Why everyone's confused about Joe Exotic having coronavirus

Thanks to a combination of being both a brilliant documentary and released during a pandemic that’s confined everyone to their homes, the fever surrounding Netflix’s Tiger King shows no sign of abating.

Especially as those involved in the show are now giving their sides of the story and spilling more details.

In recent weeks, we learned that Joe Exotic’s employee Saf – potentially the only sympathetic protagonist to appear in the show – was misgendered by Joe throughout filming and is actually a trans man.

And that Joe didn’t actually write or sing any of the many entertaining songs he’s seen performing during the series.

Also that Joe is “categorically racist”.

(Which is why it wasn’t a surprise to see a video resurface of him complaining about not being able to use the “N-word”.)

Last we heard from Joe himself, he was in quarantine in the Texan prison where he’s serving a 22-year sentence.

But the Mirror now reports – via television station KFDX-TV – that Exotic has tested positive for Covid-19 and been transferred to a hospital.

However, the report later was updated to say he’s been “transferred” to quarantine after multiple inmates were diagnosed with the virus.

Which is… what we already knew.

So what’s the truth?

Either way, the internet has reacted.

Some knew exactly where Joe would lay blame.

Some saw it as a beautiful meeting of headlines.

And others imagined how impenetrable the concept would have been just a year ago.