It’s been 11 years since the last Jackass movie. Since then one of the core cast members, Ryan Dunn, died in a car crash, seemingly signaling the unofficial end of the series. Finally, after years of saying another movie would never happen, Johnny Knoxville and director Jeff Tremaine started work on a Jackass 4The film is basically done, and headed for release in the fall. Knoxville himself is now 50; the Jackasses are all now middle-aged men. So it maybe it goes without saying, but you should prepare yourself now, because Jackass 4 will be the final film in the epic saga.

That’s what Knoxville told GQ during a lengthy and surprisingly moving new profile of the actor. In the article, Knoxville describes Jackass 4 as his “last contribution to the franchise.” As for why now is the time to retire the series once and for all, he explained that “you can only take so many chances before something irreversible happens ... I feel like I've been extremely lucky to take the chances I've taken and still be walking around.”

The final curtain call for Jackass is not without complications. Another Jackass cast member, Bam Margera, told fans on social media they should boycott the film because he had supposedly been fired from the production because of his struggles with substance abuse and his ability to stay clean during the shooting of the movie. (Margera later deleted the videos; he told GQ he was fired from the film for “breaking his contract.”) Knoxville told GQ the Jackass team “want Bam to be happy and healthy and get the help he needs. We tried to push that along. I think that's all I really want to say about it.” (According to TMZ, Jeff Tremaine just filed for a temporary restraining order against Margera as well.)

Let’s hope this story somehow has a happy ending. After all the pain they’ve endured on our behalf, the Jackass crew deserve that much. Jackass 4 is scheduled to open in theaters on October 22, 2021.

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