Inside the Steve-O Tattoo Controversy: "I Knew That I Was Crossing the Line"
"When I got that tattoo, I knew that I was crossing the line and that was the whole reason that I got it."
Published April 8 2026, 10:55 a.m. ET
Jackass fans know that Steve-O, real name Stephen Gilcrest Glover, is known for his eclectic personality. With a successful career as an entertainer, stunt performer, and YouTube personality, Steve-O has made his mark in the industry. And while he gets people talking with his interesting lifestyle and choices that many feel can cross the line, many people have become accustomed to his personality.
That said, while Steve-O is known for living on the edge, some of his decisions have rubbed people the wrong way. Those decisions? Fans and social media users are unhappy with his tattoo choices. As a result, the entrepreneur has been bashed online. Here’s the full scoop on the Steve-O tattoo controversy.
The Steve-O tattoo controversy started once people saw his baby tattoo.
On July 11, 2019. Steve-O took to his YouTube channel to share the story about the baby tattoo. In the video, he acknowledged that he crossed the line, especially after seeing the reactions from people.
"It was 2006, and I was getting drunk with my buddies, and we're talking about how we never wanted to have kids — or at least I felt really strongly about it," Steve said. “So I said OK, I’ll get a tattoo of a baby in a circle with a slash like a ‘No Babies’ sign.”
He went on to share that he and his friends thought of the whole thing to be funny.
“We kept drinking, and then I was like ‘Oh no no no no, I’ll get 'F--k Babies,” Steve admitted. “But then I thought, ‘I don’t want to make people read more words, I’ve already got so many words.’”
“And then I ended up going with an image of a guy f--king a baby,” he shared. “When I got that tattoo, I knew that I was crossing the line, and that was the whole reason that I got it. This was my crazy stunt that I was doing.”
He shared that once the tattoo was complete, he showed a couple outside of the tattoo shop his new piece, and their horrific faces also confirmed his feelings.
“They saw it, and the look of f--king horror on their face told me that I had actually made a serious mistake,” Steve-O revealed.
Steve-O has changed the baby tattoo to one of an ostrich.
In a YouTube video, Steve-O admitted he got the tattoo while filming Jackass. And while he did have it covered up, he ended up showing his co-star Bam Margera the piece.
“He said, ‘You should turn that blob into an ostrich,’ Steve-O shared. “I got Bam to draw the ostrich and Kat Von D tattooed it, and I thought this was like ‘problem solved.’"
Although the tattoo has been covered up, many people still question why Steve-O thought the baby tattoo would be a good idea. However, since the saying "out of sight, out of mind" is true, the public has mostly moved on.
However, some people still side-eye the entertainer for the decision.