# Drag Race (franchise)
Drag Race is a television drag competition franchise created by RuPaul and the production company World of Wonder, originating in the United States in 2009 with *RuPaul's Drag Race* and since adapted into international editions across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Oceania.[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29) The format asks contestants to compete for a "Drag Superstar" title judged on "charisma", "uniqueness", "nerve", and "talent", and the franchise is widely credited with bringing drag into mainstream popular culture.[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29) • [2](https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv36xw2c1)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Origin | Created by RuPaul and World of Wonder; premiered on LogoTV in 2009 as a replacement for *Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World*[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29) |
| Network moves | Logo to VH1 in 2017, then to MTV beginning with season 15 on January 6, 2023[3](https://www.elitedaily.com/entertainment/rupauls-drag-race-international-franchise-guide) |
| Emmy record | 27 Emmy Awards as of December 2022; the Television Academy lists 88 nominations and 29 wins for the series[4](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=104629-mtv-and-paramount-greenlight-global-expansion-of-rupauls-drag-race-franchise-us-version-of-drag-race-premieres-friday-january-6-at-8pm-on-mtv) • [5](https://www.emmys.com/shows/rupauls-drag-race) |
| International reach | Editions in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Oceania; 11 active international editions with three more in development as of 2023[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29) • [6](https://time.com/6283950/queer-eye-drag-race-ultimatum-2023/) |
| Streaming | International editions stream on WOW Presents Plus, available in 190 territories[4](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=104629-mtv-and-paramount-greenlight-global-expansion-of-rupauls-drag-race-franchise-us-version-of-drag-race-premieres-friday-january-6-at-8pm-on-mtv) |
| Live events | Three DragCon conventions (LA, NYC, UK) and the *RuPaul's Drag Race Live!* Las Vegas show, established in 2020[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29) |
## Format and origin
The original series was devised in 2009 as a replacement for *Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World* (2007–2009) on LogoTV. Each season tests competitors on the skills deemed important to a drag career, including makeup, costume, performance in acting, improvisation, singing, and dancing, and branding, as well as knowledge of drag and queer culture such as "reading" and "shade".[7](https://academic.oup.com/screen/article/65/1/132/7632065) RuPaul has described the show's aim as finding an entertainer who can stand out from the rest, with winners embodying charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent.[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29)
**Network growth.** The show moved from Logo to VH1 in 2017, a sign of rising notoriety, and then to MTV, where season 15 premiered on January 6, 2023.[3](https://www.elitedaily.com/entertainment/rupauls-drag-race-international-franchise-guide) The franchise is produced by MTV Entertainment Studios and World of Wonder.[4](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=104629-mtv-and-paramount-greenlight-global-expansion-of-rupauls-drag-race-franchise-us-version-of-drag-race-premieres-friday-january-6-at-8pm-on-mtv)
## International expansion
In December 2022, MTV and [Paramount+](https://www.edgepedia.org/paramount) announced the global expansion of the franchise with three new editions in Brazil, Germany, and Mexico, airing on MTV and Paramount+ in their respective territories.[4](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=104629-mtv-and-paramount-greenlight-global-expansion-of-rupauls-drag-race-franchise-us-version-of-drag-race-premieres-friday-january-6-at-8pm-on-mtv) By 2023, *Time* counted 11 active international editions with three more in the works, alongside several stateside spinoffs and a wider universe of drag-themed streaming entertainment such as HBO's *We're Here*.[6](https://time.com/6283950/queer-eye-drag-race-ultimatum-2023/)
The international editions have given a spotlight to drag talent around the world, including Pangina Heals, host of Drag Race Thailand, and contestants such as Jimbo, the late [The Vivienne](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-vivienne), and Priyanka.[8](https://guides.justwatch.com/us/drag-race-franchise-in-order) Most international series stream on WOW Presents Plus in most parts of the world.[9](https://www.worldofwonder.com/drag-race/)
**Local adaptation.** Scholars have examined how local editions negotiate the format's American origin. A study of *Drag Race Thailand* argues that comparing it with the American series defies the assumption of Westernizing homogenization in drag and queer culture.[10](https://escholarship.org/uc/item/67r246ph) Research on *Drag Race UK* notes debate over the "Americanization" of local queer communities, while finding that local context still underpins the specific character of individual drag acts.[11](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/15274764261417261?download=true)
## Cultural impact
The franchise has drawn sustained scholarly attention. The edited collection *The Cultural Impact of RuPaul's Drag Race: Why Are We All Gagging?* (Intellect, 2021), edited by Cameron Crookston, examines its effects on audience cultures, economics, branding, and queer politics, noting that a show once marketed primarily to gay men now reaches broader, straighter, and younger fans, and that its depiction of drag as a lucrative career has produced an unprecedented number of aspiring performers.[2](https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv36xw2c1)
Other scholarship is more critical. One analysis argues the show can function as a governmental apparatus that induces contestants to conform to neoliberal values, celebrating drag as a marketable expression of uniqueness rather than a reservoir of cultural subversiveness.[12](https://academic.oup.com/policy-press-scholarship-online/book/60256/chapter-abstract/520101769) The show has also been credited, together with *Queer Eye*, with bringing [LGBTQ people](https://www.edgepedia.org/lgbtq-people) and culture into the mainstream.[6](https://time.com/6283950/queer-eye-drag-race-ultimatum-2023/)
**Commercial reach.** Drag artists including [Bianca Del Rio](https://www.edgepedia.org/bianca-del-rio) and [Trixie Mattel](https://www.edgepedia.org/trixie-mattel) have gone from playing regional clubs to headlining international tours, appearing on television, and running cosmetics ventures, and every local version of the franchise produces a comparable effect within its own market.[13](https://frontiersmedia.com/drag-race-global-franchise.html) The franchise's music has also been commercially successful; World of Wonder reports that *All Stars 6* trended first on Twitter worldwide and broke the franchise's ratings records.[9](https://www.worldofwonder.com/drag-race/)
## Live events and spinoffs
Beyond television, the franchise includes three conventions, RuPaul's DragCon LA, RuPaul's DragCon NYC, and RuPaul's DragCon UK, and the *RuPaul's Drag Race Live!* variety show, established in Las Vegas in 2020 with a corresponding television special.[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29) The Las Vegas show is staged on the Strip at the Flamingo as a residency, putting drag alongside pop stars and magicians in that city's residency market.[13](https://frontiersmedia.com/drag-race-global-franchise.html) The flagship series has also inspired an *All Stars* spinoff featuring returning contestants.[1](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29)
## Recognition
As of December 2022, *RuPaul's Drag Race* was described by MTV as the most celebrated reality competition franchise in history with 27 [Emmy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/emmy-awards).[4](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=104629-mtv-and-paramount-greenlight-global-expansion-of-rupauls-drag-race-franchise-us-version-of-drag-race-premieres-friday-january-6-at-8pm-on-mtv) The Television Academy's listing shows 88 nominations and 29 wins for the series, including repeated wins for Outstanding Reality Competition Program and Outstanding Host for RuPaul Charles.[5](https://www.emmys.com/shows/rupauls-drag-race)
## References
1. [Drag Race (Franchise), RuPaul's Drag Race Wiki](https://rupaulsdragrace.fandom.com/wiki/Drag_Race_%28Franchise%29)
2. [The Cultural Impact of RuPaul's Drag Race: Why Are We All Gagging?, ed. Cameron Crookston, Intellect (2021), JSTOR](https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv36xw2c1)
3. [Everything To Know About Drag Race's 15 International Editions, Elite Daily](https://www.elitedaily.com/entertainment/rupauls-drag-race-international-franchise-guide)
4. [MTV and Paramount+ Greenlight Global Expansion of RuPaul's Drag Race Franchise, Paramount Press Express (December 12, 2022)](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/mtv/releases/?view=104629-mtv-and-paramount-greenlight-global-expansion-of-rupauls-drag-race-franchise-us-version-of-drag-race-premieres-friday-january-6-at-8pm-on-mtv)
5. [RuPaul's Drag Race, Emmy Awards and Nominations, Television Academy](https://www.emmys.com/shows/rupauls-drag-race)
6. [Reality TV Is Struggling to Meet a Painful Moment for LGBTQ Rights, Time (2023)](https://time.com/6283950/queer-eye-drag-race-ultimatum-2023/)
7. ['Precision is key': appreciating the labour of performance in RuPaul's Drag Race, Screen, Oxford Academic](https://academic.oup.com/screen/article/65/1/132/7632065)
8. [Here's How To Watch Every 'Drag Race' TV Show In Order, JustWatch](https://guides.justwatch.com/us/drag-race-franchise-in-order)
9. [World of Wonder Productions, Drag Race](https://www.worldofwonder.com/drag-race/)
10. [Transitioning Drag: A Comparative Reading of Drag Race Thailand and RuPaul's Drag Race, eScholarship](https://escholarship.org/uc/item/67r246ph)
11. [Glocalizing Queer Caricature: RuPaul's Drag Race UK and the Snatch Game Format, SAGE Journals](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/15274764261417261?download=true)
12. [The Neoliberal 'Ru-presentation' of Drag as a Key to Success and Acceptance, Oxford Academic](https://academic.oup.com/policy-press-scholarship-online/book/60256/chapter-abstract/520101769)
13. [Drag Race Global Franchise: How RuPaul Went Worldwide, Frontiers Media](https://frontiersmedia.com/drag-race-global-franchise.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Reality and competition franchise editions › Reality and competition franchises — overview and format history*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license