Joe Francis was born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Raymond and Maria Francis. His mother was from Austria.

Francis's family moved to Newport Beach, California, when he was seven years old. He attended Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Elementary School and later a series of boarding schools. He also lived in Laguna Beach and attended Laguna Beach High School.

Francis graduated from the University of Southern California's Business Administration program, concentrating at the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies. He also took film and television courses.

Francis worked as a production assistant on the syndicated program Real TV.

Francis created the Girls Gone Wild franchise, using direct-response marketing to sell videos of college-aged women exposing themselves or acting wildly on camera.

Francis released the direct-to-video film Banned from Television, which featured graphic footage of accidents, crimes, and other incidents. Two sequels were released in the same year.

Girls Gone Wild made more than $20 million in its first two years.

By this year, Francis had produced 83 different titles within the Girls Gone Wild series and was airing 30-minute infomercials on major U.S. networks.

Officials in Panama City Beach, Florida, attempted to halt Girls Gone Wild from filming, prompting Francis to sue them for violating his First Amendment rights. He was also arrested for racketeering but released on bond.

Riley Perez broke into Francis' home and filmed a blackmail video, forcing Francis to disrobe on camera.

Girls Gone Wild planned to donate 100% of the gross sales of their Mardi Gras-themed DVDs to the Red Cross to help victims of Hurricane Katrina.

At a hearing, the judge disallowed most of the evidence and in January 2007 dismissed most of the charges against Francis. Francis pleaded guilty to record-keeping violations, was fined $1.6 million, and sentenced to community service.

Francis pleaded guilty for having contraband in his cell. He served 339 days and paid over $60,000 in fines.

Francis was indicted by a grand jury for two counts of tax evasion in Reno, Nevada. The Department of Justice alleged that Francis claimed over $20 million in false deductions on his corporate returns in 2002 and 2003.

Ashley Alexandra Dupré alleged that Francis and his company filmed her without permission, but she dropped her lawsuit after Francis released footage proving her consent.

The venue for Francis's tax evasion trial was changed to the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

At a hearing, Francis pleaded not guilty to tax evasion. His attorney said that tax returns for the businesses were prepared and filed by a former accountant and not shown to Francis.

Francis pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of filing a false return and bribery and received credit for time served.

U.S. District Judge S. James Otero accepted Francis's plea including $250,000 in restitution to the IRS.

Francis brought a group of three women to his home, leading to five charges: three misdemeanor counts of false imprisonment, one of assault causing great bodily injury, and one of dissuading a witness.

Abbey Wilson won the franchise's "Search for the Hottest Girl in America" contest.

Clark County, Nevada, judge Mark Denton awarded $7.5 million to businessman Steve Wynn for defamatory statements made by Francis.

Judge Joanne O'Donnell reduced Wynn's award to $19 million, reasoning that the jury's decision was "speculative" and formed based on their dislike of Francis.

Wilson's iPad, containing private sexual videos of Francis and Wilson, was stolen. His lawyer threatened prosecution to prevent distribution of the video.

GGW Brands, the parent company for the Girls Gone Wild entertainment brand, filed for bankruptcy to block Wynn Resorts from seizing the assets of the company for repayment of Francis's gambling debts.

Francis was convicted on all five charges related to imprisoning three women at his home.

Francis gave an interview to The Hollywood Reporter, in which he criticized the jurors. He later apologized for his remarks.

Francis was sentenced to serve at least 270 days in county jail, 36 months' probation, and was ordered to complete a Level 3 Anger Management course and a year of psychological counseling.

Wilson became pregnant with twins via in vitro fertilization.

Wilson gave birth to two girls.

Francis fled the United States and has lived at his residence in Punta Mita, Nayarit, Mexico, ever since, attempting to avoid extradition.

Francis pleaded no contest to child abuse and prostitution charges stemming from the filming of underage girls during taping of the Girls Gone Wild series in Panama City, Florida. He was sentenced to 336 days in jail but did not serve additional time due to time previously served.

A U.S. District Court judge issued an arrest warrant for Francis after he failed to comply with terms of his bankruptcy agreement.

Francis and Abbey Wilson separated, and have since been engaged in a legal battle over the custody of their two daughters.

Journalist Scaachi Koul interviewed Francis for nine hours at his Casa Aramara residency in Punta Mita, Mexico, as part of her investigation into Girls Gone Wild.

An episode of the TNT true crime anthology series Rich & Shameless called Girls Gone Wild Exposed aired on TNT and featured accounts from alleged victims of Joe Francis, as well as a recorded verbal altercation between Francis and his wife.

As of this date, Francis lives outside the United States, where he faces mounting legal troubles. He has lived regularly in Mexico since 2015.

The three episode documentary series Girls Gone Wild: The Untold Story, which detailed Koul's investigation of Francis and Girls Gone Wild, became available to stream on Peacock.