All is not well in Jackassville. For months, Jackass star/parents’ worst nightmare Bam Margera has been very publicly airing his grievances about being fired from the upcoming Jackass 4. But behind the scenes, Margera’s complaints have allegedly exploded into a series of death threats against Jeff Tremaine—co-creator of the original Jackass TV series and director of all their small and big-screen adventures. The harassment has gotten so bad that Tremaine recently petitioned for, and was granted, a restraining order against his longtime collaborator.
According to Page Six, which obtained some of the court documents relating to the case, Margera’s campaign of intimidation began back in February, when he was officially fired from Jackass 4. Since then, he has issued a series of threatening missives both via text and social media directed against Tremaine as well as the director’s wife and children.
Page Six writes:
Jeff Tremaine claims Margera harassed him with disturbing messages, such as “I’m gonna kill you in one mother f*cking punch” and “keep it up fat boy and I will continue,” according to court documents obtained by Page Six on Thursday.
“Look at your children and grab your pocket book and write a check, if you are greedy, and cheap, look at your children again. If you don‘t sign the paper, look at your children,” one of the text messages allegedly read. “Sign your stupid f*cking contract before your [sic] not safe anywhere.”
According to court records, Margera also contacted at least one of Tremaine’s professional colleagues to complain about the director’s behavior and, during a phone call, told this individual that he has wizardly powers and “can create and strike lightning.” At times, Margera reportedly spoke in numbers instead of words.
The catalyst for all of this is Margera’s exclusion from the upcoming Jackass movie, reportedly for being unable to remain sober while filming. In April, Margera gave an interview to TMZ in which he claimed that the Jackass crew forced him to go to rehab, which he described as “torture” and said left him with suicidal thoughts. He then posted a video to Instagram in which he called for fans to boycott Jackass 4.
As part of his petition for a restraining order, Tremaine told the court that Margera “has encountered significant challenges with mental health stabilization, substance abuse, and maintaining his sobriety” in the 20 years that the two have known each other. But that “it was not until Mr. Margera began threatening my safety and that of my children did I become in great fear that he may follow through on his threats.”
As a result, Margera has been barred from making any contact with members of the Tremaine family and has been ordered to stay at least 100 yards away from Tremaine, his wife, and their son and daughter.
When asked about Margera in a recent interview with GQ, Jackass co-creator/star Johnny Knoxville said: “We 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.”
(Via Page Six)
