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Bam Margera — news, coverage & facts — IJR

Early life and CKY videos

Margera was born on September 28, 1979, and raised in West Chester, Pennsylvania, the son of April and Phil Margera. He is the younger brother of rock musician Jess Margera and the nephew of television personality Vincent "Don Vito" Margera. When Margera was three years old, his grandfather nicknamed him "Bam Bam" after noticing his habit of purposely running into walls; over time, that nickname was shortened to "Bam" by his schoolmates. Before their television fame, Margera's parents, April and Phil, worked as a hairdresser and baker, respectively.

Margera received his first video camera from his father as a gift in 1993 after he enrolled in a digital media class at his school with childhood friend Chris Raab. It was here that Margera and Raab met future collaborators and close friends Art Webb, Brandon DiCamillo, and Ryan Dunn. Soon after, they began shooting homemade videos of Margera and his friends skateboarding and doing stunts, which eventually evolved into the CKY video series. CKY stands for "Camp Kill Yourself", a name shared with his brother Jess Margera's band, CKY, which was named as a tribute to the film Sleepaway Camp (1983).

In 1994, Margera dropped out of school after Chris Raab was expelled, but was homeschooled by his mother and received his GED. On September 21, 1995, Margera, his brother Jess, Dunn and Raab were all involved in a serious car accident near their hometown of West Chester, PA. In later interviews, Margera revealed that Raab had "forced him" to wear a seatbelt as the car was going nearly 100 mph (160 km/h), and that doing so probably saved his life. Other than Jess suffering a broken arm, none of the four were seriously injured.

Following years of recording footage and editing, Margera independently released the first CKY film, then titled CKY: Landspeed, in 1999. The film is a collection of stunts and pranks interspersed with skateboarding tricks and footage set to music by CKY. Subsequent releases of the film have removed the Landspeed subtitle. In the following years, the sequels CKY2K, CKY3 and CKY4: The Latest and Greatest were released. These early videos feature many of Margera's family members, including his parents and brother, as well as his close friends, including Dunn, Raab, DiCamillo, Rake Yohn and Brandon Novak, who formed a loose collective known as the CKY crew. During this period, the videos and band projects were heavily interlinked, with two of the band's albums being unofficial soundtracks to the videos.

Television and film

Following CKY's success, particularly within the skateboarding community, former Big Brother editor Jeff Tremaine took notice of Margera's videos and recruited him and Ryan Dunn into the main team that would eventually become MTV's Jackass. Both Margera and Dunn became mainstays of the cast, while the other CKY crew members played supporting roles to various degrees. In the original television series, several of the featured stunts were taken directly from the CKY videos. Margera would go on to appear in Jackass: The Movie (2002), Jackass Number Two (2006), Jackass 2.5 (2007), Jackass 3D (2010), and Jackass 3.5 (2011), and would have a very minor appearance in Jackass Forever (2022). He only appears in archive footage in Jackass: Best and Last (2026). Several skits in the first Jackass movie were CKY-style pieces filmed in and around West Chester, PA, while similar scenes in the second movie were forced to be removed after the arrest and conviction of Margera's uncle Vincent Margera (also known as Don Vito) for inappropriately touching two minors.

After the Jackass series ended in 2001, Margera was approached by MTV and was given his own series, Viva La Bam, which ran for five seasons from 2003 to 2005. A mixture of stunts and reality, the show followed Margera, his family and the CKY crew as they performed various stunts and missions, while also offering insight into their daily lives. The show was primarily filmed in West Chester, but also visited New Orleans, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Brazil, Finland, Mexico, Netherlands, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Monaco, and Transylvania. In addition to the regular series, there was also a "lost" episode, which was included on the Viva La Bands CD and was originally filmed in Iceland for the first season. A two-part special episode, "Viva La Spring Break", aired in 2006.

In 2003, Margera played himself in the movie Grind, which portrays four young men following a professional skateboarder from Chicago to California. The film contains numerous cameos by Jackass members, as well as many professional skateboarders and other celebrities. Upon its release, the film was met with generally unfavorable reviews from critics.

In 2007, Margera's engagement and wedding planning was filmed for a series entitled Bam's Unholy Union, which served as a spiritual successor to Viva la Bam. The show follows Margera, his then-fiancée Missy Rothstein, and their family and friends in the lead-up to their wedding. In 2008, Margera had a "prominent, non-sex role" in a pornographic film by Gina Lynn, The Fantasstic Whores 4, along with Brandon Novak. In 2009, Margera appeared on Nitro Circus, and the following year in 2010, Margera starred alongside Ryan Dunn and skateboarder Tim O'Connor in the one-off special Bam's World Domination on Spike TV, which showcased Margera and his friends' attempt to conquer an obstacle course race in the Tough Guy Competition, held in Staffordshire, England.

In March 2016, Bam and his parents appeared on the VH1 reality television show Family Therapy with Dr. Jenn to address Bam's self-destructive behavior.

Skateboarding career

Margera began skateboarding at age 7, and by the time he entered high school, had developed it into a full-time hobby. His brother Jess later described Bam's abilities as "a natural talent" and noted that their parents had been very supportive of Margera's decision to go into skateboarding "from day one", and revealed that he used to travel with Bam to Love Park in Philadelphia as early as 1991, when they were 12 and 13 years old, respectively. In 1992, Margera got his first sponsorship from Fairman's Skate Shop and began appearing in skate videos. In 1994, Margera dropped out of high school in order to pursue a full-time skateboarding career.

Early on in his professional career, Margera was sponsored by Toy Machine Skateboards, Speed Metal Bearings, Adio Footwear, Electric Sunglasses, Volcom, Landspeed Wheels, Destroyer Trucks, Destructo Trucks, and Fairman's Skate Shop. In 2001, Margera officially became a member of Team Element, the demonstration team for Element Skateboards, which he remained affiliated with for the rest of his professional career.

In 2012, Margera was forced to put his skating career on hold indefinitely due to bone spurs and worsening alcoholism. After a five-year hiatus, Bam returned to skateboarding casually, resulting in a renewed partnership with Element Skateboards to celebrate the brand's 25th anniversary in 2017, by re-releasing ten of his most memorable deck designs. The boards were released weekly between September 6 and November 8, 2017; each deck was also personally signed by Margera and limited to 50 units.

In addition to collaborating with Heart Supply Skateboards and Wicked Skateboards, in 2025, Margera collaborated with Zero Skateboards to release various limited edition skate decks, which all sold out quickly.

As of 2026, Margera is currently collaborating with Slappy Trucks to release a signature collection of skate trucks.

Following Margera's collaborations with Zero Skateboards, he returned to pro skateboarding, signing with Zero.

Independent films

Margera has written, produced and starred in three independent films as of 2024, with a fourth scheduled, but on hold since 2017. He co-wrote, directed and starred in Haggard (2003), an independent film based on real events in the life of his friend Ryan Dunn. Dunn played himself as the main character, while Margera played "Valo", a character based on a combination of himself and elements of HIM singer and friend Ville Valo.

Margera also directed Minghags, formerly titled Kiss a Good Man's Ass. This film is a loose sequel to Haggard and features the "garbage juicer" invention from that film. Filming began April 5, 2007. On an episode of Radio Bam, Margera said that they were trying to make the movie PG-13 rated, but with the amount of swearing and a shot of nudity, an R rating could not be avoided. The first viewing of the rough version of the film was on August 7, 2007, at Sikes Hall. The movie was released straight to DVD in December 2008.

Also in December 2008, Margera released a Christmas-themed movie, Bam Margera Presents: Where the #$&% Is Santa?. The movie is about Bam and his friends going to the Arctic Circle in Finland on a quest to find Santa Claus. The film features Ville Valo from HIM, the Dudesons, Hanoi Rocks, and Mark the Bagger.

In January 2015, Margera announced that he had been working on an autobiographical documentary film which he hoped to premiere in the near future. The film will deal primarily with Margera's life after the death of his close friend and co-star, Ryan Dunn, who died in a car crash in 2011. According to Margera, the film has been three years in the making, and will give viewers a glimpse into his childhood, career and rise to fame, while focusing mainly on his recovery from the death of Dunn. Musician Brent Hinds of the band Mastodon would play Dunn in what has been described as "dramatic fantasy interludes" that ties the film together while also re-enacting what Margera considers his "darkest moments" after Dunn's death. Hinds died in August 2025.

During a Facebook Q&A on December 7, 2015, Margera stated that the name of the film would change from I Need Time to Stay Useless to Earth Rocker and that it would be released February 2016. In a 2017 episode of Vice's Epicly Later'd, Margera stated that after working on the film for four years straight, sometimes for weeks at a time, he had reached the point where he had had enough of doing so. Margera stated that he had approximately eleven terabytes worth of video footage and that editing it down into a two-hour film was "impossible". When asked if the project was simply on pause for the moment, Margera responded that it was.

As of 2026, the documentary still remains unreleased, with no scheduled release date.

Relationships

In 1998, Margera began a long-term relationship with Jenn Rivell, who played a prominent part in several of his projects. By the time of Viva La Bam, the couple were regularly living together in Margera's home. Their seven-year relationship ended in 2005. A year later in November 2006, Margera filed for "protection from abuse" from Rivell after she allegedly broke into his house.

In 2006, Margera became engaged to childhood friend Melissa "Missy" Rothstein. The events leading up to their wedding (with about 350 friends and family in attendance) on February 3, 2007, in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were all chronicled on the MTV series Bam's Unholy Union. The couple spent their honeymoon in Dubai. In 2008, during an appearance on LA Ink, Margera told Kat Von D that he has caused $13,000 in damages during his wedding celebration, explaining, "I was kind of ready for it, though. I was like, 'I'm inviting the Jackass crew. If something doesn't get broken, then that's not right.'"

In October 2010, Margera told Howard Stern that he and Rothstein were now living in separate cities and meeting once a week, and that Rothstein was aware about Bam's other girlfriends. The couple officially divorced in November 2012.

On October 5, 2013, Margera married Nicole Boyd in Reykjavík, Iceland. In June 2017, Margera announced that Boyd was pregnant with the couple's first child. In September, it was announced that the child, a boy, would be named Phoenix Wolf. Margera's son was born in December of that year.

On September 16, 2021, Boyd filed for child custody of their son Phoenix Wolf. However, she did not file a divorce petition to end her and Margera's eight-year marriage. On February 15, 2023, Boyd filed for legal separation and spousal support, citing "irreconcilable differences". The couple has been living separately since 2021. Legal documents further state that Boyd was seeking physical and legal custody and that Margera could have unsupervised parental visitation, so long as he and his son remain within Los Angeles County. The documents further detail that Boyd's reasoning for filing for separation was based on Margera behaving inappropriately while spending time with their son, leading Boyd to believe Margera was under the influence. Eventually, a judge ruled that Margera and Boyd were never officially married, with Margera stating that everyone had already known this.

In July 2023, Margera began dating model Dannii Marie. He proposed to her in October of that same year. The two were married on May 28, 2024, and are still together as of the present day.

Health and alcoholism

Margera has had an extensive history of alcohol and drug abuse since his early twenties, and could be frequently seen drinking and/or intoxicated on-camera in Viva La Bam, Bam's Unholy Union, and in the Jackass films. In July 2009, Margera was taken to the hospital by paramedics and state troopers after a four-day alcohol binge. His drinking habits had only worsened after his previous shows ended in 2007. In December 2009, Margera entered rehab for the first time after an intervention from his friends and family, but did not complete the program, leaving after only four days. Following his close friend Ryan Dunn's death in 2011, Margera's drinking intensified even further, and by Margera's own account, he considers 2012 as the year he lost control of his drinking, both due to Dunn's death, and also due to bone spurs forcing him to put his skating career on hold, to which Margera admits he began binge drinking "to kill the boredom".

In 2015, Margera entered rehab for a second time for alcoholism, but again left shortly after without finishing the program. Later that year, he took part in Family Therapy with Dr. Jenn on VH1 with his mother, April Margera, after which he remained sober for several months. Margera later revealed how his unhealthy lifestyle had forced him to relearn how to skate after five years of not doing so, and had also left him overweight. Margera then moved to Tallinn, Estonia, for five months in order to get in better shape. After getting in better shape, he relocated to Barcelona, Spain, with his family to focus on his skating career in late 2016, but soon moved back to Pennsylvania in 2017, shortly before his son was born. In a 90-minute interview with YouTube series The Nine Club recorded and released in November 2017, Margera discussed his various health issues and alcoholism at length, claiming that he had been "mostly sober" since 2015.

In January 2018, Margera entered rehab for the third time after a DUI, and remained sober for seven months. Later that year, he relapsed after being robbed at gunpoint during a vacation in Colombia. In January 2019, one year after his previous attempt, Margera entered rehab once more, but left after ten days, stating that he "didn't belong there", and was planning on beating his alcoholism on his own. In March 2019, TMZ released a video showing Margera screaming at and threatening his manager at West Side Comedy Club in New York City. Additionally, Margera made Instagram posts in which he insulted his wife and damaged his own home, leading to friends and family members coming together to have Margera committed to a mental health treatment facility. Margera was released from treatment and returned home after one week.

On August 3, 2019, a drunken Margera was removed from a commercial airline flight following an altercation with an airport police officer, who told him he was too intoxicated to fly. The following day, Margera posted a chain of videos on his Instagram account, publicly pleading for Dr. Phil's help. He directed a lengthy tirade towards his mother April, his then-wife Nikki Margera, and his childhood friend Brandon Novak, candidly stating his relationship with his family is "broken". Dr. Phil responded to Margera's pleas the next morning, referring him to a treatment center following a one-on-one session.

On May 17, 2022, Margera announced that he had completed one year of sobriety treatment. He then relapsed less than a month later, and on June 15, Margera was reported missing after fleeing his rehab center. He was found and voluntarily returned to rehab after being gone for a week. Margera was returned with police escort since he was in the rehabilitation facility under court order. On June 26, 2022, Margera was reported missing once again after fleeing his rehab center for the second time. He was again found and checked in to a new treatment facility on June 27, 2022. Margera was then spotted at a bar after fleeing rehab once again on September 4, 2022. On September 25, 2022, it was reported that Margera was caught intoxicated in a bar in Atlanta, Georgia, amid rehab problems.

On December 9, 2022, it was reported that Margera was hospitalized and put on a ventilator in a San Diego ICU due to a combination of pneumonia and COVID-19. He was released from the hospital the next day. On Steve-O's Wild Ride! podcast, Margera disclosed that he also suffered from four seizures before he got to the hospital, and suffered another one during his stay at the hospital.

On February 15, 2023, Margera's then-wife Nikki officially filed for legal separation and spousal support, citing "irreconcilable differences". Legal documents detailed that her reasoning for filing for separation was based on Margera behaving inappropriately while spending time with their son, leading Boyd to believe Margera was under the influence of alcohol.

On March 29, 2023, Margera was arrested for public intoxication.

On May 26, 2023, it was reported that Margera wants a judge to dismiss his divorce with his wife Nikki, as she is not allowing him to see their son. On June 1, 2023, Margera posted a video to Instagram threatening to smoke crack until he is dead unless he sees his son. By June 4, police had located and taken custody of Margera in Los Angeles, California, after which he was involuntarily committed to a mental health facility for evaluation via a 5150 hold.

On September 23, 2024, it was reported that Margera was arrested again after he allegedly violated his probation. He was put in the Chester County Prison, and was ordered to undergo a drug and alcohol evaluation.

Legal issues

On June 12, 2010, Margera was allegedly attacked with a baseball bat outside his bar, The Note. Margera spent the night at Crozer-Chester Medical Center, where he was treated for head injuries. According to the alleged assailant, Elizabeth Ray, the altercation began because Margera allegedly called her a "nigger". However, Ray denies physically attacking Margera. Margera has since denied having ever said the word, claiming "I called her a crazy bitch and an idiot, but I definitely didn't use the n-word".

In July 2013, Margera was arrested at Keflavík Airport in Iceland, having left the country without paying damages following a rental car dispute the year before. Margera had rented a Toyota Land Cruiser during a vacation in Iceland in 2012, which he had returned in "terrible shape" five days later, but left the country before paying for the damage. Margera was released later the same day after paying the outstanding fees, and admitted in an interview that he had trashed the car in a drunken stupor.

On March 2, 2023, Margera was arrested for domestic violence, after he allegedly kicked a woman. He was released from custody after he posted a $50,000 bail the next day. On April 23, 2023, police were dispatched to Margera's home after he allegedly made death threats to his brother, Jess, and subsequently punched him in the face. Margera reportedly fled on foot into the woods when police arrived. After being on the run for three days and allegedly making several threatening phone calls to his family, Margera eventually surrendered to Pennsylvania Police. Later, Margera released a statement saying the allegations made by his brother, Jess, were false.

Around June 7, 2023, Margera was placed on 5150 psychiatric hold at a Los Angeles mental health facility, following disturbing text messages Margera had been sending family members, and erratic speech and behavior when he was located by police.

Additionally, Margera encountered further legal issues in Delaware County when he was arrested for public intoxication and disorderly conduct. Prosecutors questioned whether his bail should be revoked due to these incidents, prompting Margera to appear before Judge Patrick Carmody and pledge his commitment to sobriety. The judge allowed Margera to remove his ankle bracelet temporarily to assess his alcohol use, with a warning of consequences for any future violations.

During a January 2021 interview, Margera revealed that owing to his behavior over the last few years, Jackass co-creator Jeff Tremaine had to fight with the studio to keep Margera in the next Jackass film, Jackass Forever (2022), and that Margera still was not certain that Paramount Pictures was ultimately going to allow him to partake in the filming of the movie, and that it all depended on his sobriety and behavior. On February 11, 2021, Margera posted several videos to his Instagram account, in which he admitted to breaking his sobriety, and indicated that he had been fired from the filming of Jackass Forever, which was officially confirmed soon after. Throughout the video, he could be seen crying, vomiting, and alluding to having looked up "how to tie a noose" before his move to Oceanside, California.

Margera alleged that Paramount had been forcing him to take antidepressants, submit to random urine tests, and had forced him to check in to two different rehabilitation facilities using his own money. He also expressed great disdain for Tremaine, Johnny Knoxville, and Spike Jonze before asking his fans to boycott Jackass Forever, as well as to send him money so he could shoot his own movie to compete with the film. All of the videos were removed from Margera's Instagram account shortly after being posted.

On May 25, 2021, it was reported that Jeff Tremaine had filed a temporary restraining order against Margera, due to the latter's harassment of both Tremaine and Knoxville via Instagram. Tremaine was granted an additional three-year restraining order, extended to Tremaine's wife and children, after Margera allegedly sent the family death threats. On August 9, 2021, Margera filed a lawsuit against Tremaine, Knoxville, Jonze, Paramount, MTV, Dickhouse Entertainment, and Gorilla Flicks, alleging that he was wrongfully fired from the production of Jackass Forever.

On January 12, 2022, Knoxville said that, despite the ongoing lawsuit, Margera would still appear in Jackass Forever in one scene he filmed for the movie prior to him being fired. All parties eventually came to a settlement after Margera asked to dismiss the lawsuit on April 14, 2022. The terms of the settlement remain private. Margera eventually appeared in the film in one scene filmed before his termination, as well as being heard in another scene and in archival footage.

Following the settlement, Margera ruled out any future involvements with his former Jackass colleagues or any future Jackass projects, claiming that Knoxville and Tremaine "ruined the legacy" of the franchise. However, he still remains on good terms with the rest of the cast and crew.

On January 8, 2026, Jackass: Best and Last was officially announced by Knoxville, and was released theatrically on June 26, 2026. Due to his experience on Jackass Forever, Margera stated that he will not film any new material for the upcoming film. However, he gave the filmmakers consent to include him through old archive, and unused footage. He was invited to the red carpet premiere of Jackass: Best and Last, but declined the offer due to a prior engagement. Despite this, he still wished for the films' success.

Bam Margera

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Bam Margera

🎬 Filmography

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Bam Margera across IJR

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Article

Early life and CKY videos

Career

Television and film

Skateboarding career

Independent films

Radio Bam and music

Other projects

Personal life

Relationships

Health and alcoholism

Legal issues

Filmography

Discography

Books

🎬 Filmography

Bam Margera across IJR