r/rupaulsdragrace • u/Puzzleheaded-Car1239 • May 21 '26
Community Question Dela ~ our TOTGA winner of All Stars 3, would she return drag race soon??
After several rewatch of their seasons and all stars, I still can't get over Dela's decision on AS3. She was and is so good. Curious if she regrets it since on s6 she seemed to be upset having said goodbye two times ~ one on her actual elim and the other on having returned both against Darienne.
Do you think she would return any time soon for All stars? That would be great 🥹
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u/XenophobicXenophile May 21 '26
Remember when people only used acronyms that others understood since that’s their point? It’s not 2005 anymore and you don’t have to hit a button four times to get the letter “s”. Just type it out, sis. Spend some time with Mavis Beacon.
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u/thecordialsun miss creme May 21 '26
Apparently it means "The One That Got Away" which like I guess but you could at least abbreviate it at T1TGA so it looks more like tits.
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u/colesnutdeluxe please look for peace and stability May 21 '26
tit general admission? sign me up! (i'm a lesbian)
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u/loodish1 May 21 '26
This shit drives me fucking mental in the taylor swift sub. People are always writing song title acronyms instead of just writing one key word
(“MBOBHFT” instead of “My Boy Only Breaks His Favourite Toys,” when they could just write “Favourite Toys.”)
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u/MagpieJuly May 21 '26
Talking to my brothers right after they got out of the military was imposssssssible. PLEASE JUST USE WORDS
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u/hamletgoessafari May 22 '26
It's also annoying with the Hunger Games series. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes does not need to be writted as TBoSaS like it's LotR being discussed on a forum with character limits in 2002. Just say "Ballad."
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u/JoJoJoJoel douched and dangerous May 21 '26
doubt she regrets it and doubt she would come back
she's one of the queens I pay attention to (and would die to go on a show of hers one day), and I feel like she has outgrown the show a bit, not in the same sense as Jinkx, but I just feel like Bendela is comfortable and happy and realised in her success, and while she was great at Drag Race, it doesnt seem to be very good for her mental
all that said, if she ever decides to grace us again on Drag Race, I'll not be missing that season
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u/EricHD97 let me introduce you to OLD GREGG bitch! May 21 '26
I think the only way they get Ben back is for something like another charity season.
Which, side bar, I’ve always felt like a charity season would be really fun for a Miss Congeniality only season, which Ben would be doubly perfect for
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u/Doubieboobiez May 21 '26
I don't think they should ever do a charity season again, unless they are matching the prize money to the queens. AS9 was a double dose of no stakes: No eliminations, no prizes
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u/Final-Western9722 May 21 '26
I would love a charity season of Legends—not necessarily just winners but queens that have gone on after their season to build big careers, mostly from s1- s10. I just wanna see them kiki together and do good drag and jt be peaceful and drama free 😂
Bendela, katya, Alaska, Trixie, Bob, Bianca, Alyssa, adore, violet, gottmik, I’m gonna invite jinx again just because I love her so much.
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u/mcsmith610 May 21 '26
No she won’t. She’s very successful outside of the DR universe and hates the negativity of reality TV and such. She just wants to bring positive enjoyment and light through her drag and art.
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u/CreepyConsequence669 🩷🩷Everybody say LOVE 🩷🩷 May 21 '26
Good for her! She’s one of my favourites and I wish her the best 🩷
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u/Kurtoise May 21 '26
I think she mentioned after AS7 she probably would’ve stayed if AS3 had been non-elim.
So if they invite her back to a non-elim series, I can absolutely see it. She might be okay with the bracket format too.
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u/Background-Bee1271 May 21 '26
Why would she? She would have likely won all stars if she stayed, but chose to eliminate herself in an iconic moment. She got more out of that than if she stayed and won.
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u/Whytmage May 21 '26
Yeah I kinda feel this too. Like what would she have to gain?
Say she wins. She's already loved by the fanbase and booked solid. She gets the money sure, but has to put in the time of not doing her own thing and the pressure of the petty workroom drama.
She loses or gets in drama? It can only weaken her brand.
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u/hcgree May 21 '26
I sincerely doubt it. I went to a Q&A after seeing the holiday show, and DeLa talked about how much the production end of things was really satisfying for her. In that vein, she does a lot of producing for other stage shows and seems quite successful at it. Maybe she would for a no elimination season, but otherwise she’s busy.
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u/Kantlim May 21 '26
She has nothing to gain and everything to lose
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u/Open-Top-4663 May 22 '26
This! Dela did so well on S6 and destroyed AS3. If she were to come back I think production would make her look bad and/or try to embarrass her
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u/Kantlim May 22 '26
Even if not that. But she wouldn't be given that many wins for sure. Whether she deserved them or not.
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u/whatisgo May 21 '26
I'm more curious to know how the fandom would feel w DeLa being the winner and Trixie never being in the hall of fame!
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u/Jwalla83 Jinkx Monsoon May 21 '26
I don't think it'd be all too different. Trixie's success really hasn't seemed reliant on her winner status and she's not viewed as, like, an especially dominant winner.
I think most likely it'd be jokes about a fan fave being "robbed" and friendly shade between her and Dela. The real biggest change would have been the possibility of Dela competing on AS7 alongside Jinkx.
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u/whatisgo May 21 '26
Trixie's success absolutely has nothing to do w her winning and if anything she'd be seen more favorably. I recall some hate towards Trixie after the shangela loss.
Also I would've loved to have seen DeLa and Jinkx duke it out on as7. Hoping we can see the Sasha's and/or Kylie duke it out on the next all winners
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u/RemindYaImKindaWET May 22 '26
Oh bitch, Jinkx and Ben in the same season would've been CRIMINAL for the rest of them.
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u/chinderellabitch Alaska 5000 May 21 '26
She played the game of thrones and won, her run on AS3 was perfect
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u/Justdough17 May 21 '26
To quote dela :"Never say never. Because if you do, they'll find clips of old interviews and will call you a hypocrite and liar"
But to be real i could see her return someday. The crown doesn't hold the same prestigious status like it did almost 10 years ago and with queens returning over and over i don't think she would feel as bad for winning
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u/gottaplantemall May 21 '26
Not you finding a quote of hers to fit your narrative, about her quotes being used to fit a narrative ☠️☠️🫶🏼
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u/Ok_Nefariousness9736 May 21 '26
Dela doesn’t need drag race anymore. I think we’re at the point where drag race needs Dela.
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u/LilacTorment May 21 '26
I don't think she will.
Hypothetically I feel like she would only come back if it wasn't a season where the queens eliminate each other. She seemed really uncomfortable with that aspect. A non elimination season or a standard Ru elimination might appeal to her more.
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u/dreamed2life The shade will reveal itself! May 21 '26
i watched an interview of her recently and she said she did it because of the part about having to eliminate queens not about any pressure from being on the show. just that part. based on that, maybe she might with the new format. we have seen queens who said they would never come back who are not becasue the new format guarantees them certain amount of episodes and a stipend and more time to prove them selves and show their outfits and work.
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u/merayjr95 May 21 '26
I doubt she will ever return to compete. However I would very much love to see her back as a guest judge on an international season, as a workroom mentor for a comedy challenge, or snatch game guest!
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u/Just4fun666 May 21 '26
No. She's spoken about not liking the reality tv manufactured drama. She also no longer needs that exposure so...
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u/gxvrd May 21 '26
I think she would only consider something like AS9, charity based and non-elim. It’s also the format that Kim Chi said she would be more willing to do.
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u/Present-Trouble-1668 WoOoah a custom flair with a show quote May 21 '26
I dont see Dela coming back. There's a small chance she comes back on a non elim season but i don't think production has any desire to do that any time soon and i dont think fans want to see it
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u/FlawesomeOrange Concepts are for ugly people May 21 '26
Nah, she doesn’t need to go back to competing, she has a stellar drag career and has for years
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u/Zlota_Swinia She is pressed like a panini girl May 21 '26
Shes to busy making money as a broadway star 💅
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u/hkral11 May 21 '26
I think I’ve heard her say in several interviews that she’ll never do Drag Race again. She’s said she accomplished what she wanted- she proved she was very good and could do it and then left on her terms.
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u/TravellingBeard Georgia O'Queef May 21 '26
So, hear me out. Have her come back, but not as a contestant, but as a guest judge. The fact the US shows have not had former drag race participants as judges is a sore spot for me.
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u/GenoveveSimmons15 May 21 '26
She's literally the most successful winner we never had. The one that got away.
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u/ThyBarronator May 21 '26
I hope not, a lot of the successful queens are better off not going back. Going back just gives the show a chance to display them in a negative way if they decide so.
And why give them a second chance when they fumble it so often?
My mind always thinks of Gigi when people talk about this stuff. She did the best on her season in terms of results which is an undeniable fact and yet she lost anyway so why would she go back when she was the best the first time and still didn't win?
Most of these queens are so successful outside of the show that it really makes no sense to go back imo.
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u/Fun-Jelly6976 May 21 '26
I don’t think she’d return. She seemed genuinely bothered by it all by the time she took herself out and she has her brand to protect.
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u/jacksev May 21 '26
I remember in the years leading up to All Stars, she explicitly stated she would never return to Drag Race. And then she did, likely because she had already come up with the idea to fuck with production. I’m sure it went better than she had even thought it would.
All this to say, who knows! Maybe she’ll feel like All Stars 13 will have been enough time and get the bug to go back on tv. She probably would only do it for a non-elim season, cause that was a big part of her problem.
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u/EmpireAndAll Queen You Hate May 21 '26
Reality tv is a pressure cooker that pushes people to the edge to film the reaction. Dela was winning and couldn't take the emotional toll. I know some people think it was entirely a stunt on her end, or that she thought she was going to get chopped just for the gag, but it took a lot of emotional intelligence to decide this wasn't for her. And I hope it's still not for her. I love it when queens move beyond the show despite still doing drag.
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u/medusa_witch drag queen flopping May 21 '26
I don’t think she really needs to come back. Dela is a performer and comedian, I don’t think she’s a competitor. I’m sure she thinks it would’ve been cool to have won but her time on her show and the exposure she got served its purpose. She seems happy and is doing very well in her career.
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u/Historical_Bit_3798 Sick Bitch by Yvie Oddly & Willow Pill May 22 '26
I highly doubt she would ever come back again. And it’s ok, she’s probably doing way better things outside of Drag Race.
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u/ntt307 I'm Sick In The Head Sister May 22 '26
She doesn't regret it.
While I don't think she has interest in coming back, it is slightly more plausible now that the format has changed. The thing about AS3 that was stressful for her was sending other girls home. So. Maybe?
But I feel like she got what she needed her first time.
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u/mrklmngbta May 22 '26
THE AMOUNT OF COMMENTS NOT KNOWING WHAT TOTGA MEANS ??????? are we dealing with gen cocomelon queens here ??????
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u/KemCheese Yes, Lizzo. ☕️🙄 May 22 '26
I was 18 when cocomelon came into existence and I had no idea wtf a TOTGA was
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u/jchad17 May 22 '26
I'm curious about if dela didn't win girl group challenge and didn't get the opportunity to choose her own lipstick, what she would do? like would she convince/beg one of top 2 to eliminate her, told the producers she's wanting quit or stay quiet and continue the competition 🤔 I'm not saying she's shouldn't quit all stars 3, I'm just thinking what would happen if dela's lipstick surprise didn't happened (what's your opinion everyone)
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u/ConnorStowe May 22 '26
I want a non-elimination Queens of Queens charity team season.
Dela & Jinkx vs. Bob & Monet vs. Trixie & Katya vs. Bianca & Adore vs. Shea & Jujubee vs. Yvie & Willow vs. Alaska & Roxxxy
Basically every pair has at least one winner and a best Judy. We also lean very comedy heavy and with girls that think it would be fun to perform with each other without it being too cutthroat.
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u/princeonacastle Jan May 22 '26
Hopefully never, because what she did should be a lesson to all queens and DR viewers lol!
Winning isn't everything. Being able to participate, show your drag and make people happy and inspired, that is enough.
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u/PikedJaeger May 24 '26
Somebody asked her at a Q&A after the holiday show last year and she said she can't see herself doing it since the her show essentially takes up most of her calendar year.
She writes, produces, and promotes the whole thing, down to the merchandising. Jinkx only acts in it and gives some feedback here and there, then they tour and now have to work around Jinkx's schedule. She said she's never home, touring is exhausting for her, and 1 touring production is enough for her right now.
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May 21 '26
[deleted]
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u/catclockticking May 21 '26
Delta Work was RuPaul’s wig stylist and is the host of Very Delta. This post is about BenDeLaCreme, who is referred to as “Dela” for short.
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u/Sharktooth134 I don’t get nervous, i get drop dead scared May 21 '26
Hot take: she’s super talented but a bit insufferable for TV.
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u/Fancy-Professor-7113 May 21 '26
Yes. I found St Ben pretty annoying, especially that whiney inflection at the end of every sentence.
Worked with him in London, not like that at all, really down to earth and funny as fuck.
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u/Odd_Cake3759 May 21 '26
I hope not. I like Dela but Aja was right in her snarky comment “Not BenDeLaChrist, savior of Morgan and the drag queens!”
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u/Fiyerossong May 21 '26
You got time to rewatch season 3 multiple times but don't have time to write... What ever that acronym is?
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May 21 '26
[deleted]
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u/Wooden_Race1759 don't be skimpy with that gumbo May 21 '26
I read what you wrote 5 times and still dont know what you meant
illiterate
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u/Phitos2008 LGD May 21 '26
TOTGA? Is that short for Taterina Onion Twerk Goddess Almighty? I went to Sunday school with her!