Joe Francis Says Women From Girls Gone Wild 'Victimized' Him, Doesn't Feel Bad for Them

Peacock's new docuseries, Girls Gone Wild: The Untold Story, explores how the world may have changed because of Girls Gone Wild, and how little its founder, Francis, has changed since the salacious series came to an end.

Francis sat down with the journalist Scaachi Koul for his first in-person interview in a decade -- though only on audio -- where, at one point, he's asked if he "feels bad" for the underage girls who were fueled with alcohol and pressured by his cameramen to film nude scenes.

His response: "No, because I don't believe they were victimized. They victimized me."

Francis appeared to be referring specifically to a judgement made in 2008 regarding a 2003 incident in which Girls Gone Wild crew filmed several women posing topless and engaging in sexual acts during spring break in Panama City, Florida. All four of the women turned out to be underage.

After they reported the incident to local police, officials put together a wide-ranging RICO case against Francis and his company the resulted in misdemeanor child abuse and prostitution charges. Francis pled no contest, but had previously pled guilty to similar charges, and would go on to face many more like them in the future.

When Koul reminded Francis that the women at the center of the 2008 case "were pretty young," and far too young to be held legally held accountable for their actions, he shot back alleging, "No, they were 17, just shy of 18. They were the ones that victimized us. I believe, we all believe, that they were put up by the Panama City police, and it was all an operation. So I believe that was quite orchestrated."

He added. "This is f--ked up. This happened in the United States, and it can happen to anyone. I walked into a f--king snake pit."

In fact, Francis thinks of himself as quite the martyr, adding that he thinks jealousy played a part in the demise of his business empire.

"I'm a businessman. I own a huge company. I'm charming and good-looking. I'm a totally normal guy. If you really want to boil the whole thing down, it comes down to jealousy," he noted. "Do you think they f--ked up or that they f--ked me? I'm June from The Handmaid's Tale. Jesus Christ, right. He was a heretic, right? Went around and said, 'I'm the son of God.' They killed the guy."

While Francis, who now lives in exile in Mexico due to an active warrant issued for his arrest in 2014, shared little remorse for his actions, several crew members from Girls Gone Wild's interviewed for the docuseries do feel bad for the part they played in using Francis' method of infiltrating spring break towns and exploiting young, drunk women.

When asked about the lasting impact of the series, Francis seemed proud of the effect it's had on society, telling Koul "it loosened everything up."

He continued, "I think it just made for a so much more fun generation, I think it created the ability to have, obviously, the Kardashians, and it did so much more. More, everything, more for society, for life."

Girls Gone Wild: The Untold Story is currently streaming on Peacock.