Two of the show's original three main judges won't be returning for season 2.
June 28 2021 12:20 PM EST
June 28 2021 12:20 PM EST
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Two of the show's original three main judges won't be returning for season 2.
The judges' table is going to look a lot different in the upcoming season of Canada's Drag Race...
The Canadian version of the Emmy-winning RuPaul's Drag Race franchise took to Twitter today to announce that runway model Stacey McKenzie, unfortunately, won't be able to return to the series as a regular judge.
\u201c#CanadasDragRace fans, we\u2019re sad to share that Stacey McKenzie won\u2019t be able to return for Season 2 due to COVID-related challenges. We\u2019ll miss her killer lewks, positive vibes, & energy but know that she\u2019ll be cheering on the S2 queens! Stay tuned for updates on our judges soon!\u201d— Canada's Drag Race (@Canada's Drag Race) 1624898012
"We're sad to share that Stacey McKenzie won't be able to return for Season 2 due to COVID-related challenges," the tweet reads. "We'll miss her killer lewks, positive vibes, & energy but know that she'll be cheering on the S2 queens! Stay tuned for updates on our judges soon!"
According to a report in Entertainment Weekly, McKenzie was unable to join the judges' table for season 2 of Canada's Drag Race due to Canadian travel restrictions related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Along with UnREAL star Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman and Season 11 alum Brooke Lynn Hytes, McKenzie was one of Canada's Drag Race's original three judges.
The news of McKenzie's Drag Race exit comes on the heels of Chapman's very own exit from the series earlier this year in March. During his tenure on the reality drag series, many fans took issue with Chapman's "overly harsh" judging style and his lack of background and experience in drag. The criticisms were becoming more and more hateful as each episode of the first season went on that Chapman had to even delete some of his social media profiles and limit comments and fan interactions on others. Eventually, his exit from the show was announced by McKenize and Hytes in a Zoom video call posted to the Canada's Drag Race Instagram account in March of this year.
"But with all good news there must be some sad news," Hytes said in the clip. "Unfortunately, our third will not be joining us this season and we are going to miss him so much. Jeffrey is filming his new show. He is busy and he is booked and he is getting paid. Unfortunately, with the scheduling things didn't work out for him to come back this season but he's going to be so missed."
"We love you Jeffrey!"
No word yet on who will replace both McKenzie and Chapman as regular Canada's Drag Race judges, but we will definitely be keeping our eyes peeled for the official replacement announcement that is soon to come!
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Raffy is a Los Angeles-based writer, editor, video creator, critic, and the editor in chief of Out.com.
Raffy is a Los Angeles-based writer, editor, video creator, critic, and the editor in chief of Out.com.