Yahoo Finance John Cameron Mitchell Cast as Joe Exotic in Upcoming NBCUniversal Series Opposite Kate McKinnon
Mark Sagliocco/Getty; JoeExoticTV/Youtube John Cameron Mitchell, Joe Exotic
NBCUniversal has found its Joe Exotic.
John Cameron Mitchell (The Good Fight, Shrill) has been cast as former Oklahoma zoo owner Joseph "Joe Exotic" Maldonado-Passage — who was made famous in Netflix's hit 2020 documentary Tiger King — in NBCUniversal's upcoming limited series, the media company announced Monday.
"I'm thrilled to take on the role of this modern folk antihero," Mitchell, 57, said in a statement. "Joe and I are the same age, and like him, I grew up queer in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas, so I feel like I know a little bit about this guy and his desperate attempt to conquer an inhospitable world."
Kate McKinnon has already been cast in the limited series as big cat lover Carole Baskin, Maldonado-Passage's bitter rival in Tiger King.
The series, which is under the working title Joe Exotic and will air on NBC, Peacock and the USA Network, is based on the Wondery podcast Joe Exotic and will explore past true events as Baskin, 59, "learns that her nemesis Joseph 'Joe Exotic' Maldonado-Passage is breeding and using his big cats for profit," according to a prior press release.
"She sets out to shut down his venture, inciting a quickly escalating rivalry. But Carole has a checkered past of her own and when the claws come out, Joe will stop at nothing to expose what he sees as her hypocrisy. The results prove dangerous," it continued.
McKinnon, 37, will also serve as executive producer alongside Etan Frankel (Sorry for Your Loss, Shameless). Frankel is also writing the upcoming project.
Shutterstock; Facebook Kate McKinnon, Carole Baskin
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Mitchell's past work includes creating and starring in the stage musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch, for which he received a Tony Award. His 2001 film adaptation of Hedwig and the Angry Inch earned him a Golden Globe nomination for best actor — musical or comedy. He currently stars in Hulu's comedy series Shrill and has previously appeared in episodes of The Good Fight and Girls.
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Maldonado-Passage, 58, is currently serving a 22-year sentence at a Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, prison after he was found guilty in 2019 for paying Allen Glover $3,000 to kill Baskin. He was also found guilty on multiple charges of violating both the Lacey Act for falsifying wildlife records, and the Endangered Species Act.
Fans first learned about both Maldonado-Passage and Baskin (who runs an exotic big-cat sanctuary called Big Cat Rescue in Citrus Park, Florida) in Tiger King, which touched on their bitter rivalry and led to them both receiving significant media attention.
A premiere date for Joe Exotic has yet to be announced.
