A great many memes have emerged referencing the colourful personalities appearing over the course of the story, as well as the
Serial Escalation of insanity that seems to take place with each episode. The fact that the show aired in 2020 which suffers from its own brand of
Serial Escalation has likely added some
Reality Subtext to these memes, with one particular joke suggesting that if 2020 was a show, it would be Tiger King.
- Carole Baskin murdered Don Lewis.Explanation Many viewers believe that Baskin is responsible for the disappearance and death of Don Lewis, given his fortune, the restraining order he filed against her, accounts from his family members, and Baskin mentioning that if you wanted someone to die in a tiger cage, you should put sardine oil on them. Many memes joke about the tigers eagerly awaiting their next big meal whenever Carole and Howard get into an argument.
- "Hey all you cool cats and kittens!"Explanation Carole's Catchphrase, which she uses as an intro for her videos. Many fans have adopted the catchphrase for themselves, while others follow it up with a joke relating to the (possible) murder of Don Lewis.
- This photo
◊ from Carole and Howard Baskin's wedding, which features the latter dressed as a caveman on a leash, has spawned many jokes due to the cringeworthy nature of the image. Others joke that it's somehow one of the less insane things in the docuseries. - Joe Exotic's song "I Saw A Tiger" has achieved meme status due to its surprising catchiness and overall ridiculousness.
- "Here, Kitty Kitty," a song alleging Carole Baskin killed her husband and fed his body to tigers, has achieved a similar reputation. It was even covered by The Offspring.
- The footage of James Garretson riding a jet ski is memetic due to how out-of-place it is, as well as the scene's inherent humorousness.
- Jokes about straight men turning gay thanks to meth and tigers, in reference to how Joe Exotic got otherwise heterosexual men to enter homosexual relationships with him, are not uncommon.
- "I'm never going to financially recover from this"Explanation Joe's comment after Saff gets his arm mauled by a tiger due to its sheer callousness has reached meme-worthy levels of repetition, with many people saying it as an overreaction to a relatively small purchase or a poor investment.
- Referring to Carole Baskin as "That bitch Carole Baskin!" or "Carole fucking Baskin!" in a similar manner to how Joe does.
- "Guess what motherfucker!"Explanation A meme-worthy line said by Joe Exotic, often used when surprising people.
- "I don't fuckin' care."Explanation Erik bluntly shutting down the line of questioning after a sequence of several interview subjects gossiping about Antle's multiple girlfriends has become a popular reaction image.
- Solely based on the title, there are many jokes about the show being a rip-off of The Lion King.
- Similarly, there were several people who joked that Joe Exotic is just Calvin as a grown-up or have him and Hobbes re-enact the show.
- An offhand comment in the 2nd episode about how one can buy a tiger for just $2,000 sparked numerous jokes, including the idea that two friends could combine their stimulus checks and get a pet tiger.
- "You god damn son of a bitch!" Explanation Another highly quotable line of Joe's, this one coming from a screencap◊ where he's being tackled from behind by a tiger. Accordingly, usually used for nasty surprises.
- "3000 dollar hitman" Explanation The absurdly low price Allen Glover is paid to assassinate Carole, which even the docuseries mentions is a few zeroes short of what any proper hitman would demand. The fact that Glover said Screw This, I'm Outta Here and just took the money makes it even more absurd.
- "Tiger King was so insane that by the time this guy pulled up with a skeleton riding shotgun, I didn't even blink and the show didn't feel the need to explain it." Explanation An Audience Reaction to one of the stranger moments in the series where John Reinke shows up in a souped-up car with a skeleton riding shotgun. The fact that it receives no explanation or attention only serves to highlight just how weird the show got by that point.
- "Fuck the Feds." Explanation A quote from Joshua Dial, a devout libertarian, on how he feels about cooperating with a federal investigation. It's popular amongst people who both agree with the sentiment and those who wonder about the wisdom of saying such a thing whilst cooperating with a federal investigation.
