Happy Ru year!
“Ru Paul’s Drag Race” is bringing its charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent to even more countries in 2023 — and to a new U.S. network.
On Monday, producers of the multi-Emmy-winning reality TV show announced yet another global expansion of the massively popular show unveiling plans for three new international spinoffs.
The celebrated franchise — which has won a whopping 27 Emmy Awards — will soon come to MTV and Paramount+ in Brazil, Germany and Mexico.
They will join an ever-growing list of international versions, which include the U.K., Italy, Spain, France, “Down Under” (featuring contestants from Australia and New Zealand) and Canada. The latter recently made headlines for featuring a very special guest star: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
As part of its plans for total global drag domination, the show’s production company, World of Wonder, also announced the first-ever “Drag Race Global All-Stars,” a spinoff that will bring together fan favorites from across the international franchises.
Additionally, the spinoff “RuPaul’s Secret Celebrity Drag Race” has been renewed for a third season on VH1. In the “Masked Singer”-style show, celebrities can win $100,000 for their favorite charity after undergoing a complete drag transformation and winning an epic lip-sync showdown.
“Drag Race is about universal themes of love, self-expression, and acceptance — and there has never been a more important time than now for these ideas to be expressed internationally,” Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, CEOs of World of Wonder, said in a joint statement.
“We are honored to continue our mission to showcase the artistry of drag in different languages, and cultures around the world,” they added.
The announcement comes just weeks ahead of the new season of the U.S. version of “Drag Race,” which heads to MTV from VH1, where it has aired since 2017. (THe show ran on Logo TV from its low-budget Season 1 until Season 8, which concluded in 2016.)
“I want my MTV!” the show tweeted Monday afternoon. “We’re revving our engines for the BIGGEST season of #DragRace yet.”
Season 15 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” premieres on MTV Friday, Jan. 6, at 8 p.m. ET.
———
