We got a chance to interview producers Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine about the film.
Evel Knievel is one of the most recognizable names in stunt and sport history. The film Being Evel, which documents his life in great detail, premiered in Los Angeles and was followed by cocktails and canapés at Saint Felix. From the film, director Daniel Junge, Producers Johnny Knoxville, Jeff Tremaine, and Matt Hoffman, in addition to George Hamilton, Kelly Knievel, and Seth Enslow attended the screening. Other notable attendees included Jackass’s Jason Acuña and Chris Pontius, John Hawkes, MGMT’s Benjamin Goldwasser, Sam Trammell, Nick Kroll, Dave England, Alana Stewart, Ashley Hamilton, George Hamilton Jr, Weston and Danielle Cage, Kash Hovey, Kali Cook, Soccer player Denzel Slager, Hockey player Taylor Toffoli, Mike White, Marc Webb, musician Maty Noyes, Damien Fahey and Grasie Mercedes.
The Knockturnal got a chance to interview Jeff Tremaine and Johnny Knoxville, check it out below:
What inspired you to get involved with this project?
Jeff Tremaine: Evel probably had everything to do with me being here actually. I got into BMX because of Evel Knievel and that got me into everything I’m into now.
Was there a moment when you realized as a kid that you were a huge fan?
Tremaine: Yea I was five or six years old, but I don’t remember how old. I had this little yellow bike and Evel had just jumped and we all watched it on TV and then I got on my little bike, and the neighborhood kids had put a plywood on a roadblock and I just went after and at the last second I got a little scared and turned to the side and ate complete shit, got up and like, that was awesome. From then on I was just building jumps and going for it.
What do you hope viewers get out of the film?
Tremaine: He’s one of the most complicated larger than life characters that you get both sides of it. He is the greatest that ever did it, but he was also a son of a bitch, but that’s what it takes to be this guy. It was great for me to see all this, especially with all the footage Daniel kept uncovering and the interviews he was getting with the people that were there. I think he did an awesome job. We’re very proud of this.
Can you tell us how has Evel Knieval inspired your career?
Johnny Knoxville: I’m here promoting Being Evel, a documentary we did on Evel Knieval, he was a huge inspiration to me growing up. You know, no one ever did that type of thing before Evel Knieval and no has done it like that since. People who’s gone farther and pushed the sport that way but he invented the sport, invented a whole new way of thinking. No one is the storyteller, or the showman, he was just all things in one. He was complicated too, not all the things were good, but so many were.
What made you want to create the film and be a part of the film?
Knoxville: We’re making a film about someone I really cared about growing up. You really pull back the curtain and you see some things you didn’t want to see, and that’s tough to reconcile, your adult self with your kid self that idolized him, but we want to give people the complete story, and we did. He lived an unbelievable life so he’s great fodder for a documentary.
What was the most inspiring thing you learned about Evel Knievel when making this film?
Knoxville: There’s so many inspiring things about Evel. Just what a showman he was and how intelligent the man was, what a hustler he was. I’ve said it before, but you can make a whole documentary on him just before he was 20. He did not start jumping until he was 25.
What is the most daring thing that made you think I may have gone too far?
Knoxville: I don’t know, when we’re doing stunts you kind of want to push it to that place and probably going to do it again.
[slideshow]The film is now playing!
