‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Winner Symone Picks Season 14’s Best Looks

SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you haven’t watched the season finale of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” Season 13 winner Symone was hailed for her high-fashion runway style that saw her glide to victory and become America’s next drag race superstar. Earlier this evening, she crowned Willow Pill as Season 14’s winner, thereby concluding her reign.

Symone spoke with Variety about her favorite looks from this season’s queens, and shared the inspiration behind her own finale ensemble.

Willow Pill and the Roast of Ross Mathews (Ep. 13)

“This look is one that is so visceral in my head. … I love the drama of it all and I love the exaggeration of it all. It felt so Willow, but it was just something that I don’t think, at that point, we had seen from her. It was this fun look with glamour. It brought so much joy to me. This look had a ting of mania to it.”

Bosco’s Roast Runway (Ep. 13)

“I really enjoyed Bosco’s look because she had this interesting take on the tutu with the blood and saws. It was such an interesting way to do the runway. I love it when people take a runway and flip it on its head like that. It was fire. The whole ensemble from head to toe and the visual concept was so clear and concise, you get it right away.”

Willow’s Finale Lip-sync Look (Ep.15)

“Willow’s finale lip-sync was so fun and playful. It was totally her look. I loved the over-exaggerated shoulders, the links with the arms and hands in this little body. The whole juxtaposition of it was so smart to me. I loved her reveal; it wasn’t a typical reveal, but it made complete sense for her, and it didn’t feel like she was trying to be anybody else. It just felt like Willow and that she was having this good time.”

RuPaul’s Roast Look (Ep.13)

“I love Ru’s roast look. We were all gagging when she came around the corner. Ru had this big blond Afro and her face was so soft. She had those wings. We let out this audible gasp. You see the pictures before the release, but to see the action and emotion was so good. That’s one of my favorite looks of the season.”

Symone’s Finale Look (Ep.15)

“It took so long because it is such a heavy thing. It’s a combination of your year and you want to show growth, but you also want to still remain true to who you are. It was really hard and it took a very long time. It was about which direction we wanted to go in. Do we want to go avant-garde? Do we want to go with a gown? Then it came down to what is the most unexpected thing that they think I would do. So, of course, it was jeans and t-shirts.

“That scared me because I didn’t want people to think I was being shady, but it felt the most correct. Michael Schmidt created that look. We said, ‘If we’re going to do jeans, they need to be most custom-sparkly, crystallized jeans ever to be seen. And if we’re going to do a shirt, it has to be perfectly fitted and molded to my body.’

“It ended up being a lot of fun because we got to create jeans from nothing and make them our own, so it was the most fun in putting it together. What a way to give over the crown. It didn’t have to be this serious moment. It could be whatever, and I think that culmination of my year was really fun and I’m happy with it.

“We were like, ‘People are going to want these jeans.’ I am open to collaboration, so whoever is out there and wants the most stunning jeans in the world … let’s go.”