Bill Maher has reportedly doubled down on his reason for not interviewing Steve-O.
The “Real Time” host originally reached out to Steve-O himself, but refused the now-sober “Jackass” alum’s request to not smoke weed — even for only an hour or two — during their prospective chat on Maher’s “Club Random” podcast.
Maher has since admitted as much in an upcoming episode obtained Friday by Variety, in which the 68-year-old marijuana enthusiast told guest Tony Hawk that the situation was “unfortunate,” but rejected the notion that his refusal to stop smoking pot was insensitive.
“That Steve-O guy was taking shots at me in the press recently,” he told Hawk, per Variety.
“I don’t want to start a feud, and I’m sorry that he felt slighted or something, but it is ridiculous that somebody thinks that I should give up pot smoking because they have a problem,” Maher continued. “Then I’m sorry you can’t be here.”
Steve-O, whose legal name is Stephen Glover, became famous as the drug-addled daredevil from the stunt-laden “Jackass” series on MTV and its subsequent movies. He has since chronicled his journey to sobriety on his podcast, “Wild Ride!”
“I found it kind of upsetting when the Bill Maher podcast reached out,” he said on his show in March. “And his thing is he smokes pot the whole time while he interviews people. I said I’d happily go on there, but while I’m on, out of respect for my sobriety, could he refrain? He said, ‘No, that’s a dealbreaker.’”
“All of these [other] prolific potheads — I’ve been on their shows — and it wasn’t so important to them to blow marijuana smoke in my face,” he cojntinued.
Maher reportedly claimed in his upcoming episode that his guests on “Club Random” have to play by “my rules” and argued that smoking marijuana is “how I shoot the shit” to “get conversation as real as it ever is.”
Social media users have since noticed that Maher cast his usual approach aside during a recent “Club Random” interview with Sheryl Crow, when he respected her wishes and said: “I’d never light one up in front of you.”
The full “Club Random” episode featuring Hawk will be released Monday.
Need help with substance use disorder or mental health issues? In the U.S., call 800-662-HELP (4357) for the SAMHSA National Helpline.
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