Hey there, cats and kittens, you gotta see this impression of the 'Tiger King' star!
Hey there, cats and kittens, you've gotta see this Carole Baskin impression!
Along with the rest of the stars of the new Netflix true-crime hit, Tiger King, Big Cat Rescue founder and CEO Carole Baskin has become a cult icon, with debates over her feud with Joe Exotic, her management of her own animal sanctuary and her culpability in the death of husband Don Lewis raging online as viewers binge the series.
While Kate McKinnon is currently slated to play the flower crown-wearing cat lover in an upcoming television series, it's another Saturday Night Live star who's currently drawing attention for her Baskin impression. Chloe Fineman, who joined SNL as a featured player in its current 45th season, shared her impersonation on Instagram, via a video post and several Instagram stories.
"Hey all you cool cats and kittens, it's Carole Baskin," Fineman says in the clip, donning a wavy blonde wig and bejeweled headband. "Just took a kitty cat ride around my kitty cat meow meow kitty cat lake, and I just want to thank everybody for being a support of the big cat kitty cat rescue."
Fineman's spot-on vocal impression of Baskin drew thousands of viewers and commenters to her video, including Gwyneth Paltrow, who called it "genius," and Mandy Moore, who said she was "Dead!!!!!" at the impersonation. She also received praise from Emma Roberts, King Princess, Julia Garner and more.
Baskin herself spoke out this week, both to denounce her portrayal in Tiger King as "disappointing" and "salacious" and offer a word of caution to McKinnon about her upcoming scripted series, which is adapted from the Over My Dead Body podcast.
"Big Cat Rescue implores Kate McKinnon to not use real big cats and cubs in the making of her series," read a statement issued by Baskin. "The Wondery podcast, which is the basis for her series, explores the rampant breeding, abuse and exploitation of big cats by breeder and exhibitor Joe Exotic. It would be cruel to use real big cats in a television series about cruelty to big cats."
"We urge McKinnon to utilize computer-generated imagery (CGI) of cats in the show rather than forcing real big cats to suffer just to entertain the audience," the statement continued. "We hope McKinnon has a passion for animals and that her series will focus on the horrible lives captive big cats lead when exploited by breeders like Joe Exotic. We further hope she urges the public to support the Big Cat Public Safety Act that would end the cub petting abuse in America."
Tiger King is streaming now on Netflix. See more in the video below.
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