Tiger King 2 ending explained – will Joe be released?
The Netflix documentary's second season ended with a whole load of drama – here's a summary of everything that went down in the big cat world.
True crime docuseries Tiger King returned today with its second season on Netflix, and if you've already binged all five episodes, you'll know that the series ends with a pretty explosive episode.
From an update on Joe Exotic's appeal to the arrest of Wildlife in Need's Tim Stark, the season two finale proves to be quite dramatic and since it's jam-packed with information and revelations, it can be hard to keep track of everything that has happened.
Not to fear – we've broken it all down for you with this handy guide to the ending of Tiger King 2.
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Will Joe Exotic be released from prison?
Currently, no – but the chances of Joe Exotic getting a new trial are looking better by the end of Tiger King 2.
In the last episode, Jeff Lowe – who was a police informant in the investigation into Exotic's murder-for-hire plot against Baskin – and Allen Glover, who was hired as a hitman by Exotic, decided to co-operate with Exotic's lawyer John Phillips.
They offered to provide evidence that would "help Joe", with Lowe telling Phillips that he had "saved everything" from the investigation.
As seen in the documentary, Lowe signs an affidavit recanting his statements about Joe's involvement in the murder-for-hire plot against Baskin, with Lowe's wife Lauren saying in a vlog: "We're here to meet with John Phillips. We are signing affidavits and we're Team Joe now."
Meanwhile, Allen Glover records an affidavit in which he admits to plotting to kill Joe Exotic "to clear him away from the property so Jeff could take it over".
At the end of Tiger King 2, the documentary states that Exotic is "currently awaiting re-sentencing as his attorneys work to get him released".
Meanwhile, Lowe "declined to comment on the allegations made against him in Allen Glover's sworn affidavit".
As for Exotic's personal life, he reveals that he had separated from his husband Dillon Passage and had found a new boyfriend online whilst in prison.
What happens to Tim Stark?
Tim Stark features more prominently in Tiger King 2, with the docuseries following him as he takes over Joe Exotic's GW Zoo with Jeff Lowe, following the incarceration of Exotic.
However, the two subsequently fall out over the restoration of the zoo and Lowe kicks him off of the property.
After several former Wildlife in Need volunteers became whistleblowers about the conditions in his zoo and Stark's practices of declawing his animals, a temporary injunction was filed against the zoo after PETA claimed that it violated the Endangered Species Act.
Last year, the State of Indiana Superior Court granted a motion for the removal of any animals in Stark's zoo, after which the police issued an arrest warrant for Stark, who subsequently went on the run.
Eventually in October 2020, Stark was found and arrested in New York.
What happens to Jeff Lowe?
In October 2020, the Department of Agriculture suspended Jeff Lowe's zoo owner licence after they conducted a routine inspection of the zoo and found flystrike – a condition where flesh-eating maggots latch onto an animal's body – affecting the animals, as reported in National Geographic.
After being sued by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and PETA, federal agents seized 68 big cats among other animals from his Thackerville facility.
In June 2021, Lowe and his wife Lauren were both arrested for driving under the influence as seen in the documentary and reported by People at the time.
They then began working with Exotic's lawyer John Phillips to provide evidence to assist his appeal.
What happens to Carole Baskin?
While the docuseries doesn't feature any new interviews with Carole Baskin (as she declined to take part in season two), we learn in the last episode that Baskin takes over the GW Zoo (as per her lawsuit against Exotic) and decides to sell the property, but puts into the contract that the new owner can't house exotic animals.
"Time to take away the last vestiges, last sign that there was a GW Zoo here," Howard Baskin says in a social media video of him removing the GW sign from the property.
Tiger King 2 is available to stream on Netflix. You can also check out the best best series on Netflix and best movies on Netflix to keep you entertained or visit to our TV guide for more to watch.
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