Bam Margera’s absence from Jackass Forever has been well publicized, but the original Jackass cast member – and founder of the whole franchise – needs to be included in Jackass 4.5 in a much bigger way. The question now is whether Johnny Knoxville, Jeff Tremaine, and the Jackass crew will actually use more of the footage they shot of Margera in the upcoming alternate cut of Jackass Forever. If there’s any justice, Margera’s missing footage will be restored and his part in planning some of the stunts will be more overtly celebrated.
The trend of MTV Films releasing special cuts of Jackass movies several months after the initial releases and calling them Jackass 2.5, 3.5, and now 4.5 was born with Jackass Number Two, when Knoxville and co realized they had filmed more than enough for two versions of the movie. Combining deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes Jackass footage, the alternate cuts aren’t so much director’s cuts as glorified bonus features, usually released for home release. Jackass 4.5 is releasing straight to Netflix, following the same trend, with Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine promising lots of new footage. That much is obviously good news for Jackass fans.
