
An Oscar-Winning Director Helped Get The Show Off The Ground
Once the full concept for Jackass had been established, the group needed a little help getting the ball rolling. Luckily, Big Brother editor Justin Tremaine was friendly with well-known music video director Spike Jonze. By the '90s, Jonze had begun working on full-length films such as Being John Malkovich and knew enough about the industry to help out.
Jonze helped Tremaine and Knoxville flesh out all of the concepts for the show and helped them put together an effective pitch for television networks. Jonze later went on to win an Academy Award for his work on Her and was an executive producer of Jackass.
There Was A Bidding War For The Show
Knoxville, Tremaine, and Jonze had realized that they were sitting on a gold mine with the idea to turn Jackass into a show. Considering the show's demographic, who doesn't want to see a bunch of irresponsible slackers hurt themselves for the public's amusement? Once the network figured this out, a bidding war started which resulted in MTV barely beating out Comedy Central for the rights to air the show.
Saturday Night Live even wanted a piece of it, offering Knoxville the opportunity to have pre-recorded stunts played on the show each week. However, they wanted a whole show, not just a segment on SNL. Regardless, Knoxville would eventually host an episode in 2005.
The Original Title Was Rejected By MTV
That's right, the original title for the show was worse than Jackass. Initially, the crew had pushed for the name [expletive]holes, but MTV put their foot down, claiming that the name was too profane even for what they were doing.
However, MTV agreed to let them use that name, except the title would have to be censored anytime the show aired, was advertised, or could be seen anywhere in public. This would essentially mean that the show didn't have a name, so they came up with the "toned-down" name Jackass. Yet, even that title proved to cause some issues.
People Have Died Trying To Re-Create The Stunts
Regardless of the warning that was shown at the beginning of every episode and movie, people still tried to imitate some of the stunts that they saw. On countless occasions, this resulted in serious injuries with a few people unfortunately losing their lives. Most of these accidents were very clearly linked to people trying to either copy stunts or come up with their own, similar stunts.
Show creator Jeff Tremiane explained that "We would always watch something to see if it was too imitable, we still do that to this day." MTV President Van Toffler followed up discussing all of the precautions that they take on set to make it a safe environment for their stunts.
A US Senator Led To The Show's Demise
After a teen suffered from severe burns over 65% of his body trying to reenact the "Human Barbecue" stunt, Senator Joe Lieberman began to attack MTV directly. He claimed that while the show had a mature rating it was irresponsible for MTV to put it on the air because so many young teens were drawn to it. This led to MTV having to tone down many of the stunts that could be put on the show, ultimately leading to its ending.
Knoxville claimed that "MTV's new restrictions were creating a watered-down version of the show," which resulted in him quitting. However, they later came out with their much raunchier films that had little to no restrictions.
Cast Members Have Suffered Lifelong Injuries From Their Stunts
It came as no surprise when a member of the crew hurt themselves during a stunt, however, they weren't always permanent. Apparently, Steve-O, who was known for vomiting frequently on the show, contracted something known as Barrett's Esophagus. He described it as "a pre-cancerous condition in my throat/esophagus for which I blame all of my vomiting, drug abuse, and generally [expletive] living in years past."
Johnny Knoxville is part of this group too. While trying to land a backflip on a motorcycle, he ended up rupturing his urethra. Aside from having to use a catheter for three years, he now has permanent damage to his privates.
Bam Margera Wanted To Have Mike Tyson Bite Off His Ear
While drinking wine on a plane during a brainstorming session, professional skateboarder and Jackass star Bam Margera came up with what he thought was a grand idea. His idea was to have his ear bitten off by nobody else but Mike Tyson himself. He claimed that the stunt would give him a lot of "street cred."
Since this was an idea for one of the films, the production company actually reached out to Tyson to see what he would have to say about Margera's idea. Paramount got back to Margera saying that Tyson got offended and said no. Surely Margera is happy that stunt never happened.
A Lot Of The Stunts Were Denied
While there's no denying that many of the stunts on the MTV show were downright unbelievable, it's surprising to learn that many of the ideas for Jackass stunts were actually forbidden by MTV. Of course, most of these rejected ideas involved Steve-O, who was always trying to take the show and his own stunts to the next level.
Yet, it all worked out, as Many of Steve-O's stunts that were left out of the show came out on a DVD called Don't Try This at Home: The Steve-O Video. Also, many of the other sketches that didn't air made it into the first Jackass movie.
Shooting In Japan For The First Film
For the first Jackass the Movie, if you watch closely, you'll notice that many of the sketches are filmed in Japan. This isn't just out of coincidence but was part of a strategy. Besides changing the scenery for the stunts, they also didn't have to worry about hordes of teenagers figuring out where they're filming and showing up to the location.
Another reason was that they didn't have to blur out the faces of non-consenting people in their footage because of certain Japanese laws. This made a lot of their post-production work a lot easier than it would have been otherwise.
