Here's everything we learned about the Tiger King in Louis Theroux's Shooting Joe Exotic. With a reputation for asking the tough questions but being very polite about it, Louis Theroux has earned his place as British TV's most trusted documentary maker, and in 2011, his inquisitive mind turned toward an eccentric zoo owner by the name of Joe Schreibvogel, now commonly known as Joe Exotic. Airing as America's Most Dangerous Pets, the documentary focused largely on G.W. Zoo and the owner's ongoing rivalry with one Carole Baskin, but as wild as the experience was, Theroux would soon move on to scientology, sex trafficking and Saville; the gun-toting zoo owner just another in a series of unpredictable interviewees.
Nine years later, Joe Exotic had attained worldwide renown thanks to Netflix's Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, and landed himself a 22-year jail term. To celebrate the tenth anniversary of their meeting, Theroux revisited his time with Joe Exotic for a follow-up piece, Shooting Joe Exotic, and as one would expect, the documentary unearthed even more shocking and surprising details about the Tiger King, as well as the various characters who made up the famous Netflix series.
Interviewing friends, relatives, associates and enemies, Louis Theroux bravely ventured down the Tiger King rabbit hole once again. This is what he found there.
Joe Exotic Wants Another Interview With Louis... But Legally Can't
Shooting Joe Exotic begins with Louis Theroux reading a handwritten letter from Joe, asking the BBC's investigative journalist to tell his "real" story, and claiming to be "silenced" in jail, locked down 24/7. When Louis reaches out to reply later in the documentary, he's contacted by the producers of Tiger King, who claim exclusivity rights over Joe Exotic, effectively banning contact between the jailed celebrity and the BBC. Not only do Tiger King's lawyers claim that Joe is bound by a contract, but virtually every other character is tied down also, although none of them seemed to be aware of this, or communicated their restrictions to Louis' team.
Joe Exotic's Fan Mail
Visiting the headquarters of the legal campaign to free Joe Exotic, Louis learns about the Tiger King's incredible popularity since Netflix's docuseries aired in 2020. Considering the mature content of Tiger King, it's deeply surprising how young some of Joe's fans are. According to his lawyers, Exotic replies to each of these letters by hand, though he isn't exactly blessed with a wealth of other activities to be getting on with at present.
Bears & Chimps Are More His Thing
In one of the more surprising lines from Shooting Joe Exotic, the Tiger King reveals that he actually prefers bears and chimpanzees when Louis asks to see the G.W. Zoo's collection of big cats. Perhaps this was Joe's preference in 2011 before he became more ingrained into the big cat business, or perhaps "Tiger King" was just more catchy than "Bear & Chimp King" for Netflix's purposes.
Joe's Traveling Petting Zoos
By the time Tiger King filmed, Joe Exotic's traveling mall zoos had been mostly shut down courtesy of Carole Baskin, but in 2011, Louis Theroux saw the operation in full swing, with young tigers being molested by the small hands of children who don't know any better. Theroux questioned Joe's road employee, Beth, on their treatment of animals, and this exchange yielded some interesting tension. Although Beth initially peddled the company line, assuring Louis that the tigers loved the attention and were comfortable moving between towns, she became noticeably cagey when asked directly about the tigers' living environment, refusing to comment.
The 2011 Carole Baskin Murder Hints
Infamously, Joe Exotic was convicted in 2019 for plotting to have Carole Baskin killed by a hitman, and Louis Theroux's 2011 footage shows the Tiger King was already occupying a dangerous mindset towards his nemesis. Accusing Baskin of costing him $1 million per year in revenue, Joe calls her "one of America's biggest domestic terrorists." Other clues toward Joe's future sentence include lines such as "I can't keep my business going while this bitch is around" and "I guarantee the animals aren't going to be the only thing euthanized." By far the scariest moment in Shooting Joe Exotic, however, comes when Theroux "accidentally" leaves his camera on, catching Joe perusing hit men online and questioning how else Carole can be dealt with if the law isn't on his side. Addressing the camera in the present, Theroux asserts that he assumed Joe was all "talk" at the time.
Carole Baskin Doesn't Care About Joe (But Isn't A Fan Of Tiger King)
Given that he's currently in prison for plotting her death, Carole Baskin is surprisingly magnanimous about Joe Exotic. The owner of Big Cat Rescue refuses to take Joe's vitriol personally, and tells Louis that she holds no animosity toward the man who continuously defamed her online and in person. Carole maintains that her sole focus is upon saving animals. The Baskins are somewhat less guarded about the Tiger King producers, believing they were misled about the nature of the documentary being made. Carole plays Louis some of the many death threat voicemails sent to her following Tiger King's release.
Ray
While Tiger King featured a variety of employees at Joe Exotic's G.W. Zoo, Theroux interviewed the previously-unseen Ray for America's Most Dangerous Animals. Like other keepers that would later become world famous, Ray was paid $150 a week, plus food and board, and had developed a strong loyalty to Joe for giving him a chance when other employers would not.
Joe's Niece Forging Documents
Speaking with Joe's niece, Chelsea, Louis Theroux learns about the zoo owner's flamboyant attitude towards receiving animal sponsorship money, and she alleges that the money was spent on cars and personal items, rather than the animals at G.W. Zoo. Even more shockingly, Chelsea admits that she unknowingly forged vet certificates for Joe Exotic and credit cards were charged even after customers requested to cancel their payments. Offering insight into Joe's conviction, Chelsea confirms there was nothing wrong with the tigers shot at G.W. Zoo under Exotic's charge.
Johnny Magic
In Shooting Joe Exotic, Louis Theroux meets Johnny Magic, who spent 8 months working with Joe performing animal-based magic shows. Johnny claims that Joe hadn't yet morphed into an extravagant showman when they first crossed paths, but once their animal conjuring gig became popular, the success and money went to the Tiger King's head. Johnny Magic also accuses Joe of spending earnings intended for the park on himself, echoing Chelsea's sentiments about the subscriptions.
John Finlay's Testimony
Chelsea shows Louis a transcript of John Finlay's court testimony against Joe Exotic, in which Finlay alleges that he was instructed by his former husband to take Allan Glover (the "hitman" Joe is accused of hiring) to Florida to get a new ID, specifically to carry out an attack on Baskin. Theroux then examines a recorded phone call between Exotic and Finlay, in which Joe accuses his ex-lover of hanging him out to dry, while John replies that he simply told the truth.
Tiger King 2 Focuses On The Campaign To Free Joe
As Shooting Joe Exotic heads deeper into the Tiger King weeds, Louis learns of more and more figures he's unable to contact due to their exclusivity deals with the producers of Tiger King. Interestingly, Theroux is also forbidden from interviewing (or even showing on camera) the head of the "Free Joe Exotic" campaign, Eric Love. This would suggest that Netflix's inevitable Tiger King sequel will focus primarily on the movement to have Joe released from jail. With their star still behind bars, there's little else to focus on. Either way, Joe Exotic's contract seems to be a lucrative one, although Louis was unable to push Joe's lawyers for an exact figure.
Joe's Defense Case Was Based On Populism
In typical "Louis Theroux" fashion, Shooting Joe Exotic confronts the Tiger King's defense team, presenting them with the compelling evidence used to convict their client in court. In a surreal conversation, Joe's lawyer, Francisco Hernandez, puts forward that Carole Baskin is the villain because she "reeks deception," while happily admitting that the public believes she killed her ex-husband based upon zero evidence. It's not surprising that Donald Trump turned the pardon down.
The State Of Joe Exotic's Zoo Now
As has been widely reported, ownership of G.W. Zoo legally transferred from Jeff Lowe to Carole Baskin in June 2020 as a result of her long-standing trademark dispute against Joe Exotic. Fortunately for Louis Theroux, Carole is one Tiger King subject he can legally talk to, allowing Shooting Joe Exotic to film freely inside Joe's zoo. Since Jeff's departure, Carole has obviously not continued using the facility to house animals, and G.W. Zoo is in a state of overgrown disrepair. Disturbingly, the park is covered with abusive graffiti aimed towards Carole, which she assumes was written by Jeff and his workers before they relinquished the property, though Jeff obviously denies this. As well as general insults and slurs, the graffiti continues the accusation that Carole murdered her ex-husband, and makes open threats upon her life. According to Howard Baskin, the zoo was also intentionally vandalized with many of the structures and cages destroyed - not that Carole had much use for them.
The once-full cages are bereft of animals, but Howard confirms a collection of wolves, tigers and bears were still present when the Baskins moved in. They've since been relocated to a sanctuary. Joe's house is even more dilapidated than his park - a strange, sick shrine to a fallen idol, complete with dick pics.
Carole's Position On Her Ex-Husband
Louis carefully probes Carole on the accusations regarding Don Lewis' disappearance. Carole seems quite happy to discuss Don, referencing his mental health issues and lust for adventure, while reaffirming her belief that Don crashed an aircraft over the Gulf. Howard Baskin, however, is less than delighted talking about Don, becoming prickly with Louis as Carole speaks quite openly.
Joe Exotic's Allegations Against His Brother
Through Joe Exotic's lawyers, Louis Theroux is granted access to one of Joe's handwritten letters, dated June 2020. The emotional letter references Joe's troubled family life and abusive father, but speaks highly of Garold Wayne, his brother, whom Joe credits with starting his love for "weird animals." The letter takes a far darker turn, however, as Joe describes being molested by his eldest brother, Yari, at 5-years-old. Shooting Joe Exotic catches up with Yari and his wife at their remote Texas home, and he denies the allegations of sexual assault made in Exotic's letter, although he does corroborate the parental abuse Joe suffered. Yari shares the Tiger King's high opinion of Garold, but has effectively disowned Joe.
Yari Believes Joe Betrayed Garold's Memory
Yari also offers his perspective of the G.W. Zoo's conception. According to the eldest of the three brothers, Joe hired psychics to stand over Garold in hospital, and banned Yari from visiting due to his "bad vibes." Yari and his wife reveal that the family received a payout in the wake of Garold's death, and had planned to construct a soccer pitch for young children, honoring one of his passions in life. That money was ultimately spent on the land for G.W. Zoo, and Yari believes Joe manipulated his family members to take the money for himself.
Joe Would Take The Zoo Down With Him
Yari tells Shooting Joe Exotic that if his brother ever "went down," he'd take everyone around him along too. Sure enough, the latter days of Joe's 2011 interview with Louis Theroux prove that the Tiger King became increasingly annoyed in the face of questions relating to animal rights, culminating with an angry Joe also promising that if he ever lost the zoo, he'd euthanize the 1000+ animals living there rather than move them elsewhere. As seen in Tiger King, Joe would indeed go down. Thankfully, not all of his animals followed, although some remain in similarly controversial roadside parks.