From mother to monarch: RuPaul, US universalism, and the rise of a global drag empire

Thompson, Violet 2026. From mother to monarch: RuPaul, US universalism, and the rise of a global drag empire. McIntyre, Joanna and Taylor, Anthea, eds. The Routledge Companion to Gender and Celebrity, London: Routledge, pp. 229-244. (10.4324/9781003290582-20)

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Abstract

The Drag Race franchise has achieved both critical and commercial success, growing into a global multimedia franchise. Central to this success is RuPaul – the Host and Head Judge of its original US series, and executive producer across much of its iterations. However, the extent to which the franchise operates to uplift and celebrate its contestants, as well as local drag cultures, is a topic of increased scrutiny. Rather, this chapter argues that its primary purpose is to embolden RuPaul’s own celebrity – often at the expense of these performers, through the lens of US universalism. Firstly, it argues that this celebrity is solidified through cultural imperialism – whereby RuPaul prescribes the ‘correct’ way of performing national identity in international iterations of the franchise. Secondly, it argues that this authority is not just status-driven, but emotive, monarchic, and deified – cultivating a celebrity persona which is wholly untouchable. This chapter illustrates the influence of RuPaul’s star power across the Drag Race franchise. The consequences of this power extend to the limitations placed upon drag performers in order to achieve legitimacy, as well as stereotypes enforced over culturally specific representations of drag and queer identity through US universalism.

Item Type:	Book Section
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Journalism, Media and Culture
Publisher:	Routledge
ISBN:	9781032269313
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2026 11:24
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/188424

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