The Netflix docuseries Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness examines the business of
big cats in America.
The show also studies the wild lives of controversial animal activist Carole Baskin, and her nemesis,
Joe Exotic, the former owner of the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Oklahoma.
Also featured in the series are Joe's three husbands, including tattooed adonis, John
Finlay.
Finlay reportedly joined the zoo in 2003, when he was just 19-years-old.
John and Joe quickly fell in love and moved in together.
In 2013, Finlay and Joe began a polygamous relationship with a new staff member at the
zoo, 19-year-old Travis Maldonado.
Their complex relationship raises plenty of questions, but many fans simply want to know
why Joe Finlay is shirtless throughout Tiger King.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Tiger King's directors addressed the issue
of John Finlay's bare chest, explaining that the reason John was shirtless in so many shots
was because he reportedly wanted to show off his tattoos.
"I think he was very proud of his tattoos.
That's a big thing in that particular culture."
An anonymous source, however, told TMZ that going shirtless was the idea of one of the
producers, and John went with it.
One of John's many, many tattoos appears above his pelvis and reads,
"PRIVATELY OWNED JOE EXOTIC."
At the end of Tiger King, fans famously saw Finlay get this particular tattoo covered
up.
But according to TMZ, Finlay was upset with certain parts of his characterization in the
Netflix show, including the suggestion that his missing teeth could have been a side-effect
of meth use.
According to TMZ,
"[John] actually got his teeth redone in July 2019 all at once [...] they're dentures [...] and
he's a little miffed at Netflix and the filmmakers because they never showed it.
[...] Though John admits meth was a drug of choice for him in the doc, we're told his
teeth were messed up before that, due to genetic reasons."
TMZ reported that Finlay currently lives in central Oklahoma and works as a welder.
He is still engaged to Stormey, the woman viewers saw him with at the end of Tiger King.
Joe Exotic and John Finlay started out as two lovebirds, but over the course of their
relationship, things went from sweet to sour.
According to New York Magazine,
"[Finlay] began taking steroids at Joe’s behest, and became prone to attacks of rage.
On one occasion, he threw Joe into a wall hard enough to send him to the hospital."
Things reportedly came to a head in August 2014, when Finlay complained that Joe was
becoming too manipulative and controlling.
According to Texas Monthly, Finlay attacked Joe in the parking lot of the zoo, but there
are mixed reports about what happened next.
"I've seen a few fights."
Texas Monthly reported,
"[Finlay] was arrested and charged with assault and battery."
However, Oxygen reportedly spoke with a Garvin County Sheriff who told the outlet that there
was no record of an assault charge from that time.
The publication also reported that Joe filed for an order of protection against Finlay
in October 2014, but that was dismissed.
Meanwhile, the topic of cults frequently comes up throughout Tiger King.
While the theme seems to center around "Doc" Antle and his harem, people have also made
mention of Joe Exotic's ability to lure young, defenseless men, including John Finlay, into
his inner circle.
As New York Magazine noted,
"These young men mostly came from rough circumstances, and Joe believed he was giving them a good
home."
John Finlay's tattoos were really something of a spectacle in Tiger King, and anyone who
has binged the series will have noticed the slow camera work focusing on Finlay's body,
taking in all of his ink.
His most famous tattoo isn't the only one he got for his then-husband.
In addition to the numerous tattoos covering his entire torso, Finlay also had some ink
on his upper arm with a script reading,
"For my husband Joe."
"He showed me love, and I learned how big my heart was, and how much to care."
It certainly makes sense that Finlay went shirtless on camera to show off his impressive
collection of tattoos.
It's just a shame that Finlay's new dental work wasn't shown in the series because his
physical changes seem to symbolize the fact that he has now moved on from all things Joe
Exotic.
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