Joe Exotic has no regrets about appearing in Tiger King, husband Dillon Passage tells ET. "He knows how popular it is," the 24-year-old says. "He has guards showing him all the memes and he absolutely loved it. He's glad that his story's out there."
Joe Exotic, or Joseph Maldonado-Passage, hasn't watched the Netflix docuseries himself -- as he is currently serving a 22-year sentence in federal prison -- but his husband and friends have kept him in the know.
Recommended Videos
But there is one thing Passage hasn't yet told him is included in Tiger King.
"I feel like some things shouldn't have been shown in the docuseries, like Travis' accident in the office," Passage tells ET's Lauren Zima. In 2017, Joe's third husband, Travis Maldonado, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and the docuseries utilizes real surveillance footage from the accident showing a co-worker's reaction.
"I feel like that was very personal to Joe and that it was used for an emotional purpose and to get people more drawn in to the show," Passage explains. "I don't think that's fair to Travis. He probably would not have wanted that put all over the world... And I didn't tell [Joe] that it was in there. I feel like he's definitely gonna be upset about it, so it's best that he doesn't know."
That moment aside, Passage "really enjoyed" Tiger King. And unlike fellow docuseries subjects Doc Antle and Jeff Lowe, he believes the final product is "like 93 percent" accurate to real life and exactly what he was pitched by filmmakers Rebecca Chaiklin and Eric Goode.
"They were really honest with me from the get go. They said that the documentary was going to be about the big cat underworld so they wanted to see -- obviously -- about cub selling, cub petting and stuff like that," he says. "I don't feel taken advantage. Because they told Joe's story true as can be."
"Maybe they left out some of his more sensitive character aspects and kind of made him seem like more of an angry person who was yelling all the time," Passage adds. "But he was definitely a wild character and he was very outspoken and he wasn't scared to share his opinion. And I feel like they showed it."
RELATED CONTENT:
'Tiger King': What We Know About the Reported New Episode of the Docuseries
Why Doc Antle and Jeff Lowe Think Carole Baskin Is Responsible for Her 2nd Husband's Death
John Finlay Says 'Tiger King' Directors Made Him Look Like a 'Drugged-Out Hillbilly' (Exclusive)