Rachel Wolfson — Jackass ' First Female Star — on Her 'Strict' Upbringing and Bonding with the Guys

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Rachel Wolfson could always picture herself as one of the Jackass guys.

The comedian grew up a fan of the MTV stunt show not knowing she was studying for her eventual close-up (with a poisonous scorpion poking at her lips, no less). As she explains to PEOPLE, "If you would've told me at 15, 'One day you're going to be part of this crew,' I probably would've believed it."

Wolfson is the first female cast member, a breakout newbie in Jackass Forever, but she says she assimilated pretty seamlessly into the band of bruised daredevils.

"Honestly, doing standup and having that as my background and also playing sports, I've always been kind of 'one of the guys.' I have a lot of guy friends and I just know how to interact with guys. It kind of prepared me for this," Wolfson tells PEOPLE.

"I didn't feel like they necessarily looked at me any differently because I'm a woman," she adds. "There were definitely certain stunts they didn't have me do or wouldn't involve me with because they knew I would get hurt, and that's not comedy. I'm completely fine with that because I'm always coming from a comedic place."

RELATED: Johnny Knoxville on Possibly Retiring from Jackass Franchise: 'I've Put My Family Through Enough'

Paramount Pictures and MTV Entertainment Studios

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Wolfson impressively holds her own with even the most seasoned of Jackass costars, keeping quiet during a challenge that involved — don't try this at home, of course — licking a live taser.

"My DMs are lit and filled with all kinds of really nice messages," she says of fan response to the film, which debuted No. 1 at the box office on its opening weekend. "There's people who wish that they had seen more of me in the movie, but they have to remember that I'm sharing the screen with 13 other people and seven of them are OGs. So for me, I always love the idea of leave them wanting more."

Wolfson's entry point into the Jackass squad came after star Johnny Knoxville became a fan of her humor on Instagram. A few DMs, phone calls and meetings later and she was in front of the camera.

What makes Wolfson such a natural at pulling off the irreverent stunts?

"I think the adrenaline," she says, adding, "I'm the kind of person where if something scares me, it's all the more reason I should do it because I think growth really happens in those moments of fear. For me, I just knew that this was something I needed to do."

"Everything that's happened in my life really prepared me to be on the set of Jackass," says Wolfson, "and I really put my trust in them and really just hoped for the best."

Wolfson's accomplished-lawyer parents weren't immediately on board with her joining the Jackass cast, though she never asked for their permission, she recalls.

"My parents are really proud, which is hilarious to me because I come from a very strict family," she says with a laugh. "I remember when I made the phone call to my mom ... she was concerned initially, but I told her no matter how they felt about it, I was going to do it."

"I took them to the premiere," adds Wolfson, "and watching them watch Jackass was one of my most favorite moments of my life. My dad didn't look away at all and he was so cute. He was like, 'It kept my attention the whole time.' And for my dad to say that, it's pretty huge."

Jackass Forever is now playing in theaters.