If you're a fan of Jackass, April 1st is Christmas Day.  That's because while Jackass 3.5 could have been released in theaters, it's going to be showing for free on Joost.com!  According to director Jeff Tremaine, every Tuesday and Friday, between one to three segments from Jackass 3.5 will be showing on Joost, and it'll continue until it's done.  Down the road, you can expect it to be released on DVD/Blu-ray.  I caught a screening of the entire film a few days ago and it's extremely funny and it's got a few amazing stunts.  I'm actually surprised they didn't release it in theaters.

Anyway, a few days ago I sat down with Tremaine to talk about all things Jackass.  We discussed why didn't Jackass 3.5 hit theaters first, the future of Jackass, how much deleted footage is still in the vaults, did they ever stop a stunt due to being too dangerous, his upcoming scripted-feature directorial debut, Revenge of the Jocks, and a lot more.  I've listed the highlights of the interview as bullet points and I've also time indexed the entire interview so you can watch the parts that interest you.  Hit the jump to watch:

Since I know some of you just want the highlights, here's some of the highlights as bullet points.  Further down is the video interview and it's been time indexed.

• Jackass 3.5 was always intended to be released in a digital format and not theatrically.
• The film will be released in segments. Every Tuesday and Friday, one two or three new segments will be released online until they run out, then the film will eventually be released on DVD and Blu-ray.
• Most of 3.5 was filmed during Jackass 3D. The only parts filmed afterwards were the opening and the interview segments.
• For the “nut-shots” segments, Tremaine just sent Johnny Knoxville off with a camera and Knoxville would grab a cast member and go off and shoot those bits himself.
• Most of the footage they’ve amassed over the years has been released and nothing worth showing is locked up in a vault somewhere.
• There was only one time where a stunt was ready to go and they were about to film it and Tremaine called it off because it was too dangerous. It happened on the TV show and they were planning on shooting “less lethal” bean bags out of a shotgun. In the tests, the bags shot straight through a watermelon and a piece of plywood. Tremaine called the bit off, despite Knoxville’s insistence that they go through with it.
• Jackass has never been a steady thing. After the first movie, everyone assumed it was the end of the franchise. After the second movie, everyone again assumed it was the end of the franchise. And now, again, after the third movie everyone assumes it’s the end of the franchise. There are no plans for another Jackass at the moment, but they’ve learned to never say they’re definitely done.
• Tremaine’s upcoming scripted-feature directorial debut, Revenge of the Jocks, is currently in development. There’s no script yet, and no casting has begun, but he’s very much committed to the film.
• Most of the footage for Jackass 3.5 was shot in 3D, but can’t really be released in that format for VOD.
• A 3D Blu-ray release for Jackass 3D is very likely, and Tremaine is hopeful for a 3D Blu-ray release for 3.5.

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Jeff Tremaine

• :20 Was there any talk of releasing the film theatrically? Says they always liked the idea of releasing it in a digital format, though they think there are bits that are movie-worthy.
• 1:00 How are the clips for the film being released? Says every Tuesday and Friday one, two or three segments will be released. Says Jackass works perfectly for online viewing since it doesn’t add up to one story, it’s divided into segments. A couple bits will be released each Tuesday and Friday until they run out, then the film will be released on DVD and Blu-ray.
• 2:03 How much was filmed after they had already filmed Jackass 3 for Jackass 3.5. Says the only things they filmed afterwards were the opening and the interview segments.
• 2:55 Is this all of the footage they’ve filmed? Says 3.5 doesn’t include everything they filmed, but it’s all the stuff that they’re willing to release/was good enough to release. Says the interviews allow them to explain segments that maybe didn’t turn out the way they planned, and makes them funnier.
• 4:11 Talks specifically about the nut-shots in the film. To occupy Knoxville, Tremaine would just send him away with a camera and he would grab a cast member and do the nut-shot segments.
• 5:52 How much footage from over the years is left in the vault? Says they’ve pretty much released everything that was worthy to show. A lot of the failures have been released as bloopers.
• 6:44 Was there ever a stunt that was ready to go and they were getting ready to film and Tremaine thought it was too dangerous and stopped it? Says it happened on the TV show once. It was a segment where they were going to shoot bean bags out of a shotgun, which were supposed to be “less lethal” weapons. They tested the bags on a watermelon and a piece of plywood and the bags shot straight through both objects and Tremaine pulled the plug on it despite Knoxville’s insistence that they go through with it. Says there have been bits when actors pulled out when they were scared.
• 8:47 Is Jackass done now? Says Jackass has never been a steady thing. The first movie was supposed to be the end of the franchise, as were the subsequent two films. Says they know better now that every 4 years or so they get the urge to make another one despite previously saying they were over. Says if it was up to Paramount, they would do one every year, but it’s ultimately up to Tremaine and Co. Says there are no plans for another Jackass but he wouldn’t say that it’s definitely done.
• 10:08 Talks about Revenge of the Jocks. Says the script isn’t written yet but he really likes the concept. Is committed to the project. Says he hasn’t talked casting with anyone yet and he hasn’t talked to the Jackass guys about being in it.
• 10:59 Says most of the footage for Jackass 3.5 was shot in 3D, but there was no feasibility to release it in 3D given it’s VOD release.
• 11:20 Will Jackass 3D and Jackass 3.5 be released in 3D on Blu-ray? Says most likely for Jackass 3D and hopefully 3.5 will get a 3D release on Blu-ray as well.