Jackass star Sean “Poopies” McInerney suffered an horrific shark bite on his left hand after a stunt being filmed for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week went wrong.
Fellow Jackass members Steve-O and Chris Pontius had already successfully sent McInerney wakeboarding across shark infested waters before deciding to up the stakes by having McInerney go over a ramp in an attempt to bring the metaphor “jump the shark” to life.
“Jumping the shark” is a pop culture idiom derived from a Happy Days episode in which the Fonz jumps over a shark on water-skis. The phrase has come to refer to TV shows resorting to far-fetched gimmicks as they decline in quality or popularity.
When McInerney was unable to stick the landing, he plunged into the waters and was immediately swarmed by sharks. One bit his left hand as crew members raced to rescue him.
Steve-O later posted a graphic photograph of McInerney’s injury to his Instagram. He captioned the image: “@poopiesgram’s hand gets completely mangled on our Jackass #SharkWeek special tonight at 10pm on @discovery (already streaming now on @discoveryplus). Get ready for @poopiesgram to become the breakout star of 2021 in Jackass 4, too. Go ahead and follow @poopiesgram now because, trust me, he’s about to blow the fuck up.”
Speaking after receiving medical attention, McInerney said: “I definitely got a degree in shark college there. I knew there was a chance I was going to get bit by a shark, but I didn’t think it was going to happen.”
He added that he doesn’t hold a grudge against the shark in question, saying: “I don’t blame the sharks at all. I mean, I was in their living room, and it was dinnertime.”
