Tiger King zoo closes after reported animal welfare violations

Tiger King
(Image credit: Netflix)

Five months after Netflix's Tiger King debuted, the zoo from the wildly successful documentary series has closed to the public.

The Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park is closing "effective immediately" after its exhibitor license was suspended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, CNN reports.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

A Facebook post from the zoo claimed it had been the "target of every nutjob and animal rights loon in the world" following the release of Tiger King and that the USDA was making "false accusations" after having "folded to the pressures of PETA." PETA in a statement celebrated the fact that after this suspension, owner Jeff Lowe's "tiger-terrorizing days may soon be over."

The Facebook announcement also said that "our new park" will be "a private film set for Tiger King related television content for cable and streaming services," as Lowe evidently hopes the public's fascination with this bizarre cast of characters can be maintained for years to come.

Explore More
Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.