Johnny Knoxville is not quite over Reboot's cancellation either
"I’m so grateful and thankful it happened. I’m stunned and shocked it’s over," Knoxville says
Like the rest of us, Johnny Knoxville is still processing the surprise cancellation of his Hulu series, Reboot.
“Of course I would’ve liked it to end differently, but I realize I’m a very lucky human being. We made a great show, and it’ll be there for people to watch forever. That’s a pretty great thing,” Knoxville tells Vulture. “Hopefully I’m not coming off as angry or sad. I’m so appreciative of all that has happened, but of course I’m a little pissed at the way it ended.”
Knoxville led the first season of Steve Levitan’s meta-sitcom alongside Judy Greer, Keegan-Michael Key, Rachel Bloom, and Paul Reiser. The series follows the production of a rebooted hit family sitcom, Step Right Up, and how the cast members navigate a very different industry twenty years after the original show. For Jackass’ Knoxville, this was his first narrative role after spending decades in the reality scene.
“This is my first series, so I was spoiled. Everyone kept telling me it’s rare to work on a show of this caliber with people you like,” Knoxville says. “We all got along so well. We were like, Oh, this will be fun to do for the next five or six seasons. We took it for granted. Boy, were we surprised. Oscar Wilde said, ‘Life imitates art far more than art imitates life,’ but he didn’t see what happened with Reboot.”
“I won’t say that my recent projects didn’t fulfill me, but this was my first series and I was given a wonderful role,” he adds. “I was challenged. I worked very hard to meet that challenge. A lot of times I get very critical watching myself, but I feel like I did the best I could and delivered for myself and the show.”
When it comes to the mysterious decision to cancel Reboot despite its critical praise and decent viewership, Knoxville cannot illuminate any behind-the-scenes discussions on the subject.
“I have no insight as to why it was canceled,” Knoxville says. “It’s all played very close to the vest. I know we made a lot of fun of Hulu in the show, but I give the executives more credit than to cancel it for such a silly reason.”
Now that Reboot has officially ended, Knoxville is looking for other acting roles, with a focus on film work. However, he says that if a good opportunity comes his way—such as a role on good friend Mike White’s The White Lotus—he’d be “foolish” not to consider it.