**SPOILERS BELOW**

Winner of MTV's "RuPaul's Drag Race" Crowned During Showstopping Season 17 Finale where RuPaul Presented EGOT Icon Liza Minnelli with "Giving Us Lifetime Achievement" Award

RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars to Premiere on Friday, May 9 Exclusively on Paramount+

New York, NY - April 18, 2025 - Tonight, the top four finalists of the Emmy(R) Award-winning RuPaul's Drag Race - Jewels Sparkles, Lexi Love, Onya Nurve, and Sam Star - lit up the main stage with their charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent in the dazzling Season 17 finale. For the first time in Grand Finale herstory, the finalists each performed an original song using their own vocals, before RuPaul named Jewels Sparkles and Onya Nurve as the top two finalists, who then went head-to-head in a show-stopping lip sync to Lady Gaga's smash hit "Abracadabra." Ultimately, Onya Nurve was crowned Season 17's winner by RuPaul, taking home a $200,000 grand prize presented by TodayTix, the theater ticketing app. Runner-Up Jewels Sparkles received a $25,000 prize courtesy of Anastasia Beverly Hills, which also tipped Lexi Love and Sam Star $10,000 each in recognition of their drag excellence throughout the season.

Sapphira Cristál and Xunami Muse, who were both awarded the title of Miss Congeniality on season 16, passed down the title to Crystal Envy, who was given $10,000, presented by Olay Body. Olay Body also awarded the remaining queens $2,000 each to celebrate a sickening season.

RuPaul presented EGOT winner Liza Minnelli with the "Giving Us Lifetime Achievement Award," which recognizes individuals for their dazzling contributions to entertainment. The excited audience got to "ring them bells" for Liza as she was given her award, including her brother Joey Luft who was in the audience. Minnelli is the third icon to receive this Award during the "Drag Race" finale, with past recipients including Bob Mackie and Cassandra Peterson, better known as Elvira.

"Time and time again, Onya Nurve delivered that "something extra" that made her our undisputed champion," said eight-time Emmy(R) Award-winning Host and Executive Producer, RuPaul. "Condragulations to all the queens, and especially our finalists, for serving one of the most competitive seasons in Drag Race herstory!"

Highlights from the RuPaul's Drag Race season 17 finale include:

· RuPaul gave a wig-snatching performance of the song "Good Luck and Don't F%k It Up."

· Season 16 winner Nymphia Wind made an appearance as the iconic "Dr. Jane Not-Good-At-All" and passed down the crown and scepter to the winning queen.

Season 17 of Drag Race featured 14 queens vying for the title of "America's Next Drag Superstar", including Acacia Forgot (Los Angeles, CA), Arrietty (Seattle, WA), Crystal Envy (Asbury Park, NJ), Hormona Lisa (Chattanooga, TN), Jewels Sparkles (Tampa, FL), Joella (Los Angeles, CA), Kori King (Boston, MA), Lana Ja'Rae (New York, NY), Lexi Love (Louisville, KY), Lucky Starzzz (Miami, FL), Lydia B Kollins (Pittsburgh, PA), Onya Nurve (Cleveland, OH), Sam Star (Leeds, AL), and Suzie Toot (Fort Lauderdale, FL) - who earned the title of "Queen of She Done Already Done Had Herses" in the show stopping "Lip Sync Lalaparuza Smackdown." Celebrity guest judges on the season included Katy Perry, Doechii, Sandra Bernhard, Julia Schlaepfer, Paul W. Downs, Hunter Schafer, Quinta Brunson, Jamal Sims, Law Roach, Adam Lambert, Betsey Johnson, Whitney Cummings, Sam Smith, Jerrod Carmichael, June Diane Raphael and Tracee Ellis Ross.

Next up, the milestone 10th season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars will premiere on Friday, May 9, exclusively on Paramount+.

"RuPaul's Drag Race" sponsors include ViiV Healthcare.

For more information on RuPaul's Drag Race and up-to-date news, go to Paramount Press Express and follow RuPaul's Drag Race on X, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook for all the latest tea. Join the conversation using #DragRace.

About World of Wonder:

World of Wonder (WOW) has reshaped international pop culture, earning 30 Emmys, inspiring two Oscars, creating global network WOW Presents Plus across 190 territories, and bringing drag culture to the world stage via RuPaul's Drag Race and DragCon. WOW's pioneering television portfolio includes other smash-hit franchises like Million Dollar Listing. Their film division WOW Docs produces groundbreaking documentaries including Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures, Party Monster, and The Eyes of Tammy Faye. WOW also operates YouTube channel WOWPresents, music label World of Wonder Records, the WOW Podcast Network, and year-round international live events. Co-founders Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato have been profiled in Variety's Reality TV Impact Report. Honors for their trailblazing work include the IDA Pioneer Award, Realscreen's Global 100 list, and the OUT 100. In 2022, World of Wonder was ranked #2 among film and TV powerhouses in Fast Company's World's 50 Most Innovative Companies.

About SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment Studios & Paramount Media Networks

SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment Studios & Paramount Media Networks is a global network of media assets that reaches over one billion people in more than 180 countries featuring some of the most iconic brands in entertainment including SHOWTIME, MTV, Comedy Central and Paramount Network among others - and, its Studios arm which produces 120+ series annually, including some of today's biggest hits such as Yellowstone, Yellowjackets, Emily in Paris, 1883, 1923, George & Tammy, South Park, Tulsa King, RuPaul's Drag Race, The Challenge and Jersey Shore, to name a few.