Uh-oh, there seems to be a bit of trouble in drag paradise. Today, Aug. 17, RuPaul announced that casting for the upcoming series “Drag Race Philippines” is now open. While RPDR fans rejoiced, it wasn’t lost on them that the announcement came after “Drag Den Philippines’” call for auditions on Aug. 15. The question on a lot of people’s minds today is this: How is Manila Luzon doing?
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In the announcement for “Drag Race PHL,” which will be available for streaming on Wow Presents Plus, RuPaul said, “Calling all queens. If you think you have what it takes to become the first ‘Drag Race’ superstar from the Philippines, we wanna hear from you. Show us your charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent, and this could be the beginning of the rest of your life.”
In the caption for the post, there was an emphasis on “First Drag Superstar” (capitalization not ours) and some fans felt like it was a tad shady, considering “Drag Den” was announced and will possibly air first. No word yet on when both shows will be coming to our screens. Interestingly, Manila Luzon has talked about how she wanted to discuss a local “Drag Race” franchise with RuPaul before. “You know, I don’t call the shots on that. But I will text Ms. RuPaul and see. Perhaps she will answer one of my DMs. I will let you know as soon as I get any information,” she said in a video conference.
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So how did RPDR alum and “Drag Den” host Manila Luzon react to the news? Her name trended as fans made memes out of the sitch. Some speculated that it must have felt like another elimination. Others stated she was robbed yet again. One fan raised that she might not have been the best fit as “Drag Race PHL” host since her humor might be different from that of local queens’. You can watch her casting call announcement, a parody of the Lyn from Las Vegas viral video, to judge for yourself.
Manila Luzon getting eliminated again after the announcement of Rupaul’s Drag Race PH Franchise 🤦🏻♂️😂 pic.twitter.com/2wAV5ccN1T
— 𝖒𝖆𝖗𝖈𝖚𝖘🧣 (@BayaniMark_) August 16, 2021
Manila Luzon's reaction after watching Rupaul announce Drag Race Philippines #DragRacePHL pic.twitter.com/eEj9YLMqe3
— 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞 🌈🌻 (@pattiechoo) August 16, 2021
Possibly hot take: While Manila Luzon is a great Drag Queen, I really don’t think she’d be a great host for Drag Race Philippines. I can already see our brand of humor going over her head.
— Patroclus (@Miguelshmiguel) August 16, 2021
In reality though, Manila Luzon seems to have taken the news in stride. She kept it classy with this reaction befitting a true queen. She tweeted, “This is MAJOR! The Philippines is going to have TWO drag reality shows on TV!”
This is MAJOR! The Philippines is going to have TWO drag reality shows on TV! 🇵🇭❤️ @dragdenph & @dragraceph pic.twitter.com/EtWWS5TsId
— Manila Luzon (@manilaluzon) August 16, 2021
With or without beef, we can’t wait to find out the shows’ casts and how they will differ. Will any of our dream filipino drag race challenges come true? Guess we’ll have to find out.
Photo courtesy of “Drag Race Philippines”
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