''AJ and the Queen'' is an American comedy-drama television series, created by

RuPaul RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen, television host, singer, producer, writer, and actor. He produces, hosts, and judges the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and has received List of awards ...

and

Michael Patrick King Michael Patrick King (born September 14, 1954) is an American director, writer, and producer. He is best known for directing and writing for ''Sex and the City'', '' And Just Like That...'' and its film adaptations, and for co-creating the tele ...

. It premiered on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

on January 10, 2020.

Premise

''AJ and the Queen'' follows "Ruby Red, a bigger-than-life but down-on-her-luck drag queen who travels across America from club to club in a rundown 1986 R/V with her unlikely sidekick AJ, a recently orphaned, tough-talking, scrappy ten-year-old stowaway. As the two misfits travel from city to city, Ruby's message of love and acceptance winds up touching people and changing their lives for the better."

Cast and characters

Main

* RuPaul Charles as Robert Lincoln Lee/Ruby Red * Izzy G. as Amber Jasmine "AJ" Douglas * Michael-Leon Wooley as Louis Bell/Cocoa Butter * Josh Segarra as Hector Ramirez/Damien Sanchez * Katerina Tannenbaum as Brianna Douglas, AJ's mother * Tia Carrere as Leilani Kala'i/Lady Danger

Recurring

* Matthew Wilkas as Officer Patrick Kennedy

Guest

Victoria "Porkchop" Parker Victoria "Porkchop" Parker is the stage name of Victor Ray Bowling (born 16 January 1970), an American drag performer and actor who came to international attention on the first season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. She is notable in part for being t ...

as Himself * Jinkx Monsoon as Edie * Katya Zamolodchikova as Magda *

Mario Cantone Mario Cantone (born December 9, 1959) is an American comedian, writer, actor, singer, and television host. He is best known for his numerous stage shows. He played Anthony Marentino in '' Sex and the City'' and Terri in '' Men in Trees'' (2006– ...

as Alma Joy * Marc Singer as Bob *

Adrienne Barbeau Adrienne Jo Barbeau (born June 11, 1945) is an American actress and author. She came to prominence in the 1970s as Broadway's original Rizzo in the musical ''Grease (musical), Grease'', and as Carol Traynor, the divorced daughter of Maude Findl ...

as Helen * Michael Cyril Creighton as Christian * Chad Michaels as Brian Gerrity *

Tim Bagley Timothy Hugh Bagley (born August 17, 1957) is an American actor and comedian, who has appeared in numerous films and television programs. He had recurring roles on the TV series ''Will & Grace'', '' Hope & Gloria'', ''Strip Mall'', ''According t ...

as Lloyd Johnson *

Laura Bell Bundy Laura Ashley Bell Bundy-Hinkle (born April 10, 1981) is an American actress and singer. Her career started as a child, when her mother entered her in beauty pageants, where she would sing as a talent. After recognizing her singing ability, her m ...

as Bernadette Anderson * Bridget Everett as Anna *

Natasha Leggero Natasha Leggero () (born March 26, 1974) is an American stand-up comedian, actress, and writer. She rose to fame after appearing as the host of the MTV reality television series '' The 70s House'' in 2005, and as a regular roundtable panelist on ...

as Kath * Jimmy Ray Bennett as Kevin * Latrice Royale as Fabergé Legs * Monique Heart as Miss Terri Tory * Kevin Daniels as Darrell * John Rubinstein as Doctor * Mary Kay Place as Carolanne *

Jane Krakowski Jane Krakowski (; ; born October 11, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She starred as Jenna Maroney in the NBC satirical comedy series ''30 Rock'' (2006–2013, 2020), for which she received four Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Out ...

as Beth Barnes Beagle * Ginger Minj as Tommy/Fanny Pack * Trinity The Tuck as Danielle Dupri * Jujubee as Lee Saint Lee * Patrick Bristow as Kevin Prescott * Lorraine Bracco as herself Additionally, former ''

RuPaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...

'' contestants Mayhem Miller, Valentina, Eureka O'Hara, Bianca Del Rio, Alexis Mateo, Manila Luzon, Vanessa Vanjie Mateo, Jaymes Mansfield, Ongina, Kennedy Davenport, Mariah Balenciaga, Dahlia Sin,

Jade Jolie Jade Jolie is the stage name of Jules Green, an American drag queen and impersonator of Taylor Swift, known for competing in the RuPaul's Drag Race season 5, fifth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and the The Boulet Brothers' Dragula season 4, fo ...

, Monica Beverly Hillz,

Morgan McMichaels Morgan McMichaels (born May 28, 1981) is the stage name of Scottish-American drag performer Thomas White, best known as a contestant on the second season of the reality television competition ''RuPaul's Drag Race,'' as well as the third seaso ...

and Pandora Boxx make cameos, appearing as unnamed queens.

Production

In May 2018, it was announced that

had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes, with RuPaul starring. The series is created, written, and executive produced by RuPaul and

. MPK Productions and Warner Bros. Television are involved in producing the series. In July 2018, a casting breakdown released to talent agencies was published online. It revealed the names of four new characters, Louis, Hector/Damian Sanchez, Lady Danger, and Brianna, and included character descriptions as well. In September 2018, it was announced that Josh Segarra, Michael-Leon Wooley, Katerina Tannenbaum, and Tia Carrere had been cast in starring roles. On October 16, 2018, it was reported that Izzy G. had been cast in the lead role of the titular AJ. In January 2019, it was announced that Matthew Wilkas had joined the cast in a recurring capacity. On March 6, 2020, Netflix announced that the series had been cancelled after one season.

Episodes

Soundtrack

On January 24, 2020 a 16 track soundtrack album titled ''AJ and the Queen (Official Television Soundtrack)'' was released by Warner Bros. Entertainment. It was created by

Lior Rosner Lior Rosner is an Israeli-born film, TV and classical music composer, conductor, and theme branding expert. Rosner created the theme for ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show''. He was a nominee for an International Film Music Critics Association nominee a ...

and RuPaul.

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the series holds an approval rating of 52% based on 21 reviews, with an average rating of 5.39/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Though it doesn't always come together, ''AJ and the Queen'' is a sweet, sometimes off-the wall adventure that's fun to watch even when it's fumbling." On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the series has a weighted average score of 46 out of 100, based on 8 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

References

External links

* * {{Netflix original ended series (2019–present) 2020s American LGBTQ-related comedy television series 2020s American LGBTQ-related drama television series 2020 American television series debuts 2020 American television series endings American English-language television shows Netflix television dramas Gay-related television shows Works by RuPaul Television series created by Michael Patrick King Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Drag (entertainment) television shows 2020 LGBTQ-related television