Joe Exotic's Husbands: Who Are They? Where Are They Now?
1 April 2020, 12:26 | Updated: 1 April 2020, 12:43
Joe Exotic spoke about several of his marriages in Netflix's Tiger King, but he didn't mention them all. Here's everything you need to know about his past and present relationships.
With the whole world self-isolating, to prevent the spread of coronavirus, there's only one thing that you could (and should) be doing - binge-watching Netflix's Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.
Joe Exotic - whose real name is Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage - became a star from the Netflix documentary, and has had many people asking about his relationships; some of which were documented in the series.
> Grab Our App For The Latest Tiger King News And Gossip
Here's everything you need to know about Joe's past and present husbands.
-
Brian Rhyne
Joe reportedly met Brian at the Round-up Saloon, a gay cowboy bar in Texas, where he worked as a security guard in the '80s.
According to a profile on the two by New York Magazine, the pair "grew to resemble each other," with matching mullets and horseshoe moustaches, after Brian moved in to Joe's trailer, with him.
Brian helped Joe open the zoo, but tragically passed away in 2001 due to HIV complications.
Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness | Official Trailer | Netflix
-
John Finlay
You may recognise John from the Netflix documentary as Joe's second husband, of whom he met in 2003, when Joe hired him - then 19-years-old - to help run his zoo.
In 2014, Joe married John (alongside Travis Michael Maldonado), in a three-way ceremony, but John wanted to be out of the relationship less than a year later, as he was set to marry a woman, and have a child with her.
John has now covered his tattoo tribute to Joe, which read "PRIVATELY OWNED BY JOE EXOTIC".
-
Travis Michael Maldonado
As previously mentioned, Travis married Joe and John Finlay in a three-way ceremony, after the 19-year-old began working at the zoo.
Travis sadly passed away in 2017, after he committed suicide in the zoo's gift shop, where he tried proving a point about how his pistol wouldn't fire without the magazine.
Joe shared a heartfelt tribute to Travis a year after his death on his Instagram, to his 183.5k followers.
-
Dillon Passage
Two months after Travis' death, Joe Exotic met Dillon Passage, after looking for new partners on dating apps, such as Grindr and Tinder.
When Dillon turned 22, he moved to Florida with Joe, where Joe Exotic became a dishwasher for a pirate-themed seafood restaurant.
According to reports, he is still married to Dillon.
Joe Exotic is still married to Dillon Passage. Picture: Instagram
