RuPaul continues most Emmy-nominated reality host streak with 11th nod
RuPaul. (Gilbert Flores/Getty)
Queen diva herself RuPaul is continuing a streak of being the most Emmy-nominated reality TV host of all time with his 11th nomination.
Throughout RuPaul’s tenure as the host of RuPaul’s Drag Race, the star has taken home the gong for the ‘Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program’ category nine of those 11 times.
The only two people that come close to RuPaul’s record are Dancing with the Stars host Tom Bergeron and Project Runway host Heidi Klum, who have nine nominations apiece.
RuPaul received his first Primetime Emmy nomination in 2016, and won every year until 2024. As well as being the most nominated host in the category, the drag icon also holds the record for the most consecutive nominations.
In 2024, RuPaul’s winning streak was finally broken when he missed out to The Traitors US host Alan Cumming.
Cumming, who is a bisexual icon and fierce trans ally, also won for his work on the celebrity competition show in 2025.
Alongside RuPaul and Cumming in the ‘Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program’ category for the 2026 Emmy are Kristen Kish of Top Chef, who has received nominations for three years in a row, Jeff Probst of Survivor, who is on his seven nomination after four wins from 2008 to 2011, and Ariana Madix for Love Island USA, who is making her Emmy nomination debut.
Kish and Madix are both queer, meaning that 80 percent of this year’s nominees in the category are members of the LGBTQ+ community.
RuPaul’s Drag Race itself holds a whopping nine nominations for the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards.
This year, the show was recognised in the Reality Competition Program, Host, Contemporary Hairstyling, Casting, Sound Mixing, Picture Editing, Production Design, Directing and Choreography categories.
Companion series RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked also received nominations for Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program and Outstanding Picture Editing.
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