With RuPaul’s Drag Race continuing to take over the world, new drag-disaster comedy Stop! That! Train! looks set to captivate the franchise’s adoring fans whilst bringing a light-hearted level of foolishness to UK cinemas.
But despite its campy façade and utter foolishness, it’s a film that reminds LGBTQ+ folk that they will always be worthy of the silver screen – even when they’re not being farmed for their trauma or teaching audiences about the importance of allyship.
Starring RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni Brooke Lynn Heights, Ginger Minj, Jujubee and supermodel of the world RuPaul herself – alongside a plethora of outrageous celebrity cameos and more of the reality competition series’s stars — Stop! That! Train follows Tess (Ginger Minj) and DeeDee (Jujubee) as they aspire to become chic trolly dollies on the subtly named Glamazonian Express.
But first, they must impress the ‘Miranda Priestly of the train world’ Amber (Brooke Lynn Hytes) and her minions played by Drag Race stars Symone and Marty Lauter as well as the train’s unruly passengers – which of course include Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Traitors US star Lisa Rinna.
Because why wouldn’t it?
Despite the film centring and spotlighting LGBTQ+ talent, its spoof-laden script and hyperbolic slapstick was the main driver behind what lasting message director Adam Shankman (Hairspray) wanted audiences to take home.
“I make movies for everybody. This is not a movie about standing on a soapbox and telling everybody ‘We’re here, we’re queer, we’re proud,'” he shared with Radio Times.
As a genre, spoof has made a resurgence in recent years with The Naked Gun in 2025, British comedy Fackham Hall as well as the recent Scary Movie spearheading the move to make audiences laugh with gay abandon once again.
But Shankman was clear he didn’t need to punch down to land the jokes.
“There’s no drag jokes. There’s no race jokes. Weirdly, there’s no political jokes, and there’s no religious jokes. It’s just straight broad comedy so to speak. That was the north star for me. The existence of the movie, the presence of these actors, the showcasing of these entertainers – that was the most political thing.”
Stars Ginger Minj and Jujubee are incredibly familiar with the spotlight, with Minj competing on season 7, All Stars 2, All Stars 6 and All Stars 10 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. Jujubee has equally enjoyed many a stint in the ‘workroom’, having competed on season 2, All Stars 1, All Stars 5 and the international contingent – UK vs The World.
Despite their long-standing dedication to sharing their drag with the world – there was something unique for them with Stop! That! Train! that allowed them to feel excited by sharing new stories on the big screen.
“It felt like for years we were only allowed to tell queer stories from a very niche queer perspective,” Minj explained.
“And now we’re getting this opportunity to tell the story that’s not necessarily a queer story, but it has innate queer joy in it from a very different perspective. And I think that that is so special.”
“We’re not the jokes, we give the jokes,” adds Jujubee.
“I think that’s a really beautiful thing because a lot of times you see a drag queen on stage performing and we’re just there to be laughed at instead of being laughed with, and Stop1 That! Train! allows people to laugh with us. Sometimes the jokes will go over your head, but maybe you’ve got to smarten up a little bit because this movie is wicked smart.”
With RuPaul’s Drag Race, and RuPaul specifically dominating the Emmy nominations this year, with an outstanding 11th Primetime Emmy Award nomination for outstanding host for a reality or reality competition programme, it’s clear the drag domination is far from over.
Meanwhile, on our side of the pond, BBC Three’s RuPaul’s Drag Race UK is set to unleash a new batch of queens onto our screens on the 3 September, so if you were looking for camp frivolity – your screens are going to be full of it.
Stop! That! Train is in UK cinemas from August 21st.
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