This takes us back to the early days of Lockdown Series One.
Ah, Tiger King. The jaw-dropping Netflix docu-series that somehow managed to almost out-bizarre what was going on in the world in March 2020.
Yes, Tiger King was one of the early-internet sensations that broke as the world went into various lockdowns. And as the outside world grew scarier and scarier, many decided to get lost in the universe of Joe Exotic, Carol Baskin and co.
Just finished watching #TigerKing on #Netflix. I have a lot of thoughts which I'll post in a considered form in the next day or two. In the meantime, here is me and Joe back in the day and a link to the doc I did on player. https://t.co/oaVffJZl5j pic.twitter.com/VzMLHin2q1
— Louis Theroux (@louistheroux) March 31, 2020
And now, one of the world’s favourite documentary creators is going in on Mr Exotic. Louis Theroux: The Cult Of Joe Exotic is due to hit our screens soon.
Theroux is reuniting with Joe Exotic, after the Tiger King featured in his 2011 documentary “America’s Most Dangerous Pets”. It’s safe to say a lot has changed since then…
Joe Exotic is currently serving a 22-year prison sentence for animal-rights violations and for ordering a hit on his arch-enemy and tiger-collecting peer, Carol Baskin. We doubt we needed to refresh your memory for that part of the Netflix series.
Anyhow, in The Cult Of Joe Exotic, Louis Theroux returns to Oklahoma to discover, well, what the hell has happened since he left 10 years ago and since last years bizarre series?
“This is one of those quintessentially American stories, taking place in the heartland of Oklahoma, with a cast of characters almost too colourful and larger-than-life to be believed,” said Theroux, speaking of his new project.
“I spent eight or nine days filming at the park back in 2011, over the course of three separate visits. I’d forgotten how much we shot until I went back into the footage during lockdown. It’s extraordinary how much was there.
“Since then the story just got stranger and bigger, and in going back at the end of last year I uncovered a real-life drama that took me in directions I never could have expected.”
The 90-minute documentary will also touch on Joe’s efforts to use his media sway to receive a presidential pardon from Donald Trump.
Louis Theroux: The Cult Of Joe Exotic’s synopsis reads: “Looking back at his original documentary while reflecting on hours of unseen footage, Louis sets out to understand who the real Joe Exotic is.
“As he tries to investigate what has happened in the intervening years, he meets old friends from his original documentary, the team trying to get him out of prison and those closest to Joe who have never spoken before.”
There is no official release date from the BBC yet, but we know many are on the edge of their seats waiting for this one.