Tiger Cage?

SAN ANGELO, TX –  According to Variety, Nicolas Cage will be taking on the role of Joseph Maldonado-Passage, better known as "Joe Exotic", the former Oklahoma zookeeper who is currently serving time behind bars for his part in orchestrating a failed murder-for-hire plot against his rival Carole Baskin.

The outlet notes that this will mark Cage’s first-ever incursion into the world of television, having previously won an Academy Award for his role in “Leaving Las Vegas” and even earning similar acclaims throughout his film career.

Although Cage will be helping executive produce the series through Saturn Films, it will not be based on Netflix’s hit documentary series, “Tiger King.” 

Reports state that Cage will star in an eight-episode limited series produced by Imagine Television Studios and CBS Television Studios. Cage will play as Joe Exotic in a storyline that focuses on Passage trying to keep his zoo at all costs, including his own sanity. The series will be based on the real-life story of the crazed subject of “Tiger King” and explain how he became lost in a false persona of his own making.

This isn’t the only scripted series based on the world of Joe Exotic currently in development. Emmy-winning “Saturday Night Live” alum Kate McKinnon is set to star in a different limited TV series that is currently in development at UCP based off the podcast “Over My Dead Body” by Wondery, which covers Passages' story in-depth in Season 2. McKinnon is set to star as Joe’s real-life arch-rival and CEO of BIg Cat Rescue Carol Baskin.