Nicolas Cage to play 'Tiger King's' Joe Exotic in scripted TV series

American actor Nicolas Cage is set to star in a scripted series centred on Joe Exotic, the subject of the Netflix docuseries `Tiger King.`

According to Variety, the eight-episode series is being produced by Imagine Television Studios and CBS Television Studios. It will be taken to market in the coming days. The Netflix docuseries is based on the Texas Monthly article `Joe Exotic: A Dark Journey into the World of a Man Gone Wild,` by Leif Reigstad.

The story centres around Joe Schreibvogel, a.k.a Joe Exotic, an eccentric, exotic zookeeper in Oklahoma who fights to keep his park even at the risk of losing his sanity.

The series will live in the lion`s den with Joe, explore how he became Joe Exotic, and how he lost himself to a character of his own creation.This role marks the first regular television role in Cage`s career. The 56-year-old actor has long been praised for his film work, having won the Academy Award for best actor for `Leaving Las Vegas` and getting a nomination in the same category for `Adaptation.`He also recently lent his voice to the Oscar-winning animated film `Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse.`

His upcoming films include `The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent` and `Pig.`American actor Kate McKinnon is attached to star in and executive produces a series based on the Wondery podcast `Joe Exotic,` with McKinnon attached to play Carole Baskin.

That series hails from Universal Content Productions. According to sources, the studio is still seeking a writer for the project.

`Tiger King` dropped on March 20 and quickly became a media sensation. As per reports to the outlet - the series is estimated to have reached an audience of 34.3 million unique viewers in its first 10 days of availability, according to Nielsen data.