Netflix’s hit documentary series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness has been the perfect distraction from everything else happening in the news. I loved every bizarre twist, the intense trashiness of the whole affair and the fact that literally everyone who appeared in the show was crazy. Fueled by word of mouth, it quickly became one of the biggest things on Netflix, with everyone having an opinion on the series’ various heroes and villains.
Almost immediately people began fan-casting a movie adaptation of the story, with a general consensus building that the only person who could play Joe Exotic is Danny McBride. But now we have a new contender. Rob Lowe posted an image of himself in costume as Joe Exotic on Instagram, revealing that he’s developing “a version of this insane story” with American Horror Story and Feud creator Ryan Murphy.
I was skeptical about the notoriously handsome Lowe playing Joe Exotic, but I have to admit he’s captured something of the criminal zoo-owner’s squirrelly, paranoid nature in the below photo. Plus, Ryan Murphy is an ideal candidate to bring this story to the screen, with a tale of two larger-than-life personalities in a bitter murderous battle over big cats perfect for the creator of Feud.
But their take won’t be the only Tiger King adaptation. Ghostbusters’ Kate McKinnon has confirmed that she’s producing and starring in a limited series centering on Big Cat Rescue’s Carole Baskin. Dwayne Johnson has also expressed interested in getting into the world of the Tiger King, though even he might find the market too busy for yet another take on the story.
Meanwhile, Joe Maldonado-Passage – aka Joe Exotic – is still serving his lengthy sentence, though is apparently in an isolation ward as his asthma makes him susceptible to COVID-19. Throughout Tiger King he was obviously desperate to be famous and, well, he got his wish. Shame he can’t properly enjoy it.