Bam Margera discusses being declared dead last year

Last Updated on January 10, 2023

Bam Margera has revealed that just last December he was pronounced dead, only to live to tell the story. Margera recently sat down for an interview with fellow jackass Steve-O on his podcast “Wild Ride” to discuss his near-death/actual death experience.

“I was pronounced dead on Dec. 8,” Bam Margera said. “I did not know that I had gnarly COVID and my body was shutting down. I went into four seizures, each one lasting 10 to 20 minutes. On the fourth one I bit my tongue so hard it was nearly fallen off. It got so swollen and puffy it wouldn’t fit in my mouth. I was drinking the infected blood which gave me pneumonia as well.” Margera continued in detail, “I went to the hospital and had my fifth seizure and then couldn’t breathe without a tube down my throat. I woke up five days later thinking I was there for just a couple hours. I spent eight days in there. When they took that tube out I felt like I sucked on Darth Vader’s dick.” How charming!

You can watch the full interview here.

Bam Margera is of course best known for being a member of the Jackass crew and constantly harassing his poor parents on his show Viva La Bam. Margera was set to be part of last year’s Jackass Forever but was fired after reportedly proving to be a liability and breaking his contract. Following the canning, Margera filed a lawsuit against Johnny Knoxville, Paramount, MTV, and more. In a statement at the time, Margera expressed his anger at Jackass stalwarts Knoxville, Spike Jonze and Jeff Tremaine, citing his early involvement. “I created this franchise before any of these guys ever got involved. My lawsuit isn’t just about compensation. It’s about treating people with mental health and addiction issues in an honest manner and not taking advantage of their disabilities to rip them off.”

While Bam Margera avoided tragedy, the Jackass crew is familiar enough with them. In 2011, Ryan Dunn died at 34 in a drunk-driving crash, with Dunn behind the wheel.