There are similarities between JACKASS and rock stars. Both do stupid shit in the name of celebrity and both are idolized by teenagers around the globe. While the JACKASS crew have four movies to their name, Motley Crue have none. But JACKASS director Jeff Tremaine will be changing that. The man who directed all three JACKASS movies and the newly released BAD GRANDPA will helm the adaptation of Motley Crue’s memoir THE DIRT.
THE DIRT was written by band members Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee and Mick Mars and was a bestseller when it hit stores in 2001. Tremaine has no film credits aside from the JACKASS related projects, but the narrative structure to BAD GRANDPA, as loose as that may be, will lend him some help in the non-verite Crue movie.
Big hair, big sound, big money, big brawls, scandals and debauchery, and the inevitable big problems caused by drugs, drink, and living and breathing the rock and roll lifestyle as the quartet rose from playing local clubs on Hollywood’s Sunset Strip to touring the world as global rock stars.
I envision the film having a documentary style to it which will work with the material. Seeing the rise of a band through that lens will give it a more immediate feeling. Tremaine had this to say about casting the film, which will have full access to all of the band’s music.
“It’s the spirit we’ve got to get right,” Tremaine said. “It’s important to get actors who play, or who understand how to deliver the charisma it takes to be onstage. Rock stars have a swagger. Some of what they went through is funny, but overall this movie is not going to be a comedy. It’s pretty dark. I think fans of what I’ve done will like this movie, but it’s not going to make you fall out of your chair laughing.”
THE DIRT has been in development since 2012 and this is the first headway in the project. No casting announcements have been made, but with the band on board the project as producers, expect news from Paramount soon.
