Smallscreen Features
NBC's 'Celebrity Circus' interview with Jason ''Wee Man'' Acuña
By April MacIntyre
May 4, 2008, 0:10 GMT

NBC has announced the stars participating in this summer's Celebrity Circus series, to be hosted by Joey Fatone. 

The show will feature ex Brady Buncher Christopher Knight, former supermodel Rachel Hunter; soap opera star Antonio Sabato Jr., Grammy-nominated neosoul singer Blu Cantrell, Olympic swimmer Janet Evans and Jason ''Wee Man'' Acuña (Jackass). Stacey Dash was recently added as well.

The show, which debuts with a 90-minute premiere on June 11, features celebrities learning circus stunts, like the high wire, flying trapeze, and fire dancing. After training, contestants will perform and then face the verdict of judges and viewers.

Normally, we see Jason “Wee Man” Acuña being put through some indignity on MTV’s retired series, "Jackass" or being used as human Tiger bait on the Steve-O and Chris Pontius’ spin-off show, “WildBoyz.” 

Acuña took time out from his panel session yesterday at the NBC summer preview to sit and talk with me about the new show, his older shows, Steve-O, his new-found chemistry with Rachel Hunter and the grossest thing he had to witness on “Jackass.”

Acuña is a California boy; he came up selling skating supplies at a Hermosa Beach surfshop, and then tried his hand at community college.  “I am a community college drop-out,” laughed Wee Man, who told me about his creative outlets, and his true love for art.

When I pressed to see if he enjoyed designing footwear and clothing like skateboarder Rob Dyrdek, he gave me a nugget.

“I do like designing my own stuff.  No one knows this, but I took fashion and sewing courses and I really liked it.”

The feeling of happiness radiates from Wee Man, who shared he had a "taking it day-by-day" outlook, and that he sold limited editions of his art in cool coffeehouses and stores.  Another thing that was important to him was green awareness, and he told me a hybrid car was in his future.

Wee Man told me how he came to this latest NBC project.

“I was fortunate that they called, it was unexpected and very cool,” he shared. “The challenges are hard, especially for me because my strength is lower body, and most if not all of the things we have to do are all upper body tests of strength.”

And what about his castmates?

“Everyone has bonded on this show, we are all rooting for each other, and there is nothing but a positive feeling. And the women are doing great, Rachel (Hunter) and I have this great chemistry, she’s doing really well on the show.  We do great funny, flirty stuff teamed up together on film; even the producers noticed it the other day reviewing tape. She is awesome, so sweet and funny. and Chris (Knight) has this streak in him, he has a real knack for comedy.

This is my Everest; it feels good to accomplish what they throw our way”

I asked him if his old Jackass pals could do any of these stunts.

“Knoxville has no balance, so forget him.  Probably Chris and Bam, they're the only guys I think that could actually physically pull off the stunts.”

The most disgusting “Jackass” moment for him?

“Yeah, it was Chris drinking the horse come, which was off the charts gross.  When we travel we call Chris 'bad Mongo' when we’re on planes, because he gets drunk and acts up, but all of us (Jackass) are very tight and super close still.“

What about Steve-O?

“Well, I am very optimistic for him, and he has my good wishes.  He just needs to stay away from TV and filming stuff - that seems to be the thing that throws him off getting better.  He just needs to take a break from all this.”

Wee Man told me about his life a bit.   

“My dad was an Army chef, and my mom was a nurse, and I was born in Pisa, Italy.” 
He continued. "I went to Rome once, it was a good time, but I have been to Germany, which I love, and to Japan like eight times, and all over Northern Europe and I really liked Denmark and Finland.”

Strangest meal ever presented to him abroad?

“Oh my God, I was served a rabbit cooked all in its fur and with the head still attached to it once, that was awful, I totally pretended to eat it but I stuck with the breadsticks and passed, I think that was France.”