The Original Jackass Episodes Are Finally Back On Paramount+ In Their Proper Form

"Jackass," the MTV show that started it all, is back in its original, chaotic glory. Paramount+ has announced that "Jackass" Seasons 1-3 have returned to the streaming service as of today. What's more, the episodes have been restored so they're as close to what they were when they first aired on MTV in the early 2000s. Or, at the very least, how Johnny Knoxville and the gang initially wanted them to air.

One of the best MTV shows from the 2000s, "Jackass" became a cultural phenomenon. But it also quickly became controversial, and that led to compromised versions of its episodes being aired. These episodes were subsequently re-edited and re-packaged several times during the years that followed, which meant they no longer fully resembled what the show's creative team imagined.

According to a press release, at the request of the series' creators, "Jackasson" Seasons 1-3 were temporarily removed from Paramount+ at the end of 2025, allowing the folks behind the franchise to "restore key creative elements that had been altered over time." These newly-refreshed episodes now reflect the original vision. Knoxville had this to say about it in a statement:

"In the time since the release of 'Jackass' 26 years ago, the television episodes had been re-edited, re-sequenced, and re-scored to the point they were unrecognizable. I found this out the hard way last year when attempting to watch them. Eeek! But kudos to Paramount for giving us the $ to restore the shows to how they initially aired in the first place. We can't wait until you see all the terrible things we did to each other way back then and in the manner we intended!"

This comes ahead of the theatrical release of the final "Jackass" film "Jackass: Best and Last," which arrives this summer.

As the title "Best and Last" implies, this is being billed as the final film entry in the "Jackass" property. It will reach theaters on June 26 and will feature some of the best stunts from the franchise's past, as well as several new death-defying hijinks. With that being the case, now seems like the perfect time to head back to where it all started.

"Jackass" premiered on MTV in 2000, and though it was quick to become popular, it was just as quickly dubbed problematic. Then U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman even publicly called on MTV to clean up the show in a letter after a 13-year-old boy suffered extensive burns upon imitating one of the stunts featured on the show. "Ideally, I would encourage you to either cancel this exploitative and degrading show or eliminate the stunts that could be dangerous if imitated by children," Lieberman wrote at the time.

This was far from an isolated incident. So, the series' crew pivoted, with "Jackass: The Movie" making the leap to the big screen in 2002 and becoming a major box office success. That paved the way for "Jackass: Number Two," "Jackass 3D," Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa," and "Jackass Forever," turning the one-off venture into a full-blown theatrical franchise. Meanwhile, Johnny Knoxville and several of the show's cast members found stardom elsewhere.

Even though Bam Margera was hardly in "Jackass Forever," he headlined "Viva La Bam" and became a super star in his own right. Meanwhile, Steve-O and Chris Pontius headlined a spin-off titled "Wild Boyz." But again, it all started with a rag-tag crew led by Knoxville, Jeff Tremaine, and Spike Jonze.

You can stream "Jackass" now on Paramount+.