In case you haven't noticed, the hit Netflix docuseries Tiger King seems to be everywhere these days. Memes, gifs, and even some hardcore conspiracy theories abound about the show that seems to be all that anyone can talk about, as people binge the series while social-distancing. That is why we were floored (FLOORED) when we saw mom and photographer Jennifer Lyn Holmes' Tiger King-inspired photo shoot with her two kids Copelyn and Cavin.
Like many of us, Holmes watched the Netflix show and fell in love.
The mom of nine, who is pregnant with her 10th kiddo, tells CafeMom that it was instant love when she and her family sat down to watch the Netflix show.
"We were all watching it," she says. "My husband and I, and the four oldest kids."
She could tell by the looks on their faces that a Joe Exotic-inspired photo shoot "had to be!"
"Their reactions on their face were killing me!" she recalls. The busy mama is already creator of the YouTube channel Wes Jen Plus 10, and was ready to take on a new project.
"We loved the documentary … we are rednecks,” she told WKRN. “We have been quarantined way too long!”
That's when she got her brilliant idea.
Holmes says that she and her family are always doing "these kinds of things — we love doing iconic and funny films and shows."
Plus, she coincidentally had clipped hair extensions in 1-year-old Cavin's hair the day before "and he was running around with a mullet and we were all in stitches laughing."
And voila! The idea for a Joe Exotic photo shoot was born.
Luckily, Holmes didn't have to take on the challenge of capturing Joe's je ne sais quoiall by herself -- her family stepped up to the task too.
Together, the family worked to craft the perfect Joe Exotic costume worthy of the Tiger King himself.
"The kids actually spray-painted his black church shirt with silver and my son took the chains off his wallet so we could tie them around the tiger's neck," she explains.
And you'll never believe the truth about perfect Joe Exotic mustache.
"The beard and the belt and stuff are photoshopped so that was easy," she says.
Photoshop! Who knew?
But of course, there would be no Joe Exotic without his archnemesis -- Carole Baskin.
Overwhelmingly, the reactions to Holmes' photos have been ecstatic.
"Photoshoot goals," one commenter wrote on Facebook.
"If you haven’t already seen this LOL," wrote someone else after tagging a friend.
"I love this too much," wrote a third commenter. "Every child needs to do this for Halloween."
Although a few people were concerned about the gun Cavin's holding in one of the photos, Holmes assures us that it's a "plastic toy." A few people also have expressed concern about Cavin's look. "I’ve had people say that I’m going to turn my son gay," she explains.
Luckily, those pretty nasty reactions were few and far between. What matters most to the mom is that her pictures spreads smiles to the people who see them.
"At this point I just wanted to make people smile since there’s such a horrible energy going on in the planet right now," she explains.
But now for the tough question: Does Holmes believe that Carole Baskin killed her husband?
"Eff yes we do. That lady looks like the definition of a sociopath!" she jokes. "100 percent praying mantis."
