The 'James Garretson on a Jet Ski' meme originates from the 2020 Netflix documentary series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness. In a particularly jarring and cinematic transition, James Garretson—the informant who helped the FBI build a case against Joe Exotic—is shown riding a jet ski across a lake while rocking out. Internet users quickly latched onto the footage for its unintentional humor and bizarre aesthetic, using it to represent someone making a smooth exit from a chaotic situation or confidently ignoring their own involvement in a mess. It has since become the ultimate 'cool exit' template for everything from workplace drama to social media debates.