Here's Who the Drag Race Fandom Thinks Is Taking Over After RuPaul

For several years now, fans of RuPaul’s Drag Race have been speculating about a new drag performer taking over as the main host.

With the nearly unanimous popularity of season 15 competitor Sasha Colby, as well as her strong track record in the competition, fans are now discussing the likelihood that she was already chosen by producers to eventually replace RuPaul as the main host and judge of Drag Race. Some fans even go as far as thinking that this replacement would be imminent, and that it’d be announced right after her presumed crowning at the season 15 finale.

One particular TikTok from @allidoisdryheave detailed these theories and assumptions. The TikToker argued that with Colby winning Miss Continental in the past and presumably winning Drag Race season 15 in the near future, she’d be the perfect choice to succeed Ru as the head judge of the flagship series. Another argument is that RuPaul crowning Colby would be a “power move” that would allow the Emmy-winning host to feel confident while stepping away from the series.

You can watch the theory’s full explanation below.

There are a few layers to this discussion.

First and foremost, this is a really old discussion that has been going on for years and years and years. When Bianca Del Rio won season six, many fans assumed she’d one day take over for RuPaul. The exact same thing happened following Bob the Drag Queen’s crowning in season eight. This also happened when Alaska won All Stars 2. Bob has said on the Sibling Rivalry podcast a few times that she believes Raven is among the top queens considered to perhaps replace RuPaul some day – a theory that many fans also believe. With Jinkx Monsoon becoming a two-time Drag Race winner after All Stars 7, theories also circulated about her taking over the show at some point. Other names that have been theorized include Raja and Symone. Overall, the theory that Colby could maybe, possibly, perhaps replace RuPaul is as strong as any other argument made in the last 15 years. But RuPaul was not replaced in any of those instances.

The impression that RuPaul no longer wants to host Drag Race comes from certain statements from Ru that he doesn’t like getting in drag as often anymore. To be clear: Ru has always said that putting on his style of drag takes a lot of work and pain, and it just doesn’t seem right to do it for free or for no good reason. RuPaul is paid well for his involvement with Drag Race and did get in drag for special occasions like hosting Saturday Night Live. Thus, the conclusion that he is now trying to avoid getting in drag at all costs… doesn’t really track.

With Ru turning 63 years old in 2023, fans have also presumed that the Drag Race host wants to slow down in his career. And yet, for decades now, RuPaul has consistently talked about loving to work and has shown literally zero signs that he wants to slow down at any point in the near future. In fact, Ru has taken on more jobs in recent years than ever before – hosting Drag Race UK, Drag Race Down Under, and the CBS game show Lingo, besides his regular hosting gigs on the flagship Drag Race series, the All Stars spinoff, and the Secret Celebrity editions.

Here's the tea: Sasha Colby would probably be a fabulous, charismatic, and competent host of a drag competition on TV, but there is absolutely zero evidence that RuPaul is stepping away from hosting Drag Race right now. On the contrary, Ru keeps collecting Emmy trophies, releasing new music, hosting more TV shows, and growing his popularity and net worth in the last few years, staying true to his legendary motto, “You betta werk!”