Steve-O changed his mind about getting temporary breast implants after talking to a transgender person.
The Jackass alum, 50, explained to an interview with Consequence on Thursday that he was going to get a breast job for hidden camera pranks in his upcoming Super Dummy Tourwhere she would trick groups of men on the street into thinking she was a woman.
However, those plans were ruined after she had a chance encounter with a transgender stranger at the grocery store.
“On the day of the scheduled surgery, I checked out at the supermarket. And the person calling me at the grocery store was apparently trans, and it felt like a sign from the universe,” she said.
“So I asked the transgender person if I could manage something with them,” Steve-O continued, “and I had a conversation with this person that had a profound effect on me.”
Steve-O said his “motivation” for the planned sketches was not “to hurt anybody”, although he acknowledged that the response from people would probably “be a mixed bag”.
“I didn’t have any dedicated meetings or conversations with trans people at all, because I didn’t feel like I had to,” she explained. “But I feel like the universe put this meeting in front of me, and I finally decided that the universe had intervened.”
Steve-O explained his plans to the trans person, who in turn told the famous comedian about the “oppression” they’ve faced.
“[They] described how they weren’t allowed to use the restroom at their workplace, that there were maybe 28 states in the country that would arrest them for having an ID that said female. That there were politicians making concerted efforts to lock them up in internment camps. It was really quite heartbreaking, the level of oppression that was described,” Steve-O said.
“With that context, I thought about it in a way that I hadn’t before, where you know, wow, maybe it’s not all fun and games,” he added. “Especially the pranks. Like, I’d consider it a better video if I got hit in the motorcycle rally. Just having that mindset was deeply flawed, because ultimately it would be an exercise in celebrating violence against trans people. At least, it would be interpreted that way by some, and when it was put to me that way, I thought, wow, maybe I missed the mark on that.”
Steve-O said he doesn’t regret pulling out of the surgery, but he does regret going public with his plans for the stunt.
“It was hard for me,” he said. “Looking back on it, I’m extremely grateful it didn’t happen. I’m so glad I didn’t pass it. But that didn’t make it any easier, because I was so vocal about my plans to do it, and I’ve never been the kind of artist to say I’m going to do something and then not do it. That’s what I had a problem with, I wasn’t keeping my word.”
Steve-O added, “I think it’s a valuable trait to be able to admit when you’ve got things wrong.”
The “Jackass Forever” star told everyone she was getting breast implants “X5 Podcast” in July.
He said at the time that he was “so particularly in love” with the idea “because the opportunity for comedy I think is absolutely there.”
“It’s like quintessential Steve-O — that level of commitment,” he added.
