Lights! Camera! Action! Drag Race All Stars is back with another batch of fan-favourite queens competing for a coveted spot in the Hall of Fame.
Premiering 12 May on Paramount Plus in the U.S. and on WOW Presents Plus in the UK, the season sees the return of former finalists, lip-sync assassins and Miss Congenialities.
The fierce line-up is as follows: Alexis Michelle, Darienne Lake, Heidi N Closet, Jaymes Mansfield, Jessica Wild, Jimbo, Kahanna Montrese, Kandy Muse, LaLa Ri, Monica Beverly Hillz, Mrs. Kasha Davis and Naysha Lopez.
Unlike past iterations of All Stars, the season doesn’t feature many two-time queens bar Jimbo, who memorably competed on the first seasons of Canada’s Drag Race and UK vs the World. This will be her first time competing on the original US series.
New episodes of Drag Race Untucked will follow.
All Stars 8 follows the finale of season 15, which saw GAY TIMES cover star Sasha Colby conquer over Anetra, Mistress Isabelle Brooks and Luxx Noir London, becoming the first trans woman of colour to win in the process.
The winner of All Stars 8 will join Chad Michaels, Alaska, Trixie Mattel, Monét X Change, Trinity the Tuck, Shea Couleé, Kylie Sonique Love and Jinkx Monsoon – our reigning “Queen of All Queens” – in the aforementioned Hall of Fame.
Check out the fierce promotional photos for the season below.
Alexis Michelle (Season 9)
Challenge wins: 1
Original placement: 5th
Alexis Michelle competed on the ninth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, where she placed fifth behind Sasha Velour, Shea Couleé, Trinity the Tuck and Peppermint – three of which have gone on to win crowns, making it the most crowned season in herstory. The theatrical queen memorably conquered Snatch Game as Liza Minnelli – which has since been hailed as one of the franchise’s best – and, as an Elpheba and She Hulk-inspired New Jersey character during the Michelle Visage Roast, provided us with this now-iconic quote: “Well Tamar, have you ever watched the show?” Let’s not forget her hilarious impersonation of Kris Jenner during the Kardashian Rusical and role as Freda Phelps in the unsold pilot Mary, Mother of Gay, as well as her riveting lip-sync smackdowns against Farrah Moan and Peppermint. With All Stars challenges usually tailored towards comedy, expect Alexis to be an absolute force this season.
Darienne Lake (Season 6)
Challenge wins: 1
Original placement: 4th
“Big girl walking down the sturdy street, big girl walkin’ in all these dirty feet” is one of the most iconic and groundbreaking lyrics in the history of music, and Rochester’s very own Miss Darienne Lake, was responsible. John Lennon who? The critically-acclaimed rapper made her debut on the show’s much-loved sixth season back in 2014 and reached the top four alongside Bianca Del Rio, Adore Delano and Courtney Act. This is her first return to the franchise since – except for the time she expressed her love for bread in the season 10 premiere – and it’s about goddamn time we got some more Darienne. Could she become the second season six queen to take home a crown?
Heidi N Closet (Season 12)
Challenge wins: 1
Original placement: 6th
Within a couple episodes of her season 12 stint, Heidi N Closet cemented her place as one of the most beloved Drag Racer’s of all time. Viewers around the world fell in love with the star’s Southern twang, gap-tooth and “blessed and highly favoured” sense-of-humour, joining an elite group of queens such as BenDeLaCreme, Katya and Valentina to win Miss Congeniality. Heidi also turned it out in the lip-sync department, becoming one of only three queens ever to compete in four lip-sync showdowns in a regular season. Heidi will be fierce competition this season.
Jaymes Mansfield (Season 9)
Challenge wins: 0
Original placement: 14th
Although Jaymes Mansfield exited season nine in last place, the Wisconsin queen has garnered a passionate online following due to her unique style of comedy and strong YouTube presence. In her short time on the series, Jaymes failed to live up to expectations (RuPaul said her audition was one of the funniest he’s ever seen) as she was “sabotaged by her inner saboteur” (can’t believe we just said that, sorry). However, the comedy queen did contribute to Drag Race’s ever-expanding meme-ography in the cheer battle as she dramatically roly-poly’d in-between two of her competitors’ legs and tumbled across the room. (This one.) More of this Jaymes, please!
Jessica Wild (Season 2)
Challenge wins: 1
Original placement: 6th
It’s been 12 whole years since Jessica Wild sipped on an Acai cocktail and promoted her autobiography The Dreams of a Golden Shower/Child, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize (this might need fact checking, not sure). The season two alum made her Drag Race comeback in 2021 on the sixth season of All Stars as a lip-sync assassin, where she demolished the stage to Britney Spears’ Womanizer to overwhelming praise from viewers. Fans have been demanding for Jessica to return since the first All Stars, so her inclusion here is welcyum (wrong queen). We need some more cripsy in our Cock-a-doodle-do! With Disco Extra Greasy Shortening! Woohoo!
Jimbo (Canada’s Drag Race season 1, UK vs the World season 1)
Challenge wins: 3
Original placement: 4th (Canada season 1), 7th (UK vs the World)
After landing in fourth place on the first season of Canada’s Drag Race, Jimbo made a dramatic return to the franchise on UK vs the World, where she introduced viewers to her bonkers alter-ego Casper the Baloney Ghost. Following two consecutive wins, making her one of the season’s frontrunners, Jimbo was unceremoniously booted from the competition by Pangina Heals to outcry from viewers. (Read our post-elimination interview with Jimbo, it’s mayhem.) With her inclusion here, the star becomes only the second international queen – after The Vivienne – to compete on a US season of All Stars. Chaos: incoming!
Kahanna Montrese (Season 11)
Challenge wins: 0
Original placement: 14th
The drag daughter of season five and All Stars 2 legend Coco Montrese, Kahanna underperformed on season 11, only managing to land in 14th place. (She didn’t deserve to be in the bottom in episode two, however.) Like her mother, Kahanna knows how to put on a sickening show. She served lip-sync assassin in her two showdowns with her flips, kicks and splits and, since her time on the series, she has regularly performed in RuPaul’s Drag Race Live! alongside former alumni Jaida Essence Hall, Eureka O’Hara, Trinity K. Bonet, Plastique Tiara, Alexis Mateo and her mother, Coco.
Kandy Muse (Season 13)
Challenge wins: 1
Original placement: 2nd
Say whatever you want about Kandy Muse – the NYC diva was made for telly. The founder of the “Sitting Alone in the VIP” meme, the star became the most controversial personality on season 13 thanks to her brutal honesty and explosive feud with Tamisha Iman (that Untucked episode was… severe). Despite this, Kandy made it all the way to the final and competed in the Britney-dominated lip-sync smackdowns for the crown, ultimately placing second to Symone. We live for the drama, so we can’t wait to see what Kandy has in store this season.
LaLa Ri (Season 13)
Challenge wins: 0
Original placement: 10th
Has there ever been an outfit more iconic than LaLa Ri’s cardboard bag extravaganza? THAT IS A RHETORICAL QUESTION BECAUSE IT IS AN UNMATCHED MASTERPIECE. While the charismatic queen didn’t last as long as viewers expected, she delivered some of season 13’s fiercest lip-syncs against Denali (x2), Joey Jay and Elliot with 2 T’s, the latter of which garnered uproar from the fandom after RuPaul told her to sashay away. (Watch it back, she won.) Also the supreme confessional queen of the season, LaLa Ri was voted Miss Congeniality by her competitors – making her the first and only queen to receive three honorary titles in a single season: Golden Bootee, Lip-Sync Assassin (alongside Denali) and Miss Congeniality.
Monica Beverly Hillz (Season 5)
Challenge wins: 0
Original placement: 12th
Monica Beverley Hillz made herstory for the franchise when she came out as a trans woman on the main stage, becoming the first-ever contestant to do so. (Kylie Sonique Love came out as trans during the reunion.) Following backlash to RuPaul’s comments about trans contestants on the show, Monica told them. that she disagrees with the host’s ‘policies’ while also campaigning for an All Stars return. “I accept Venmo, Paypal, and money orders for my fees to provide Basic Trans 101 consulting to RuPaul’s Drag Race,” she told the publication.
Mrs. Kasha Davis (Season 7)
Challenge wins: 0
Original placement: 11th
A founding member of the “Bitter Old Lady Brigade”, Mrs Kasha Davis sashayed away far too early on season seven – all because she flopped her pronunciation of “welcome”. Undeserved! She dominated the second challenge, Glamazonian Airways (should’ve won, to be honest), was a standout in Shakesqueer and served Bea Arthur in the RuPaul spoof, I Got Paid. Kasha is a talented comedian and isn’t afraid to voice her opinions, so we welcyum her participation on All Stars 8. There’s always time for a cocktail, isn’t there?
Naysha Lopez (Season 8)
Challenge wins: 0
Original placement: 9th
Naysha Lopez is the perfect example of why it’s crucial to learn how to sew before strutting into the Drag Race werkroom. A former Miss Continental, one of the most prestigious titles in the art-form of drag, Naysha was sent packin’ in the season premiere after flopping her interpretation of the season one challenge, Drag on a Dime. RuPaul memorably granted her a second opportunity after Laila McQueen and Dax Exclamation flopped their lip-sync to Gloria Gaynor’s queer classic I Will Survive, becoming the second queen (after Trixie Mattel) to not be eliminated in the same episode she returned. However, Naysha was unable to maintain momentum and was sent home by the late Chi Chi DeVayne in the following challenge. It’s been six years since we last saw Naysha; if she’s brushed up on her sewing abilities slash learned how to sew, full stop, then she could be a massive contender for the All Stars 8 crown.
Watch the queens of Drag Race All Stars 8 strut into the werkroom here or below.
RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars Season 8 will premiere exclusively on WOW Presents Plus in the UK from Friday 12th May at 8am BST followed by brand new episodes of RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars Untucked. Subscribe to WOW Presents Plus via https://uk.wowpresentsplus.com/
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