When you think about the jobs that lead to concussions, you probably think of boxing, professional football, or hockey. You might not immediately think of big-screen celebrity actors as being very susceptible to major injuries, let alone concussions. That is, of course, until you look back at the wild and crazy stunts performed by the talented team that makes up the Jackass series of movies.
When a guy like Johnny Knoxville gets launched from a cannon, goes toe to toe with a charging bull, or sidesteps off a railing treadmill sideways into a wall, you know he’s probably sustained a few injuries. To be exact, he’s had 16 concussions over his lifetime, thanks to the Jackass franchise and a need for horseplay.
How many concussions has Johnny Knoxville actually endured?
In a Wired video, Johnny Knoxville said that he believes he’s had 16 concussions, maybe more. As he gets older, those stunts are getting harder and harder to recover from. You might think after years of subjecting his body to intense risks, Knoxville would know how to better protect himself. But even in this latest movie installment, Jackass Forever, the concussions and injuries just kept coming.
In fact, both Johnny Knoxville and Steve-O were in the hospital just a few days into filming. The incident involved the crew, dressed in traditional band uniforms and carrying heavy band instruments, stepping onto a full-speed treadmill, only to then be flung into a wall and collapsing in a heap on top of each other. But it’s the tussle with the bull, for a second time, that left Knoxville with another concussion and a brain hemorrhage.
One of Knoxville’s worst concussions actually came early on during the filming of Jackass: The Movie. He stepped into the ring to fight a professional boxer, Butterbean. That bout was over fairly quickly, with Knoxville barely coming out of it. He categorized the fight as “a one-sided trainwreck,” and EW shared he also suffered from vertigo for several weeks thereafter.
What about broken bones?
Knoxville didn’t just bang his head; he’s also broken a few bones over the years. Just in the latest movie, Jackass Forever, he sustained the most damage with a broken wrist, a broken rib, and a concussion. Over the course of his life and career, he’s also suffered from herniated discs, an injury that still somewhat plagues him today. When asked to put a number on broken bones, he says, “probably a lot,” citing too many to recall.
There have been plenty of sprains and breaks for Knoxville, too. Like the time he dressed up as Santa Clause and climbed a 40-ft tree to chop it down for the holidays. When the tree fell with him on it, he slammed to the ground, breaking his collarbone. Toss in a half dozen or so sprained ankles and soft tissue damage, and it’s fair to say Knoxville has taken a beating over the years.
He takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’
According to Healthing, Knoxville’s brain hemorrhage resulting from the bull stunt has led to other complications, including “depressive symptoms.” He even had to undergo magnetic stimulation of the cranium, which felt like, as Knoxville put it, “buzzing your head with these magnets for 30 minutes at a time.” He also found his head injuries led to a lapse in some of his cognitive skills.
Other injuries on Knoxville’s resume include what he called a “gnarly brain-erasing concussion” that also resulted in a broken orbital lamina. When he got back to the hotel that night and blew his nose, his left eye actually popped out of his head. He’s also sustained a torn urethra while trying to backflip a motorcycle during an Evel Knievel MTV tribute in 2008.
Johnny Knoxville has a sense of humor, saying when “you do silly things, you get silly injuries.” But he’s also racked up some hefty hospital bills, and he’s aware of just how dangerous his job is for a guy his age. He says he doesn’t mind risking minor injuries or breaking limbs, but he can’t do the life-or-death risky stunts anymore. And considering all he’s endured, in the name of entertainment, fans are probably ok with that.
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