Kate McKinnon missed last weekend’s Saturday Night Live season premiere and will probably miss this weekend’s episode as she continues working on her Joe Exotic limited series. New photos of the Ghostbusters star on the project’s set surfaced on Friday, showing McKinnon in full Carole Baskin costume. The Peacock series is based on the Wonderly podcast about Joseph Moldonado-Passage, who was also the subject of Netflix’s hit Tiger King documentary series.
The new photo, published by Entertainment Tonight, shows McKinnon wearing long blonde hair and a printed shirt to mimic Baskin’s familiar look. Kyle MacLachlan, who stars as Baskin’s husband Howard Baskin, could also be seen in full makeup behind her. McKinnon is an executive producer on the project, which was created by Etan Frankel (Shameless, Friday Night Lights).
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Joe Exotic will only be available on NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming platform since the company reversed its decision to also air the show on NBC and USA Network. The all-star cast includes John Cameron Mitchell as Joe Exotic, Dean Winters as Jeff Lowe, Nat Wolff as Travis Maldonado, and William Fitchner as Rick Kirkham. It is based on Robert Moor’s Joe Exotic: Tiger King podcast, which included many details Netflix’s Tiger King missed.
“Our adaptation is gonna be much more personal,” Mitchell told Entertainment Tonight in May. “You really get to see them in their lives, with their lovers, so you get more of the emotional, human side as well as the absurd, you know, American insanity that they represent.” Mitchell, who recently starred in Hulu’s Shrill, said the show’s creative team is “not going for just schtick… they’re going for the real people.”
While it might seem that Tiger King fever has long since died down, Netflix is hoping to reignite interest in Exotic’s story. The streamer finally ordered a second season last month. The real Baskin is not happy about the idea and hopes filmmakers Rebecca Chaiklin and Eric Goode “lose my number.” She was not a fan of the original series, which included a whole episode focused on Exotic’s claim that she killed her second husband, allegations she has denied. As for the real Exotic, he is still in prison after he was convicted on federal animal abuse charges and two counts of attempted murder for hire for his plot to kill Baskin.ย
