Dragula Season Four Coming to Shudder
Last October, Shudder, my favorite streaming platform, acquired the rights to the one-off special The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula: Resurrection. This entry in the alternative drag competition Dragula saw seven former contestants compete in three categories (witch, ghost, and vampire) from their homes with the help of the Boulet Brothers. The winner earned a spot on the upcoming fourth season of the series.
Shudder did a great job with the program. They invested a lot of resources promoting the special on and off their platform. The release of the special was an event that garnered a lot of media attention. The credit for the Resurrection program goes to the Boulet Brothers and their team, but Shudder put in the work to get the program out to the audience.
In my review of Resurrection, I hoped that Shudder would be the new home of the series. I am happy to report, per Deadline, that Shudder has ordered the production of the fourth season of Dragula.
🚨 The Boulet Brothers' DRAGULA is coming to Shudder 🚨 @bouletbrothers https://t.co/Mz99KUbaA5
— Shudder (@Shudder) April 7, 2021
This season is going to be huge. The cash prize is now $100000, the highest the show has ever offered by a large margin. The season three winner earned $20000. This means Shudder is investing a lot of resources into one of the most unique, beautiful, and terrifying reality competitions of all time.
Dragula features elements of horror films as a framing device for the drag competition. The Boulet Brothers open each episode with a horror, sci-fi, or camp sketch inspired by pop culture. Maybe they’re digging up a grave to create a new assistant for the show, or crash landing in the desert as a never before seen alien species. At the end of each episode, one contestant is exterminated in a short slasher film. Previous exterminations include killing someone with a voodoo doll, decapitating a contestant outside a chicken coup, and melting someone Wicked Witch of the West style.
Each season of the show has had more resources, but the show always looks incredible for the budget it has. The Boulet Brothers have a clear vision of what they want, even hiring season one winner Vander von Odd to help with production design after their stellar performance on the show. From the quality of the cast to the shooting locations for remote challenges, no detail is overlooked. It genuinely feels like anyone who walks through the door could be the winner if they can adapt to the wide variety of challenges thrown at them. They’re judged on what they bring as an artist and performer to the contest, not on how much money they spend on the contest.
Casting for season four is now underway. Contestants can fill out the initial application now at the Dragula website.
Dragula: Resurrection can be streamed on Shudder. Dragula season two and three can be streamed on Netflix. Season one can be watched on the Hey Qween YouTube channel.
