Joe Exotic may be the subject of the Netflix original docu-series Tiger King, but the big cat enthusiast isn’t the only character in the project making waves on the Internet. He’d probably be incensed to learn that his arch-nemesis Carole Baskin is also sharing his limelight. Baskin’s flamboyant personal style and shadowy personal past piqued the interest of Tiger King fans, so much so that some are petitioning for her to step into the spotlight as the next lead of ABC's dating reality series The Bachelorette.
I'm perfectly okay with Clare Crawley taking on the mantle as the next Bachelorette, but reddit user sweetcaroline29 swears that Baskin would be a better choice and created a helpful powerpoint to make their case. They began by highlighting the similarities between the two (blonde, older than past Bachelorettes), but the powerpoint soon explained why Baskin would be a much more interesting fit for the show.
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Baskin, without a doubt, has a cooler professional life. Sweetcaroline29 pointed out that while Crawley is a hairdresser, Baskin makes her living as the owner of the animal rescue organization Big Cat Rescue, which allows her to work with big cats and other animals. Though the "conservationist" nature of Baskin's organization is up for debate — many Tiger King fans don't really see the difference between what she does and what Exotic did at the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Memorial Park — no one can deny that watching a woman wrangle tigers and lions would definitely make for good television.
"the final 2 meeting the parents would just be two men introducing themselves to ligers and shit," sweetcaroline29 wrote in the Powerpoint. "how is that not something you would want to watch on your television?" Good point.
There's also an air of mystery around Baskin. In 1997, her husband Don Lewis vanished without a trace. Baskin claimed to know nothing about the details of his disappearance, but the world wasn't buying it back then and some, including Lewis' family, still aren't convinced that she had nothing to do with it. Most Bachelorettes have a squeaky clean past, and reddit is sure that casting a woman with such a shady history could really up the ante and the stakes of finding love. Any man brave enough to court Baskin and her penchant for sardine oil might have to contend with her husband Howard, but sweetcaroline29 doesn't really see that as a huge obstacle.
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"I don't see why Carole couldn't have two husbands," one user questioned in the reddit thread. "Joe did."
"I think Howard could take over the role of Chris Harrison," suggested another helpfully. "He’s been playing second fiddle to Tigers for years."
The internet clearly can't get enough of Baskin, and there's more tiger-themed content on the way. Her side of the story will soon be told in a developing limited series, and Saturday Night Live star Kate McKinnon will be portraying Baskin as well as executive-producing the project. At the end of the day, even if ABC isn't really seeing the big picture, Baskin is still getting her time in the spotlight.