Despite his 22 year prison sentence for plotting a murder, Joe Exotic‘s husband Dillon Passage, 22, is sticking by his side. “I do love Joe, he’s been there for me through my darkest times,” the Tiger King star spilled to Andy Cohen on Sirius XM’s Radio Andy on Wednesday, April 1. “I’m not just going to dip out and abandon him when he needs me most,” Dillon added. Joe landed in prison after being convicted on two counts of murder for hire pertaining to Big Cat Rescue founder Carole Baskin, in addition to 17 federal charges of animal abuse.
“I am very loyal to Joe. I am loyal to Joe,” Dillon confirmed after Andy asked if he was remaining faithful while Joe is imprisoned. “You’re very LOYAL to Joe…in that phone call in the car, it sounds like you guys were talking about how hard it is to stay loyal, in a way,” Andy’s co-host John Hill then pushed. Dillon once again maintained that his husband is his top priority, adding: “[Joe] doesn’t want me to leave. And I have no intention of leaving. I’ve reassured him of that for the past year and a half.” True love always prevails!
Joe has also expressed concern around Dillon’s lack of companionship since beginning his prison sentence in 2019. “He doesn’t want me to be alone, but he also doesn’t want me to move on, if that makes sense.” While the situation is difficult for both parties, Dillon didn’t decline the possibility of an open relationship! “It’s a complicated situation…let’s move on,” Dillon laughed.
The Austin, Texas native is 57-year-old born Joseph “Joe Exotic” Maldonado-Passage’s fourth husband after the late Brian Rhyne, the late Travis Maldonado, and ex John Finlay — who was also featured prominently in the docuseries. “He was just super sweet to me and he just came off as very genuine. A very down to earth guy. And very charismatic,” Dillion recalled after his first in-person meeting with Joe at a karaoke bar. The pair married just two weeks later. “We definitely jumped the gun, but I’m not ashamed of it whatsoever….My mom was shocked at first, ‘he’s as old as me — we’re the same age.’ I was like, ‘yeah, well, it’s just kind of the situation that it is.’ They were cool with it,” the cat lover added.