‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars’: Popular Contestant Rumored To Willingly Depart Competition During ‘Snatch Game’ Episode [Spoilers]
The season 2 premiere of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars ended with a tease that implied the second episode would include, “the biggest bombshell in Drag Race her-story,” and it might not be an overstatement.
If certain rumors flourishing through Reddit are to be believed, then RPDR alum Adore Delano will be the next one out of the popular television competition — and it will be of her own accord. According to the whispers, following the controversial judging from the August 25 episode, “All Star Talent Show Extravaganza,” Delano, born Danny Noriega, continues to feel defeated after Michelle Visage’s harsh critique of her performance, and eventually decides that she’s better off being out of the running.
Adding further speculation to her choice to depart is the fact that Adore has not partaken in any promotional acts for the current season, including during this year’s MTV Video Music Awards, where the eight other “All-Stars:” Alaska, Alyssa Edwards, Detox, Ginger Minj, Katya, Phi Phi O’Hara, Roxxxy Andrews, Coco Montrese, and Tatianna, all dolled up for the red carpet as past VMAs attendees, as noted by Entertainment Weekly.
Furthermore, a recent sit-down with AOL saw the same eight queens speaking about what transpires in the upcoming episodes, with Delano glaringly absent from the collective.
If she does indeed exit from the September 1 episode, “All Stars Snatch Game,” Delano will be the first queen to ever depart Drag Race without being eliminated or disqualified from the competition (season 5 competitor Willam Belli is still the only contestant to ever be kicked off in the latter fashion).
As previously mentioned, following a strong rant from panelist Visage during the first critique of the season, Delano begins to question her place in ‘All-Stars 2,’ especially as the talent she displays during the challenge — singing — is never once addressed.
“The outfit? Girl,” Visage fumes, “[that] is a 14th Street dress that doesn’t fit you. I don’t care if you’re going to give me your ‘hog body’ line or whatever it is. It’s just, I expected more [from] you.”
“I think your ‘rock star-ness’ needs to [include] more leather,” guest judge Raven-Symoné adds.
“I’ve got a lot of it, girl,” Delano responds.
“Well, it needed to [be seen today],” Symone retorts, as Adore starts to becomes downtrodden about their opinions.
“Do you care,” Michelle then inquires, “because everything [about you right now] is like, blasé.”
“I completely care,” Adore acknowledges. “I mean, I expected you kind to go HAM” — an acronym for the slang term, “hard as a motherf***er” — “so, it’s a human reaction to kind of feel [like] s**t.”
Later on, as the top two challenge winners, Tatianna and Roxxxy, decide who to vote out that week (thanks to a new twist added to this season), Adore tearfully relays her uncertainty about wanting to continue on with ‘All-Stars 2.’
“My thing is, I came in [to ‘All-Stars’] with a different idea of what [this competition would] be,” she admitted to Andrews. “I literally work at, like, punk rock venues for a living with a [live] band. I’m a drag musician, so to be told that I need to be put back into a bubble of cinching my waist — it’s just not the [game] for me. I don’t belong here.”
On social media, fans of Adore attacked Visage relentlessly for her critique, despite the fact that she expressed during it that she would be harsher on the contestants due to the level of talent she knew they possessed. Eventually, Delore took to Twitter to quell the firestorm that was started on her behalf.
LEAVE @michellevisage ALONE MAN!! This was filmed over a year ago. I love her.
— Adore Delano (@AdoreDelano) August 27, 2016
Neither Delano, Visage, RuPaul or anyone else connected to the series has commented or confirmed the rumors of Adore’s departure. RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars airs Thursdays at 8 p.m./7 c. on LOGO.
[Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images]
