The comeback queen dishes with ET all about her return to the show and how everything has been ‘stepped up’ for the VH1 hit’s landmark season.
Eureka O’Hara is back, back, back again and ready for her RuPaul’s Drag Race crown!
“You know, if you put me and RuPaul beside each other, we make the number 10,” the plus-size and proud queen jokes with ET. “Think about it! Think about it!”
“I like to tell people, my path has been decided for me, I'm just trying to waddle my big a** down it,” Eureka says. “I think it's time for a plus-size individual to be recognized in the entertainment industry, and especially in the LGBTQ spectrum, as hopefully an icon, and as a symbol of sex, beauty and glamour … and that's what I want to be for the plus-size community. So, I'm keeping my fingers, my toes, my eyes crossed. Girl, I'm getting it!”
Eureka says she was more than ready to come back and fight for her place in Drag Race herstory after she was forced to leave season nine due to an injury she sustained during a cheerleading challenge -- though she did second-guess returning to the series.
“I did question [it], actually,” she confesses. “The craziest thing is, right after season nine started airing, my mother got sick with throat cancer. So, weirdly, I didn't question coming back over my injury. I questioned coming back over my family and my mom. She started going through chemo and things like that right before filming, so it was actually a tough journey to be back on the show, in that element, knowing that my mom was at home.”
“But she reminded me, she said, 'Honey, get your big pants on, get over there and do your thing. Make it to the end, try to be your best, honey, 'cause you need to remind me why I love you and believe in you so much,’” Eureka adds. “She's the amazing Amazon.”
Season 10 is a whole new ballgame for the Tennessee-based performer.
“They're pulling out all the stops this season,” she teases. “The challenges are harder than ever. We're bringing back a few challenges that people are going to be really excited about, that are iconic moments from past seasons … We've got the drama, the personalities, the costumes on the runway. It's an incredible season.”
“Season nine was a little calmer, I think, and a little more sisterly,” she shares. “Now, [the season 10 girls] have grown to be sisters, but honey, in competition? We were vicious f**king b***hes.”
Fans have already seen that vicious energy from just the first episode, which saw The Vixen coming into the werkroom literally ready to fight, along with the real world rivalry between look-alike queens Miz Cracker and Aquaria coming to a head on reality TV.
“Somebody's getting hit, baby,” Eureka jokes. “It's gonna be crazy-- no, I'm just kidding. The Vixen's gonna fight 'em both! I think that it'll come to a head, obviously. Miz Cracker and Aquaria do come from the same cloth ... I think they get along later. Or they hate each other. I don't know.”
“I think Miss Aquaria should actually be honored that Cracker has learned to do her makeup from her,” Eureka says. “Drag is all about imitation from the things that we're around and environmental growth. We learn everything from the queens that come before us. Aquaria just happens to be younger than Miz Cracker, which makes it a little effed up, but, honey, Aquaria's a fierce B.”
Aquaria, Miz Cracker and The Vixen’s names all came up when Eureka listed who she sees as the biggest threats this season, along with Monique Heart, Asia O’Hara and Mayhem Miller. Still, Eureka says her “inner saboteur” is really her biggest competition. That and the fact that she’s competed before, which puts an immediate target on her back. In a sneak peek released of this week’s episode, Eureka’s fellow queens drafted her last while picking teams for season 10’s musical challenge.
“I have a big personality,” she notes. “I actually know that, I think some of the girls are holding me to maybe some moments that happened in season nine. You know, obviously, me and Trinity [Taylor] didn't get along the best [last season], and they were afraid I'd raise my hand on 'em, I guess, and follow the rules that we set in place!”
“You know, for a second, I was like, 'Oh, really?!'” Eureka continues. “But you know, you can't, you can't do that. I am talkative, I am loud, I am annoying. It's just who I am, and I love every bit of it. And luckily, it makes great TV.”
Tune into that great TV every Thursday at 8 p.m. ET when RuPaul’s Drag Race season 10 airs on VH1. For more on Ru and the show, check out the videos and links below.
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