There’s still apparently plenty of Tiger King juice to be milked in the future, not only by Netflix but by Discovery, which is spinning off a series about Carole Baskins’ missing husband. Nic Cage will also portray Joe Exotic in some sort of scripted series with a network to be determined, and there are rumors that Netflix itself might be growing close to greenlighting a Season 2 of the ridiculously popular docuseries that started it all. And no one seems to be deterred by the saga’s frontman, Joseph Maldonado-Passage, sitting in jail without a pardon (at least so far).
Joe Exotic’s old wildlife zoo (Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park, now run by Jeff Lowe), though, will be shifting gears. As CNN reports, the park’s exhibition license was suspended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the privately-owned area shuttered “immediately” and “for the foreseeable future.” The zoo’s Facebook page confirmed the closure while adding that the area would be used “as a private film set for Tiger King related television content for cable and streaming services.”
However, that’s not the end of the ruckus. According to The Wrap, Lowe is claiming that he is the party who contacted the USDA and decided to “voluntarily forfeit” the exhibitor’s license, and that the license was only suspended after he made that move. The Facebook post in question also claims that Lowe has been “contemplating this for weeks,” and he’s getting his lawyers involved while accusing the USDA of having yielded to pressure from PETA.
In other words, more drama in Tiger King land. Maybe the Minions can really get involved now.