PETA has called for a criminal investigation into Jackass Forever over the alleged abuse of animals during the films stunts.
In a letter sent to the offices of the Los Angeles City Attorney, San Luis Obispo County District Attorney, and Los Angeles County District Attorney, PETA claims that Jackass Forever likely broke state animal protection laws during the filming of a number of the movies stunts.
“Instead of cutting scenes that involved goading a bull into charging, provoking a sensitive snake to the point of attack, and forcing an easily frightened tarantula into an enclosed tube between the heads of two people who were yelling, Paramount Pictures added even more animal-exploiting ‘stunts’ into the film’s final cut,” PETA said in a statement.
The organisation pointed to one scene in particular, in which a large number of bees sting Steve-O-s genitalia, killing many of them in the process.
While the rest of the world wants to save the bees, @steveo is performing deadly “stunts” in #JackassForever.
Fall on your head too many times doing stupid stunts & forget your values, Steve-O? Putting a species so critical to our ecosystem at risk is desperate & mean. pic.twitter.com/XohEGgQaIO
— PETA (@peta) February 5, 2022
PETA first flagged their concerns to the City Attorney Mike Feuer’s office in September when the film’s trailer was released.
Now, after becoming aware of even more instances of animal cruelty, PETA says it’s hoping the call for an “investigation and potential criminal charges,” will tell Hollywood it is not ok to abuse animals for film and television purposes.
“Animals are not actors — they didn’t consent to these horrific stunts, and they shouldn’t be used for our entertainment,” the organisation said.
Paramount Pictures have not yet responded to PETA’s claims.
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