SA-born YouTuber pranks Carole Baskin into doing her first interview since ‘Tiger King’

After Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness swept the globe and became one of the most popular true-crime series to air on Netflix, a South African-born YouTuber tricked one of its main characters, Carole Baskin, into doing her first interview since its release.

According to Mashable, the Big Cat Rescue founder joined a Zoom call believing she was being interviewed by the tonight show host, Jimmy Fallon to promote her animal sanctuary. But instead, she was talking to two YouTubers who had tricked her into thinking she was speaking with Fallon by posing as a casting company and playing sound bites of Fallon’s voice. 

The pranksters

South African-born YouTuber, Josh Pieters and comedian, Archie Manners, are the self-styled pranksters behind the fake interview. They’ve tricked other minor celebrities before by posing as talk show hosts. Their most recent prank saw the two fly Katie Hopkins to Prague to receive a fake award. But the Baskin interview is said to be extra notable since she has been so private since Tiger King debuted. 

In the “exclusive”, Baskin tells the fake “casting company” she’s doing the interview “for the cats,” and uses it to promote the Big Cat Public Safety Act, potential legislation intended to stop the breeding of big cats in captivity. She only agreed to the interview if Tiger King and the ensuing controversy wouldn’t be mentioned. She said her daughter her convinced her to talk to Fallon.

After the interview, Baskin told US Weekly she knew something was up – and she wasn’t angry about the interview.

“I was suspicious as we were doing it because the questions appeared taped. But had no idea it would turn out to be such a fun prank,” she said. “It gave us a very welcome good laugh. I appreciate their cleverness and that they created their video in a way that I don’t feel was in any way mean-spirited.”

Carole Baskin and Tiger King

It is said that Baskin, who is shown as the nemesis of Tiger King‘s main subject, Joe Exotic, has criticized the show for her portrayal. The former zoo owner and tiger breeder is currently serving a prison term for hiring a hitman to kill Baskin.

Baskin may run an animal sanctuary, but the documentary doesn’t paint her as a saint. It airs concerns about her animal habitats and chronicles her ex-husband’s disappearance in 1997.

Local police never accused Baskin of wrongdoing, but her ex’s family and friends suggest foul play (and that she fed him to her tigers). She denies it all.

Also read: Tiger King: Netflix confirms extra episode of runaway hit