Where Are They Now? The Tiger King Story in 2026

Remember where you were in March 2020 when the pandemic kicked off? I sure do. We were having a family Spring Break in the Rocky Mountains, and the slopes shut down the night before our lift tickets became valid. Then came the family discussion of whether to cut and run back home, or stay and make the most of the situation.

The votes were tallied, we stayed and had a blast finding things to do. Even paid homage to Killdozer off in Granby... That is to say we drove through there, and when I brought it up, nobody else knew what I was talking about.

It wasn't long until the world shut down. Grocery store shelves were empty, toilet paper was gold, and for some reason, we all collectively became obsessed with a bleached-blonde zookeeper from Wynnewood, Oklahoma.

Tiger King

Fast forward to 2026, and the "Tiger King" phenomenon feels like a fever dream we all had together. But living here in the Sooner State, the legacy of Joe Exotic isn’t just a Netflix flash in the pan, it’s a weird and complex local history that is still being written.

Now, while people swear they knew about the tiger zoo in Wynnewood long before the docu-drama hit streaming, it became the temporary defining image of the Sooner State for the better part of the year.

We all watched the rise and fall of Joseph Maldonado-Passage - aka Joe Exotic - not just as entertainment, but as a bizarre reflection of the "Wild West" spirit gone off the rails.

What a wild time to be alive.

The 2026 Update

If you haven't kept up with the saga, the continuing reality is even weirder than the documentary was.

Even after multiple requests for a federal pardon, Joe is still serving his 21-year prison sentence, but he hasn't let it stop his love life. Last year, Joe made headlines again by marrying fellow inmate Jorge Flores in their Texas prison.

The Carole Baskin's story also took a wild twist.

You might have seen the viral headlines claiming Carole’s husband, Don Lewis, was found alive in Costa Rica. I sure remember seeing it, but... that's not exactly true. While Carole stood by a document shown in Tiger King 2 that was allegedly "proof" Don was alive and well in the Caribbean, he is still officially missing and legally dead.

It Was Fun While It Lasted

Beyond the murder-for-hire plot against Baskin, the sobering reality of Joe's wildlife crimes eventually stripped away the hilarious "meme" coat of paint, leaving a much darker story about animal abuse.

It wasn't Oklahoma's proudest moment.

Whether you view Joe as a folk hero or a federal convict, there’s no denying that for a few months in 2020, Oklahoma was the wildest place on earth.