Steve-O earned less than $1,500 in his entire first season for the groundbreaking series that catapulted his career to international fame, the 52-year-old stuntman revealed. In a recent interview, Steve revealed the surprisingly modest compensation he received despite the show’s popularity and strong ratings for the network.The revelation is particularly interesting because Steve was also homeless and unemployed when the series premiered on October 1, 2000. “Before the show came out, my sister kicked me out of the house. I was broke, unemployed and homeless, and a star in this big show,” he told Playboy magazine, highlighting his cruel situation.
Season 1 The shocking reality of compensation
Steve-O’s salary was calculated on a per-stunt basis rather than per episode, which he characterized as “ridiculous”. After five days of filming, during which he was bitten by a shark and suffered multiple injuries, he wrote down what money he would receive. For the shark bite that left a scar on his finger, he received $500.
The difference between being famous and being rich
His overnight fame contrasted sharply with his actual financial situation.
Steve-O’s path to ‘jackass’ and financial despair
Before becoming a breakout star, Steve also worked as an amateur stuntman, making skateboard trick videos. In 1997, he burned his face while attempting a fire-breathing backflip for the skateboarding publication Big Brother, establishing himself as someone willing to endure significant physical risk for entertainment.He then enrolled in the Ringling Brothers Clown College as a strategic move to gain legitimacy.” The only reason I even considered going to clown college was to further my goal of becoming a crazy-famous stuntman. I was homeless for three years, had zero traction, and I thought, well, if I can graduate from Ringling Brothers Clown College, I’m a trained circus professional,” he explained.His background in clown performance, combined with his willingness to perform dangerous stunts, made him an ideal fit for the series’ creators. “The fact that I was a clown endeared me to the people who started Jackass. It was organic,” Steve-O says.
Steve-O’s emotional reflections on the franchise’s legacy
He expressed deep passion about what the franchise means to him and his castmates. “I had my own little private screening in the editing bay last week, and I was moved. Like, wow. What I was a part of. What I was a part of. It’s crazy,” he reflected on watching the final installment.Steve-O describes the final project as “finding a home for messy content that didn’t have a home, and all of us getting together and making a last ditch effort to do whatever we have to do.”The end of the franchise represented the end of an era in entertainment history, one that transformed stunt performers from fringe performers to mainstream celebrities, even as the financial realities of that initial success told a more complicated story.‘Jackass: Best and Last’ hits theaters on June 26.
