There have been a lot of shocking eliminations on RuPaul’s Drag Race, starting on the very first season and going all the way up to season 12. Some of these queens deserved to go home when they did, while others had their time cut short due to a minor stumble. Nonetheless, it was shocking to see these queens go home in such ways, and we definitely didn’t see these eliminations coming.
The Drag Race lore makes it clear that RuPaul’s decision is final and individual. While fans can usually tell where Ru’s mindset is at, the host has definitely gagged the audience with shocking decisions to eliminate certain contestants.
Honey Mahogany And Vivienne Pinay (Season 5)
Honey Mahogany and Vivienne Pinay had lackluster track records throughout season 5, and it was becoming quite evident that these queens wouldn’t go very far on Drag Race. However, even the savviest fans did not foresee what actually happened: the first-ever double elimination in the history of RuPaul’s Drag Race.
It wasn’t necessarily surprising to see Honey and Vivienne go home, but it was definitely shocking to see RuPaul introducing the age-old reality competition device of a ‘double elimination.’ Since that instance, there has only been one other double elimination: Dax ExclamationPoint and Laila McQueen on season 8.
Rock M. Sakura (Season 12)
The most recent shocking elimination on RuPaul’s Drag Race took place on season 12, as fans watched San Francisco queen Rock M. Sakura going home way too soon. Since her first appearance on Part 2 of the season 12 premiere, Rock M. seemed poised to go far and do well on a variety of challenges.
There’s no denying that Rock M. Sakura did stumble on the ball challenge on season 12, but watching her go home this soon definitely came as a shock to most fans of the show. Unfortunately, this queen landed in the bottom on Episode 4 and didn’t survive the lip sync against Brita, and fans can only hope to see her again on a future season.
Jessica Wild (Season 2)
Jessica Wild had been doing well all season long, placing either “safe” or “high” for five weeks. Then, Jessica won the live singing challenge on Episode 6 (“Rocker Chicks”), only to be suddenly eliminated on the very next episode.
It was certainly shocking to see a queen who had done so well be eliminated on the first time that she landed in the bottom. What’s more, Jessica Wild lip synced against Tatianna, who didn’t have the same solid track record on season 2. Language barriers aside, Jessica was a fierce queen that deserved to fight another day.
BenDeLaCreme (Season 6)
Watching the lip sync between BenDeLaCreme and Darienne Lake on Drag Race season 6, it’s not entirely shocking that Darienne stayed. With that said, Ben never actually stumbled that season, and Darienne had landed more times in the bottom.
It was heartbreaking for fans to watch BenDeLaCreme sashay away on season 6. The queen had won the Snatch Game (on a season with Bianca Del Rio!), won a design challenge, and done so well during her first lip sync that no one was sent home that week. Thankfully, Drag Race fans were loud enough to push Ben into winning the Miss Congeniality title. However, that still doesn’t change how shocking it was to see this fierce queen go home so soon.
Ongina (Season 1)
From the very beginning, it was clear that Ongina was a queen meant for a future season of RuPaul’s Drag Race – just not season 1. She was bald, funny, and open about her struggles, which are all characteristics of future Drag Race winners. But season 1 was still too early, and Ongina kept being ignored by her fellow sisters and the judges.
The only two queens who won two Maxi Challenges on season 1 were BeBe Zahara Benet (who won the season) and Ongina. On Episode 4, not only did Ongina win the challenge, but she also gave the judges a heartfelt speech about being HIV+ and not letting her status affect her life. Then, she was eliminated on the very next episode. Very shocking, to say the least!
Nina West (Season 11)
The judges had a hard time appreciating the campiness of Nina West’s runway style. When the queen landed in the bottom with Silky Nutmeg Ganache, who had already won 2 Max Challenges and had been safe throughout most of the season, it seemed like the odds were stacked against Nina.
But here’s the catch: while both Nina West and Silky Nutmeg Ganache did poorly on their lip sync, there’s certainly a consensus among fans that Silky did do worse. With so much wisdom and experience under her belt, Nina West deserved to stay in the competition to fight another day, and her elimination came as a huge shock to most fans.
Pandora Boxx (Season 2)
The general consensus in the RuPaul’s Drag Race fandom is that Pandora Boxx was the franchise’s first-ever “robbed” queen, being sent home during her first time in the bottom despite doing really well throughout season 2. In many ways, Pandora Boxx set up the blueprint for future queens to win the Snatch Game, and paved the way for comedy queens to have a chance of winning their seasons.
The shock surrounding the elimination of Pandora Boxx wasn’t necessarily because fans thought that she could win. The judges were never too kind toward Pandora, so her chances of winning were slim. The shock comes from the fact that Pandora Boxx was eliminated during her very first time stumbling on season 2, despite being such an influential queen for the show.
Willam (Season 4)
Willam came to RuPaul’s Drag Race as a seasoned actor who was more experienced in playing by the rules of Hollywood than any other contestant in the history of the show. She did come off as a troublemaker, but no one expected that she’d ever cross a line that was deemed ‘too far.’
The shock surrounding Willam’s elimination was two-fold. For one, the two queens involved in show’s biggest rivalry of all time – Sharon Needles and Phi Phi O’Hara – were in the bottom that week, and fans were anxious to know who would survive the lip sync. Then, RuPaul announced that neither of them was being eliminated. Instead, Willam was being sent home for breaking the rules. Talk about great TV!
Vanessa Vanjie Mateo (Season 10)
From the very first moment that Vanessa Vanjie Mateo opened her mouth on RuPaul’s Drag Race season 10, fans were instantly enamored by her quick wit and boyish charm. There was no way that a queen who was that good on her confessionals and who provided such great TV would be eliminated on the first episode.
Except, the judges did eliminate Vanessa Vanjie Mateo on the first episode of season 10, leaving every Drag Race fan in complete shock. Then, the “Miss Vanjie” moment went viral, and it became even clearer that this queen had to be back on television. Thankfully, Ru and his team made the right call to cast her on season 11.
Valentina (Season 9)
Love her or hate her, it was quite clear to every Drag Race fan that Valentina would go all the way to the finale on season 9. When Valentina landed in the bottom and had to lip sync against Nina Bo’Nina Brown, it felt like it was Nina’s time to go, as she had landed in the bottom before and kept second-guessing her every move. But then Valentina kept her mask on because she didn’t know the words to their lip sync song.
In 12 seasons (not counting All Stars), it’s safe to say that the most shocking elimination of all time on Drag Race was Valentina’s. If only she had learned the lyrics to Ariana Grande’s “Greedy”!