COOL CASTS AND KITTENS

All the ‘Tiger King’ Spin-Off Projects, from a Kate McKinnon-as-Carole Baskin TV Series to... Brad Pitt?

Netflix’s lurid look into the big cat world has become a collective obsession amid the novel coronavirus pandemic—so of course, plenty more series and specials are on the way.

Hey, all you cool cats and kittens! It turns out a lot of you watched Tiger King—34.3 million unique viewers over its first 10 days on Netflix, according to Nielson. As Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin became household names, an inevitable parade of new projects hoping to ride the Tiger King wave have followed. Kate McKinnon is already set to play Carole Baskin in an upcoming biopic series, and Joe Exotic is already dream casting actors to play him as well. (His top picks? Brad Pitt...or “Joe Dirt.”) And that’s not even mentioning Netflix’s upcoming reunion episode. This handy guide will help you claw through it all. We’ll keep it updated as new projects emerge.

NETFLIX REUNION: ‘THE TIGER KING AND I’

Joel McHale will host Netflix’s reunion special, which premieres April 12. The special will include Tiger King figures John Reinke, Joshua Dial, John Finlay, Saff Saffery, Erik Cowie, Rick Kirkham, and Jeff and Lauren Lowe.

Netflix previously posted footage from an interview conducted with Joe Exotic from prison two days after the show’s premiere, so there’s a chance he could be involved. Carole Baskin, for the record, was not invited and said through a representative that she would not have attended anyway.

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‘TIGER KING’ SPECIAL FROM FOX AND TMZ

TMZ Investigates: Tiger King—What Really Went Down? will air Monday on Fox. The hour-long special will include interviews with people connected to Joe Exotic’s murder-for-hire case, as well as “never-before-seen footage,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The special will also re-examine the disappearance of Baskin’s husband, Don Lewis, and the status of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office’s ongoing investigation. The special will also ask, once more, whether or not Joe Exotic is actually guilty of murder-for-hire.

ROB LOWE-RYAN MURPHY PROJECT

Rob Lowe has also teased a project of his own—or, at the very least, posted a very effective cosplay as Joe Exotic. The caption the actor chose, however, is intriguing: “UPDATE: Ryan Murphy and I will be developing our version of this insane story. Stay tuned!”

Deadline reports that Lowe is in very early talks with Murphy to star in a scripted series adaptation about Joe Exotic. The actor currently stars in Fox’s 911: Lone Star, which Murphy co-created and executive produces. A source has confirmed to The Daily Beast that Lowe and Murphy are friends, and that they are talking.

A representative for Murphy did not immediately respond to The Daily Beast's request for comment.

CAROLE BASKIN BIOPIC SERIES WITH KATE MCKINNON

Months before Tiger King made Carole Baskin a household name, McKinnon had already landed a starring role in a series about her and Joe Exotic. Last November, Variety reported that McKinnon would star in and executive produce a series based on the Wondery podcast Joe Exotic—which narrates how the two’s feud almost turned deadly. McKinnon, 36, will likely play Baskin, 58, across a number of years. It’s unclear when the project will air.

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RUMORED ORLANDO BLOOM-STARRING JOE EXOTIC BIOPIC

This one comes from The Sun, so a large grain of salt is in order. But according to the British tabloid, producers at 20th Century Fox are planning a movie inspired by Tiger King—and Orlando Bloom is their first choice to play Joe Exotic.

“Discussions about a movie have only just started but they believe the idea has legs, especially if they get a big star like Orlando on board,” a source told The Sun. “They think he could really bring Joe to life on screen.”

Representatives for Bloom and Fox did not immediately respond to The Daily Beast’s request for comment.

INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY TRUE-CRIME SERIES

Naturally, ID will be getting in on the action as well. Investigating the Strange World of Joe Exotic will include exclusive footage and “[reveal] secrets only Maldonado-Passage knows. But the sequel also digs deeper into the skeletons he and other cat lovers in his wild world may still be hiding. Who is Jeff Lowe and what does the FBI really know? What secrets lie hidden within Doc Antle’s walls? Is Baskin really a selfless protector of animals whose husband mysteriously disappeared, or are we witnessing her master plan finally coming together?”

A source tells Page Six the project is “going to take a deeper dive into the crime. Joe has a contract for the project, and he is going to be participating.” Joe Exotic is currently serving time in prison on two counts of murder-for-hire, among other crimes of which he was convicted.

This post has been updated.

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Laura BradleySenior Entertainment Reporter

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