Casting For The Joe Exotic Biopic Is Suitably Bonkers
Apparently, before Netflix's Tiger King was even released, there were plans to put together a miniseries about Joe Exotic's chaotic life -- but based on a podcast and with actors instead of real people. All they've done is make one casting choice, but this production is already shaping up to be like The Room, but if Tommy Wiseau was from Florida.
First up, casting. They got Kate McKinnon from Saturday Night Live as Carole Baskin. It should be a home run that this early, they nabbed a big name who's already kind of got the look of a younger Baskin. However, casting for Joe Exotic is proving to be as insane as, well, Joe Exotic. The host of the show's source podcast want on wants Margot Robbie to play him. David Spade is Joe Exotic's first choice, but Spade isn't sure he wants to, while his other choice is is Brad Pitt. So ... pretty wide tiger net there. Joe's ex-husband John Finlay wants Dax Shepard (Dax Shepard also wants Dax Shepard). While Sam Rockwell is up for the job, too. Those are huge names, and somehow Margot Robbie is the one that makes the most sense if she can find a way to throw her voice well enough. Plus, playing Joe Exotic would be a nice break for her from more subdued roles like Harley Quinn and Tonya Harding.
Regardless of who plays Joe to go alongside McKinnon's Carole Baskin, the problem that the production will run into is, if reality has been any indication, they're trying to make a movie about people who love media control and shaping their own narratives.
Baskin is already, in a very on-brand way, begging Kate McKinnon to stand up for big cats by requesting CGI tigers in this series. To quote her, "It would be cruel to use real big cats in a television series about cruelty to big cats." Which, means we might be treated to amazing behind the scenes footage on par with Harrison Ford in Call of the Wild.
Meanwhile, it's hard to say what Joe Exotic could do to influence production from prison, but he's now got an army of general public folks signing petitions for him and Tweeting about freeing him. Prison gives you a lot of time to think, and if y'all think Joe Exotic isn't planning the world's most chaotic autobiopic from a cell, maybe go back and rewatch his YouTube channel. He's probably not going to want to include parts about him paying someone else to actually do his music. And for sure would like to skip the thing about him really wanting to say the N-word. This series is going to need its own Disaster Artist after it's all said and done.
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