Steve-O has shared a disheartening update on Bam Margera’s addiction recovery.
The Jackass star addressed the issue during a recent appearance on SiriusXM’s Faction Talk, revealing he had spoken to Margera earlier this week.
“He sounded super drunk, but he was in good spirits,” Steve-O told hosts Jim Norton and Sam Roberts. “It’s so fuckin’ nuts how he’s not just resistant to the idea of surrendering to recovery, but just how he literally just doesn’t seem to grasp the ‘disease concept.’ He’s like, ‘Ma, if I just stay busy … It’s when I’m not busy doing stuff all the time, I get into trouble ...’ It’s, like, that’s not how it works, dude. You think you would know that by now.”
Steve-O went on to say that he has nothing but love for Margera and will “never give up on him.”
“I’ve been physically present at almost every stop on his years-long tour of rehabs and psych wards,” he continued. “… I’m careful never to try to push sobriety on anybody. I feel strongly that if you do that what you’re actually doing is pushing them away from sobriety.”
Steve-O said he makes it a point to allow Margera “do his thing,” and doesn’t lecture him until he goes back to a rehab facility.
“That’s when it’s appropriate,” he added. “I go, ‘So since you’re here, let’s make the most of it … Nobody shows up in rehab by mistake, let alone a fuckin’ dozen times.”
Steve-O then spoke about Margera’s highly publicized feud with the Jackass crew. After he was fired from the Jackass Forever film, Margera accused Paramount Pictures, MTV Networks, Jeff Tremaine, Johnny Knoxville, and Spike Jonze of violating his civil rights. According to a lawsuit, producers ordered Margera to sign a “wellness agreement” that required him to undergo regular drug testing. After he allegedly tested positive for drugs, he was booted from the film; however, Margera claimed the drug in question was Adderall, which his doctor prescribed to him.
Steve-O described himself as the “Switzerland of Jackass,” and never had any animosity toward Margera.
“I’ve done absolutely nothing to try to sugarcoat anything,” he explained. “… My relationship with him is great. When I spoke to him a couple nights ago, he goes, ‘Dude, you know, I just want to thank you, man, because you’ve always been there for me.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’ve always been there to tell you how awful the situation is.’”
You can hear Steve-O’s full comments above. The 48-year-old is now promoting his new book, A Hard Kick in the Nuts, in which he addresses his own struggles with addiction and road to sobriety.
