Drag Race (franchise)

Drag Race is a drag queen reality competition television franchise, created by American drag entertainer RuPaul with production company World of Wonder. The franchise originated with RuPaul's Drag Race, which premiered in the United States in 2009. The objective of that series is to crown "America's Next Drag Superstar" who possesses the traits of "charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent". The original series is often credited for bringing drag into the "mainstream". The popularity of the original series led to the creation of a media franchise including spin-offs and international adaptations.

, the original series, RuPaul's Drag Race, has produced sixteen seasons and inspired the spin-off shows RuPaul's Drag U, RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race, and RuPaul's Drag Race Global All Stars; the companion series RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked; and numerous international adaptations including British and Australian and New Zealand versions hosted by RuPaul as well as Chilean, Thai, Canadian, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, French, Filipino, Belgian, Swedish, Mexican, Brazilian, and German editions and international vs. the World competitions hosted in The United Kingdom and Canada.

Three drag fan conventions have also been created: RuPaul's DragCon LA, RuPaul's DragCon NYC, and RuPaul's DragCon UK.

Premiering on Logo TV
In mid-2008, it was revealed that RuPaul had begun producing a new reality television game show. The show was pitched to Logo and they immediately picked the show up for a season, which aired in February 2009, where it was devised as a replacement for Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World (2007–2009). In preparation for the new series, RuPaul made guest appearances on several shows in 2008, including as a guest judge on season five, episode six of Project Runway and as a guest chef on Paula's Party. RuPaul revealed that the show's intent was to find a winner possessing the traits of "charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent". RuPaul has stated that the show looks for an entertainer who can stand out from the rest. The series premiered on February 2, 2009. The winner of the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race and its franchise is BeBe Zahara Benet.

All Stars spin-off and VH1 movement
In March 2012, it was announced that an "all-stars" spin-off from the original show was set to premiere in late 2012 through Logo (which later moved to VH1, then onto Paramount+). It was announced as RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, and the winner for the first season was Chad Michaels.

RuPaul's Drag Race was the first international edition of the franchise to be produced and broadcast. The program proved a success for Logo and additionally moved to a higher profile channel: VH1, for their ninth season. However, the reality show remained to air on Logo. In November 2017, World of Wonder launched their subscription streaming service WOW Presents Plus. The service provides access to its exclusive library of the Drag Race franchise, and web series from WOWPresents' YouTube channel.

2018–present: International expansion of Drag Race
In February 2018, it was announced that a Thai adaptation of RuPaul's Drag Race was set to premiere in Thailand. The Kantana Group licensed the reality competition series. The show was named as Drag Race Thailand with its judges and co-hosts: Art Arya and Pangina Heals. The first season winner for Drag Race Thailand was Natalia Pliacam.

From 2020 to 2022, seven international adaptations of RuPaul's Drag Race were revealed and premiered. In North America, a Canadian adaptation premiered on July 2, 2020. In Europe, four adaptations premiered from the Netherlands and France. In Australia, RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under premiered on May 1, 2021, with RuPaul, Michelle Visage, and Rhys Nicholson judging.

British Broadcasting Corporation
In June 2018, the franchise producers hinted that a British adaptation of the series was in the works. It was later confirmed that creators had a meeting with the BBC and that "something is coming, be afraid – be very afraid. Nothing’s impossible." A year later, the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race UK was set to premiere through BBC Three. RuPaul and Michelle Visage continued to be the main judges of the British adaptation, with Alan Carr and Graham Norton as recurring judges.

In December 2021, a press release by the BBC announced an upcoming "international all-stars" series involving the British adaptation. The first season of RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World premiered on February 1, 2022.

Atresmedia Televisión
In November 2020, a collaboration was made between production companies World of Wonder and Atresmedia, in collaboration with Buendía Estudios. In February 2021, the series was confirmed to be hosted by Supremme de Luxe. The first season of Drag Race España premiered through Atresplayer, which marks the seventh international adaptation of the American reality competition series.

In September 2022, the Spanish adaptation opened a casting call for its third season and also announced that a Spanish adaption of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars was in the works.

Discovery Plus
In 2021, casting occurred with production starting in the summertime. The first season of Drag Race Italia premiered through Discovery+, with Priscilla as the host and head judge of the series. A second season was renewed and premiered in October 2022.

In August 2021, a casting call was made for an upcoming Philippine adaptation of the franchise. In early 2022, it announced that Paolo Ballesteros would serve as the host, alongside Jiggly Caliente and KaladKaren as permanent judges of the series. Drag Race Philippines premiered on August 17, through Discovery+. This marked the tenth international adaptation of the American reality competition series.

Both franchise adaptations no longer premiere on this streaming service.

MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Global
In February 2021, after three seasons of airing the "all-stars" spin-off of the United States in VH1, Paramount Global decided to move the series to Paramount+. The sixth season aired on June 24, 2021.

In August 2022, the production company behind RuPaul's Drag Race announced three casting calls on social media, taking place in Brazil, Germany, and Mexico. Many fans suspected the casting calls were for new potential Drag Race adaptations. In December, Deadline Hollywood confirmed the casting calls were for the Drag Race franchise. They also announced that World of Wonder partnered with MTV Entertainment Studios to premiere the new adaptations "on MTV/Paramount+ in their respective territories." With this partnership, they moved the American series to MTV from VH1; starting with season fifteen.

After two seasons premiering on Discovery+, the Italian adaptation was picked for a third season by Paramount Global and is set to premiere on Paramount+. Casting calls were set up in March 2023. The third season is set to premiere on October 13, with former judge Tommaso Zorzi being replaced by Paola Iezzi and Paolo Camilli.

O4 Media
In November 2022, Entertainment Weekly reported that production companies World of Wonder and O4 Media partnered to develop more adaptations of the Drag Race franchise. The franchise will set to expand throughout the Asian continent, such as India, Japan, Singapore, and South Korea. The expansion also includes a new season of Drag Race Thailand and an Asian adaptation of RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race will be picked up from the partnership.

Other media
At RuPaul's DragCon NYC, it was announced that a Las Vegas residency was set to play on January 26, 2020, starring its Drag Race alumni. RuPaul's Drag Race Live! features a mix of original music, lip syncs, comedy, and dance numbers directed by RuPaul and choreographed by Drag Race resident choreographer Jamal Sims. On July 26, 2020, a six-part documentary series called: RuPaul's Drag Race: Vegas Revue, was announced and premiered on August 21, 2020.

Competitive
"All Stars" spin-off competitions feature former contestants: RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars premiered in 2012, and Drag Race España All Stars premiered in 2024.

International spin-off competitions include RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World and Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs. the World, which debuted in February and November 2022, respectively.

RuPaul's Drag U premiered in 2010 and saw drag "professors" give makeovers to "student" members of the public. RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race debuted in 2020 and features celebrities.