'What friends will throw you under the bus?' Alyssa Edwards teases to EW

RuPaul's Drag Race type TV Show network VH1 genre Reality Where to watch Close Streaming Options

Remember the shock you felt when, four Drag Race seasons ago, Roxxxy Andrews, sequined hem-deep in the best lip-sync of her life, ripped off a full wig of luscious locks to reveal another wig underneath? The twist on the second edition of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars is bigger than that… way bigger. The returning contestants seem to agree, as evidenced in EW’s exclusive clip from the upcoming season’s first episode.

In a shocking alteration to the reality show’s format, which typically sees the bottom two queens performing for a single remaining spot in the competition, during the premiere of All Stars season 2 (and in the clip, below), RuPaul reveals he won’t be eliminating a queen at the end of the episode — or anyone at all, for that matter.

“There are so many fierce queens I could have invited back, but you 10 were chosen because I believe that each of you still has something to prove to me, to your fans, and, most importantly, to yourself,” RuPaul says to the group of competitors, which includes fan favorites like Alaska, Adore Delano, Katya, Detox, and Alyssa Edwards.

He continues: “So, from this moment on, everything you do is about building your legacy. But, wait, there’s more! Because you’re all-stars, I will not be eliminating any queens this season.”

It turns out the queens themselves will hold the power of elimination in their hands. Instead of lip-syncing for their lives, the week’s top two queens will lip-sync for their legacy. The winner will then choose that week’s unlucky eliminee.

“Bitch, what?” Ginger Minj exclaims shortly after RuPaul’s announcement. Detox adds: “What’s happening? We’re all freaking out!”

Season 5 runner-up, Alaska, tells EW that no one in the cast saw the twist coming.

“It’s terrible! It was a complete surprise and a complete shock,” he says. “We were more surprised than the American public will be.”

Edwards adds: “You gotta keep your friends close and your enemies closer! Look, I think the change makes the show interesting, ’cause we were all told on day one, ‘I won’t be sending you home’ [by RuPaul], so we were all like ‘Yay!’ Naww, go ahead and settle down sug[ar]. It’s gonna make the season exciting and beyond interesting. What alliances will be formed? What friends will stay? What friends will throw you under the bus? What friends will get in the driver’s seat of that bus and run you over? What kind of friend are you?”

Find out who gets the boot (or studded stiletto, in this case) on the first episode of RuPaul’s All Stars Drag Race‘s second season when it premieres this Thursday, Aug. 25 at 8 p.m. ET on Logo.

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