The highs and the lows. While Bam Margera made headlines as one of the outrageous cohosts on MTV’s Jackass, he has admittedly struggled over the years.
“It just seems like everything at one point came crashing down,” Margera — real name Brandon Cole Margera — said during an April 2016 appearance on Family Therapy With Dr. Jenn, revealing his struggles with substance abuse. “That’s when it wasn’t even drinking for the fun or for the social part of it. It was just drinking because [of] total depression, kinda.”
At the time, the Pennsylvania native noted that the death of his late MTV costar, Ryan Dunn, was a contributing factor.
“[It was] just the fact of [me] just being completely lost,” Margera added. “Like, ‘Everything sucks, and the only thing that doesn’t suck is this bottle of Johnnie Walker.’”
Since then, the former skateboarder has been candid about how his challenges have affected his family, including his wife, Nicole Boyd, and their son, Phoenix.
“Dr. Phil, I need your help in a big, big way,” Margera wrote via Instagram in August 2021, referring to TV personality Dr. Phil McGraw. “My family is in shambles. It’s worse than it’s ever been. #dr.phil bam margera needs you to save family from falling apart for good.”
In the since-deleted post, the Viva La Bam alum told the talk show host he “can’t stand” his wife, whom he married in 2013.
“[Our son is] the best and I love him to death, and Nicki knows that. And if we separate, I know she’s gonna use him as bait. I ain’t playing that f–king game, so you can have him,” Margera alleged at the time. “The only person I believe is you, [Dr. Phil]. When I watch you, I’m like, ‘That’s what I would have said! That’s what I would have said!’ The only person that I will believe on the planet is Dr. Phil.”
After completing several treatment programs, Margera celebrated one year of sobriety in May 2022.
“ONE YEAR of treatment!,” he wrote via Instagram at the time,” adding “F—k Year,” “Bam’s Back” and “Bam’s Free” hashtags to his post.
However, the Gnarkill musician’s struggles made headlines one month later after it was reported that Margera fled an in-patient treatment program in Florida, where he has since been missing. According to a police report, obtained by TMZ, he was unhappy with the facility’s services after arriving under a court order.
“Addiction treatment is often a bumpy road. Nikki Margera and their son Phoenix hope he will turn up quickly and re-dedicate himself to sober living — for himself and for his family,” Boyd’s attorney, David Glass, told Us Weekly in a statement at the time. “Nikki remains dedicated to supporting Bam in his recovery.”
Scroll below to relive Margera’s highs and lows through the years: