Move over RuPaul, there’s a new drag reality competition in town and it’s intentionally not pretty

Created, produced, and hosted by drag duo The Boulet Brothers, Dragula is currently showing its fourth season on American streaming service Shudder. The show puts its drag competitors through challenges that range from lipsyncing and sewing costumes to forming rock bands to battle against one another. What sets Dragula apart from other, more famous drag shows is the celebration of alternative, darker forms of drag, instead of the typically glamorous and perhaps pageanty forms that mainstream media is more used to. 

The contestants on Dragula are not afraid to get themselves dirty in their transformations. Fake blood and special effects paint are staples on the show, as they are often encouraged to make themselves as horrifying as possible. Many also blend horror with glamour into unique performances you simply cannot witness outside this franchise. Throughout its previous seasons, we have seen contestants transforming into the likes of Predator from Alien, a killer clown, a vampire bat at a beach party, and many more nightmarish characters.

The show is a reminder that drag, like any other art form, is constantly evolving and redefining itself. We are used to thinking of drag queens as people making themselves appear as the opposite gender or as men in wigs and makeup. However, Dragula has no restrictions on gender in the auditioning process, which allows unique participants and discussions that cannot be seen on any other franchise. With so many different types of drag performers on the show as a result—queens, kings, bio-queens, bio-kings, non-binary performers—interesting discussions on social dynamics and gender issues naturally arise. Indeed, season three was won by drag king Landon Cider, the first biological woman ever to win a reality drag competition.

While RuPaul’s Drag Race is credited by many as being the reason drag has penetrated mainstream culture, the show faces criticism for not knowing how to handle alternative drag. Dragula has stepped up to fill the gap, embracing diversity within the drag world in a way that is refreshing for drag fans and audiences.

Though Dragula is currently being streamed on a platform not widely known nor available outside of North America, the UK, and Australia and New Zealand, the show is swiftly rising in popularity and gaining more celebrity judges, including Vanessa Hudgens, Poppy, and Orville Peck. Hopefully, the show will continue on its trajectory and soon have to confront the demands of Dragula fans outside of Shudder’s current locations.