Queen of the Universe is a drag queen singing competition television series produced by World of Wonder. The series was hosted by Graham Norton with four pop music judges. The contestants competed for a cash prize of $250,000. The series premiered on Paramount+ on December 2, 2021.[1] In February 2022, the series was renewed for a second season.[2] On June 23, 2023, the series was canceled after two seasons, and was subsequently removed from Paramount+ on June 30, 2023.[3] WOW Presents Plus agreed to make the show available for streaming on its platform.[4]
| Queen of the Universe | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Julian Smith |
| Presented by | Graham Norton |
| Judges | |
| Opening theme | "Queen of the Universe" theme |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 14 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Producer | Carl Webber |
| Running time | 45 minutes |
| Production company | World of Wonder |
| Original release | |
| Network | Paramount+ |
| Release | December 2, 2021 – June 22, 2023 |
The winner of the first season was Grag Queen from Brazil, with Ada Vox from the U.S. finishing as the runner-up.
The winner of the second season was Taiga Brava from Mexico, with Trevor Ashley from Australia finishing as the runner-up.
Production
editOn February 24, 2021, Paramount Global and Paramount+ announced the international drag-singing competition Queen of the Universe from World of Wonder, the producers behind RuPaul’s Drag Race, with cast members to be named later.[5]
Judges
editOn September 27, 2021, it was announced that Graham Norton would be hosting the series.[6] The judges were announced on October 28, 2021, as being Leona Lewis, Michelle Visage, Trixie Mattel and Vanessa Williams.[7] The contestants for the first season were revealed on November 10, 2021.[8] On February 15, 2022, it was announced that the series was renewed for a second season.[2] In June 2022, it was announced that Mel B would replace Lewis as a judge in season 2 while Norton, Visage, Mattel and Williams would return.[9]
| Judge | Series | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | |
| Leona Lewis | Main | |
| Trixie Mattel | Main | |
| Michelle Visage | Main | |
| Vanessa Williams | Main | |
| Mel B | Main | |
Series overview
edit| Season | Contestants | Winner | Runner-up | Prize Money | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||||||
| 1 | 14 | Grag Queen | Ada Vox | $250,000 | 6 | December 2, 2021 | December 30, 2021 | |
| 2 | 10 | Taiga Brava | Trevor Ashley | 8 | June 2, 2023 | June 22, 2023 | ||
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Season 1 (2021)
editThe first season of Queen of the Universe premiered on December 2, 2021, on Paramount+. The season ran for six episodes and concluded on December 30, 2021. Ada Vox was the runner-up, and Grag Queen was the winner of the first season.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title [10] | Original release date [10] | Prod. code [10] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "This Is Me" | December 2, 2021 | 101 |
| 2 | 2 | 102 | ||
| 3 | 3 | "Turn Back Time" | December 9, 2021 | 103 |
| 4 | 4 | "Duets" | December 16, 2021 | 104 |
| 5 | 5 | "Bad Girls" | December 23, 2021 | 105 |
| 6 | 6 | "Holi-Gay Finale" | December 30, 2021 | 106 |
Season 2 (2023)
editThe second season of Queen of the Universe premiered on June 2, 2023, on Paramount+.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title [10] | Original release date [10] | Prod. code [10] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1 | "Bigger Hits, Glossier Lips and Massive T**s" | June 2, 2023 | 201 |
| 8 | 2 | "A Spicy Twist" | June 2, 2023 | 202 |
| 9 | 3 | "Double Trouble" | June 8, 2023 | 203 |
| 10 | 4 | "Dragging up the Past" | June 16, 2023 | 204 |
| 11 | 5 | "Who's Ready for a Dance Off?" | June 22, 2023 | 205 |
| 12 | 6 | "Exposed!" | June 22, 2023 | 206 |
| 13 | 7 | "Battle of the Divas" | June 22, 2023 | 207 |
| 14 | 8 | "The Winner Is..." | June 22, 2023 | 208 |
Awards and nominations
edit| Award | Year | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queerty Awards | 2022 | Reality/Docuseries | Queen of the Universe | Nominated | [11] |
| MTV Movie & TV Awards | 2022 | Best Unscripted Series | Nominated | [12] |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Del Rosario, Alexandra (November 10, 2021). "'Queen Of The Universe': RuPaul To EP Paramount+ Drag Singing Competition, International Contestants Unveiled". Deadline. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ a b "Paramount+ Announces Expansive New Reality Slate to Accelerate Growth and Expand Internationally, Including the First-Ever Globally Connected Reality Competition Series, "The Challenge: War of the Worlds"" (Press release). CBS. February 15, 2022. Retrieved February 15, 2022 – via The Futon Critic.
- ^ White, Peter (June 23, 2023). "'Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies', 'Star Trek: Prodigy', 'The Game' & 'Queen of the Universe' Canceled At Paramount+ As Streamer Pulls Shows From Service & Takes Content Write-Down". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
- ^ Ramachandran, Naman (June 28, 2023). "Graham Norton-Hosted Drag Queen Singing Competition 'Queen of the Universe' Finds New Home on WOW Presents Plus (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on June 29, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ^ Zorrilla, Mónica Marie (February 24, 2021). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Producers to Develop International Drag Queen Singing Competition Series 'Queen of the Universe'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ Ravindran, Manori (September 27, 2021). "Graham Norton to Host Drag Queen Singing Competition 'Queen of the Universe' for Paramount Plus (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on November 3, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ Vary, Adam B. (October 28, 2021). "Vanessa Williams, Trixie Mattel to Judge Drag Singing Competition Show". Variety. Archived from the original on October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
- ^ Nolfi, Joey (November 10, 2021). "Queen of the Universe cast adds Drag Race, American Idol stars: Meet the queens!". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
- ^ Urban, Sasha (June 20, 2022). "Mel B to Join 'Queen of the Universe' Season 2 Judging Panel at Paramount+". Variety. Archived from the original on November 5, 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f "Shows A-Z – Queen of the Universe on Paramount+". The Futon Critic. Archived from the original on January 5, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
- ^ "Reality / Docuseries Nominees 2022". The Queerties. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
- ^ France, Lisa Respers (June 6, 2022). "MTV Movie & TV Awards: See the full list of winners". CNN. Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
