Top 10 Things We Learned from Tiger King's New Episode
Top 10 Things We Learned from Tiger King and I
Michael Wynands
Just when you thought the story was over! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be counting down our picks for Top 10 Things We Learned from Tiger King and I.
For this list, we’ll be looking at the most noteworthy reveals and bits of information we learned from the special 8th episode of “Tiger King”, in which actor-comedian Joel McHale interviews various people who featured prominently in the hugely successful Netflix original docuseries.
#10: Rick Kirkham Says Joe is Terrified of Big Cats
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Considering the latter is the self-crowned “Tiger King”, this is a pretty damning accusation on the part of Rick Kirkham. Joe Exotic has been judged guilty of many things; attempted murder-for-hire, animal abuse, being emotionally manipulative and having commit a litany of crimes against fashion. But for all his shortcomings, there was one thing we had to give him: he clearly knew his way around big cats. Well, not according to Rick Kirkham! The producer claims that a major omission from the docuseries is that Joe is “scared to death of lions and tigers” - the very same animals upon which he built his reputation! Kirkham claims that when Joe was shooting footage in-cage with two tigers, one was blind and the other was tranquilized.
#9: Rick Kirkham Has Moved to Norway
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Sometimes… you just need a clean start. And after living on-site at G.W. Zoo amidst all of Joe Exotic’s madness, and committing countless hours to filming a reality series only for it to go up in flames… Rick Kirkham had apparently had enough. In fact, after the studio burned down, taking his footage with it, tragedy struck yet again when Kirkham lost his home to yet another fire. Well, it would seem that the troubled journalist and producer has finally found a quiet place to lay his hat. He moved to Norway where he married his current wife and works as a freelance reporter. Of course, the explosive popularity of the docuseries has made him instantly recognizable, even in his newly adopted home.
#8: John Reinke Has a Divorce Pending, But the Pandemic Stands in His Way
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We’re living in wild times — and, as its popularity has proven, “Tiger King” is the perfect larger-than-life distraction to help the masses get through quarantine. While it’s easy to imagine these big personalities existing within the bubble of the docuseries, this episode serves as a reminder of the fact that they’re still out there living their lives. And this pandemic has affected them as much as anyone else! John Reinke’s skeleton pal has seemingly had to forfeit his place in the passenger seat to make room for John’s new girlfriend, whom he intends to marry. The only issue? Efforts to officially divorce his ex-wife are at a standstill because of the pandemic.
#7: Jeff and Dillon Got Into a Fistfight After Joe Went to Jail
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Though Jeff doesn’t bring it up in his interview, we learn from John Reinke that the new zoo owner actually got into a physical altercation with Joe’s latest husband, Dillon Passage. Apparently it happened the day that Joe left, and saw the two men getting scrappy as they rolled around in the parking lot. According to Reinke, this brawl lasted 15 minutes, which, as anyone who’s been in a fight will tell you, is about 15 times longer than they typically last. Host Joel McHale understandably can’t help but poke fun at this fact, suggesting that Jeff and Dillon likely aren’t very good fighters if neither could end it sooner than that.
#6: Jeff Thinks the Show Made Him Out to Be the Villain
That’s funny, because most viewers would agree that he did a pretty good job of that himself. As Lowe says on camera in the docuseries, things always seem to end badly between him and the people he gets into business with. And as McHale not so subtly seems to be implying, the common factor in that equation is Jeff. When asked about how he and his wife were portrayed in the series, Lowe says that the filmmakers “sensationalized the story a bit” but only seems to think that this applies to himself. Honestly, considering how badly he comes across in this documentary, we’re surprised he’s not trying to (unfairly) lay even more blame at the feet of directors Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin.
#5: Erik Was Often the One Forced to Put the Cats Down
One of the more shocking reveals in the docuseries is that Joe Exotic was euthanizing his big cats. He openly admits to doing so, but this interview with head zookeeper Erik Cowie does make it sound like cats being euthanized was far more common an occurrence than Joe would have you believe. Erik expresses serious regret about the things he was asked to do while working for Joe. He says that he had a real bond with the cats, and he was repeatedly forced to use that trust to get them tranquilized and put down. Cowie avoids going into detail, but he also makes it clear that not all euthanized cats were put down for medically justified reasons.
#4: Saff Made a Point to Talk About How Joe Did a lot of Good Things
As Joel McHale points out, it’s pretty clear that Joe Exotic has few friends these days. Most of his past employees have zero issue with speaking out against their ex-boss, calling him out for his abuse of the animals, but equally the way he treated the people living on-site. Saff states that he was most loyal to the animals, not Joe. He also makes it clear he does not condone any of the abusive and/or criminal actions of his ex-employer. But… Saff also thinks that Joe doesn’t get enough credit for his kindness, generosity and commitment to helping those less fortunate. Saff seemingly supports the court’s decisions (justice was served), but also doesn’t want to see Joe spend the rest of his life in a cage.
#3: Joe Spoke to a Shaman After Travis' Death
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Of course he did. After everything we saw Joe do on-camera, and the things we heard about him doing off-camera, there’s very little that he could do that that would surprise us. According to Josh Dial, who ran Joe Exotic’s political campaign, Joe didn’t get conventional counselling. He instead opted to speak with a shaman, which, in Dial’s opinion, actually only served to worsen his condition. Of course, this experience was especially traumatic for Josh, who actually witnessed Travis’ death firsthand. Following the release of the series he’s trying to raise funds for therapy for himself, as neither Joe nor Jeff offered to pay for it at the time of the accident.
#2: John Finlay Was NOT Happy With How He Was Portrayed
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Even before this follow-up episode came out, Joe’s ex-husband made it very clear on social media and in various interviews that he did not approve of “Tiger King”. He felt that he was unfairly depicted, specifically in the filmmakers’ choice to not show him with his new teeth despite there allegedly being footage of after he’d received them. According to Finlay, he was already 4 to 5 years clean at the time that the documentary was shot, and felt that he was made to look like a “drugged out hillbilly” regardless. He also wants to clarify to all the haters out there that his coverup tattoo, as seen in the docuseries, wasn’t finished yet.
Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
Jeff Lowe has 60-70 Affliction t-shirts
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Joe Blew Up John Reinke's Golf Cart and Cabin
Rick Kirkham Wants Billy Bob Thornton to Play Him
Fake #1: EriK HATES Motley Crue
Really?! Because the haircut suggests otherwise. And between him and his ex-boss, Joe Exotic, they look like a couple extras from a Motley Crue video circa the mid-1980s. But hey, this show is all about the shocking twists.
#1: Rick Kirkham's Horse Story
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In all seriousness, if there’s one thing that really stuck with us after watching this bonus episode of Tiger King, it’s this painful anecdote. Reflecting on Joe’s history of mistreating animals, Rick Kirkham recalls a day when a woman brought Joe her horse. Unable to take care of the creature herself anymore, she pleaded with Joe, tears in her eyes, for him to give the aging horse a better life grazing in his fields. Joe reassured her, and no sooner had she left, than he proceeded to shoot the horse and feed it to his tigers.. It’s a shocking story that underscores Joe Exotic’s apparent tendency towards deception, emotional manipulation and, of course, animal cruelty.
