The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (2024)

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Debbie Reynolds and Cloris Leachman, Season 2

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (1)

Singin' in the Rain's Reynolds and The Mary Tyler Moore Show's Leachman appeared together as guest judges on season 2 of RuPaul's Drag Race for an episode titled "Golden Gals" in 2010.

In the episode, the contestant queens were judged on their ability to transform their silver daddies into their drag mothers for a NYX Cosmetics challenge.

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Khloé Kardashian, Season 6

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (2)

The Keeping Up with the Kardashians star appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race not once, but twice during season 6 in 2014.

A longtime fan of the show, Kardashian told Us Weekly, "It really was a dream come true to be a guest judge this season ... My favorite part was working with RuPaul who is a legend and getting to know the contestants — they are all so talented."

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Neil Patrick Harris, Season 6

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (3)

The How I Met Your Mother actor appeared on season 6 of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2014, alongside his husband David Burtka, for a special episode titled, "Drag My Wedding."

In the episode, Harris and Burtka judged contestants on abstract paintings in honor of marriage equality (using their bodies as brushes!) for the mini challenge. The main event involved transforming grooms into brides for a wedding.

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Demi Lovato, Season 7

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (4)

The singer was a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race during season 7 in 2015.

Lovato, a longtime fan of the show, said on the panel at the time, "It's an honor, and that I've wanted to do this for so long." They shared their feedback for the "trashiest runway" theme, titled "Ugliest Dress."

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Jessica Alba, Season 7

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (5)

The L.A.'s Finest actress appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race during season 7 in 2015.

Sitting on the panel for the season of what RuPaul described as "the most raggedy season ever," Alba judged contestants after they created and starred in their own music videos.

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Ariana Grande, Season 7 and Season 15

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (6)

The "Positions" singer and Wicked actress appeared as a guest judge on season 7 of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2015.

Since Grande's first appearance on the show, she has become one of the most-covered artists contestants have lip synced in challenges. After queens Kandy Ho and Jaidynn Diore Fierce battled it out to "Break Free" in season 7, hits that followed include "Greedy," "Bang Bang," "Problem," "No Tears Left to Cry," "Into You" and "One Last Time."

The singer guest judged the show's season 15 premiere in 2023.

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Gigi Hadid, Season 8

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (7)

The supermodel appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race during season 8 in 2016.

Sitting on the panel dressed in a vibrant '80s-inspired look, Hadid judged contestants' celebrity impersonations in the Snatch Game.

RuPaul also put the supermodel on the spot by asking if it's more fun hanging out with drag queens or models, to which she replied, "Well, I've never had this much fun at a runway show, so drag queens, of course!"

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Marc Jacobs, Season 8

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (8)

The fashion designer appeared as a guest judge on season 8 of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2016.

A fan of the show, Jacobs explained to the New York Times why the show is a fashion industry fan favorite, saying, "I've seen every episode." He added, "It makes me laugh, it makes me cry. There's a lot of power in it, and I'm not a big reality TV show fan at all."

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Lady Gaga, Season 9

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (9)

The A Star is Born actress and "Rain on Me" singer appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race during season 9 in 2017. Having had many of her songs performed on the competition series throughout the years, her time on the show goes down as one of the show's most memorable moments (she even brought the queens to tears!).

In typical Gaga fashion, her entrance on the show was unconventional compared to other guest judges — she pranked the contestants and pretended to compete in disguise!

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Christina Aguilera, Season 10

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (10)

The "Lady Marmalade" singer appeared as a guest judge on the season 10 premiere of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2018.

It was only fitting that Aguilera, whose nickname is Xtina, made her memorable runway debut on season X of the drag reality show. The singing sensation dazzled head-to-toe in a sparkly, pink gown.

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Lizzo, Season 10 and Season 14

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (11)

The "About Damn Time" singer appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race during season 10 in 2018 and returned to the runway for season 14's premiere in 2022.

The pressure was on for the bottom two competing queens who had to lip sync to Lizzo's "Good as Hell" in 2018 and "Water Me" in 2022 during the ultimate "lip sync for your life" showdowns.

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Miley Cyrus, Season 11

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (12)

The "Midnight Sky" singer appeared as a guest judge on the season 11 premiere of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2019. Similar to Lady Gaga's grand entrance, she also went undercover to surprise the contestants.

With a brunette pixie cut and matching goatee, Cyrus was completely unrecognizable as she channeled her male drag alter ego, "Barry 'B.J.' Johnson."

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Nicki Minaj, Season 12

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (13)

The "Super Bass" rap superstar appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race as the first guest judge of season 12 in 2020.

Minaj strutted down the famed runway dressed in head-to-toe red, and judged performances for the rap-based maxi challenge. Not only did she give constructive criticism, but she even freestyled a verse herself!

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Leslie Jones, Season 12

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (14)

The comedian and former Saturday Night Live star appeared on season 12 of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2020.

Jones brought the laughs, the energy and the motivation, delivering an inspirational pep talk prior to the runway: "None of it matters where you come from, it's about what you bringing."

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Alicia Keys, Season 14

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (15)

The Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter popped up on the later half of season 14's two-part premiere.

Showing up behind the Werk Room's makeup mirror, Keys gave the queens some words of encouragement before they hit the Main Stage: "Don't let anybody hold you back. This is your time, this is your moment, and you're going to show everyone just how special and amazing you are."

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Taraji P. Henson, Season 14

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (16)

The Empire actress dropped in on season 14's sixth episode as a guest judge.

During this episode, the queens were tasked with the challenge of designing outfits out of random junk that Michelle Visage bought on a shopping spree — Henson had to read whether these looks were fierce or hot trash.

The Biggest Celebrity Guest Judges Who've Appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race (2024)

FAQs

Who was the guest judge on RuPaul season 5 episode 8? ›

The queens create, market and film a commercial for their own signature fragrance; guest judges Aubrey O'Day and Joan Van Ark.

Why did Santino leave RuPaul? ›

Merle Ginsburg and Santino Rice were temporary judges on RuPaul's Drag Race in the early seasons, bringing fashion expertise to the panel. Merle's absence became a running joke on the show, while Santino left due to the show's shift towards drag culture, which wasn't his area of expertise.

Did RuPaul ever have a wife? ›

RuPaul met painter Georges LeBar in 1994 at the Limelight nightclub in New York City. They married in January 2017. They have an open marriage; RuPaul has said he would not want to "put restraints" on the person he loves.

Who has been a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race? ›

The additional celebrity guest judges announced for season 16 include: Adam Shankman, Icona Pop (Caroline Hjelt + Aino Jawo), Isaac Mizrahi, Jamal Sims, Joel Kim Booster, Kaia Gerber, Kelsea Ballerini, Kyra Sedgwick, Law Roach, Mayan Lopez, Ronan Farrow, and Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Who are the guest judges on RuPaul's Drag Race Season 5 episode 2? ›

Sign up for Paramount+ to stream this video. The dolls must lip synch to the spoken word, as they recreate classic moments from Drag Race history in scene-stealing viral videos. With guest judges Juliette Lewis and Kristen Johnston.

Are RuPaul and Michelle Visage friends? ›

Since the 80s, best friend and Drag Race judge Michelle Visage has been right by his side, and the pair have become inseparable both on and off screen. Visage, who is married to husband, David Case, and has two daughters, Lillie and Lola, initially became famous as a member of the girl band Seduction in the early 90s.

Why is Michelle Visage a judge? ›

RuPaul's Drag Race

Two years later, Visage was contacted again by RuPaul and invited to appear on season three of the show. After her boss once again said she was not able to appear, she was persuaded by her friend Leah Remini to contact CBS officials who allowed her to join the show as a judge.

How much does RuPaul get paid? ›

RuPaul earned $50,000 for her role in season 1. Due to the show's popularity, that paycheck grew to $50,000 per episode in 2013. As of 2023, Ru's now making about $1 million per episode. Add to that the money Charles makes as a producer of the series, and you can see how RuPaul's net worth has achieved such heights.

Does RU have a colostomy bag? ›

One Redditor, Regular-Fennel-1453 wrote, "RuPaul does have one. In Season 1 of Drag Race, she excused herself because it burst and she needed to go to the bathroom. Also, she mentioned it on Season 4 of Untucked while being tucked into her seat on the judges' panel."

Where is RuPaul's Ranch? ›

RuPaul owns a ranch in Wyoming.

Who are the judges on RuPaul Drag Race Season 5? ›

Santino Rice and Michelle Visage returned as judges at the panel. RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked!

Who are the guest judges on RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Season 8? ›

On Thursday, the guest judges for Season 8 were revealed. The lineup includes Maude Apatow, Brandon Boyd, Zooey Deschanel, Thom Filicia, Javicia Leslie, Idina Menzel, Ego Nwodim, Matt Rogers, Adam Shankman, JoJo Siwa, Robin Thede and Bowen Yang.

Why is Michelle Visage a judge on RuPaul? ›

In 1996, she became the co-host of RuPaul's VH1 talk show The RuPaul Show. She also co-hosted WKTU's morning show with RuPaul from 1996 to 2002. When RuPaul began casting judges for season one of RuPaul's Drag Race, he invited Visage to become a permanent member of the show.

Who is the judge on RuPaul Ross? ›

Ross Mathews (born September 24, 1979) is an American television host and personality. He rose to fame as an intern and a correspondent for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno; he was known as "Ross the Intern" on air.

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