Jeff Tremaine may have tried to broaden his horizons somewhat by moving into fictional territory, but he’ll always be best known as a member of the Jackass team. The former art director, magazine editor and professional BMX rider has ventured into other genres over the last two decades, most notably by directing Netflix’s Mötley Crüe biopic The Dirt, but his output has largely been defined by the MTV cult classic he co-created with Spike Jonze and Johnny Knoxville.
The 54 year-old has helmed all four installments in the franchise along with spinoff Bad Grandpa, while he’s created or produced a number of reality or sketch shows in a similar vein including Ridiculousness, Wildboyz, Rob & Big, Nitro Circus, Loiter Squad and WWE’s Swerved. He’s been part of the Jackass furniture since its very inception, then, but cracks have recently formed in the collective, to the extent that Tremaine has now reportedly filed a restraining order against Bam Margera.
The director had to work hard to convince studio Paramount to have Margera in Jackass 4 in the first place, which they agreed to on the provision that he’d take regular drug tests and remain sober for the entirety of production. When he failed to stick to those terms, though, the skateboarder was fired from the film, and then went on to say he’d been betrayed and stabbed in the back by his longtime associates.
Steve-O recently came to the defense of Tremaine and Knoxville after they staged the intervention he credits for saving his life, but clearly the fences haven’t been mended if the director has resorted to taking legal action to ensure that Margera doesn’t appear in his orbit as Jackass 4 gears up for release in October.
