I've never seen the movie "Freddy got fingered" (only the RLM re:View) but I remember Tom Green from the Jackass days. I think they all popped up the right place in time to catch the attention of viewers, when cam recorders became more viable after the Americas Funniest Home Video time has past and before Youtube. They crashed right through the wall of what you shouldn't show by being reckless and disgusting and they weren't afraid of completely wrecking their own reputation by doing so. It was either Knoxville or Steve O that said it in an interview once, they did it all to themselves, a circle of friends and family. Not to strangers on the street, in the sense that there is a difference between what they did and the terrible Youtube prank videos that were/are borderline harmful to others, at least from what I've read, I don't really watch these videos on YT.
Arguably Tom Green was involving other people from the streets but it was a bit different.
I think it was his total display of self-destruction in the public space that drew people in like an accident, then the dude married a movie star and showed up in some movies himself.
As it was presented in the re:View video, dude really only was famous for that time period but I really like the idea of him burning through investor money with his "Freddy got fingered" movie, it's hard to believe that really was the case but it would be the greatest "prank" anyone has ever done in the movie business.
