Tiger King star Joe Exotic is involved in a bizarre legal dispute with the BBC and is threatening to sue the corporation.
His legal drama is not prompted by how he was portrayed in Louis Theroux’s BBC 2 doc Shooting Joe Exotic, but over his music.
The livid reality star claims that the Beeb used his song Here Kitty Kitty, which mocked his nemesis Carole Baskin, without permission.
He is represented by top entertainment lawyer Brad Small from major US law firm Fox Rothschild.
Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Mr Small said Exotic, 58, is taking the legal steps against the BBC as it did not get a “master and synchronized licence” for the use of the song.
Mr Small said: “They are looking into it. Joe is unhappy about this because he is not getting the money.
“I am confident we will get a resolution by the end of the year."
Exotic owns the copyright to the tune, which was used on the original Netflix Tiger King series in spring 2020.
The gun-loving former zoo owner is jailed in Fort Worth Prison, Texas, for plotting to murder campaigner Ms Baskin and animal endangerment – which he is trying to get reversed in the courts.
A BBC spokesman said: “BBC Studios respects all intellectual property rights and we have already been in touch with Mr Small.”
He said a short snippet of the song was used in the UK version of Louis Therous Shooting Joe exotic but not in the US version.
A new series of Tiger King is to be released in November. While Exotic was “p****d off” about the narrative, Mr Small said they hope it highlights the "fight for injustice over what happened to Joe”.
Lawyer Small has spent the last year protecting Exotic's commercial brand and image, which he says is being "exploited by many companies."
Small also helped negotiate the deal for Exotic's memoir with leading publisher Simon And Schuster, which is released on November 2.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/tiger-king-star-joe-exotic-25145962