PopHorror Let's Get Scared
It’s no surprise that Lydia B Kollins fiercely represented the strange and unusual on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17. With Beetlejuice icon Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder, Edward Scissorhands 1990) as her namesake, she wasn’t about to strut down the runway in pageant gowns. Week after week, Lydia brought her own horror-inspired flair to the reality show, with her looks ranging from a sleek velour dress paired with a headpiece of dismembered, red-nailed doll arms to a fuzzy and couture penis.
Though Lydia came in seventh place, losing the lip sync battle against Lana Ja’Rae after trying (and failing) to free herself from her slim-fitting dress, she made her mark on RuPaul’s Drag Race. Unequivocally herself throughout the entire competition, Lydia enjoyed some unforgettable moments: She came out victorious in the Villains Roast challenge, got to portray David Lynch — one of her film icons — in Snatch Game, almost made it to the final battle in the “Lip Sync LaLaPaRuza Smackdown” and even found unexpected romance with fellow Season 17 competitor Kori King.
PopHorror recently chatted with Lydia about the warm reception she’s received from RuPaul’s Drag Race fans, her teen years spent discovering drag and honing her craft, and her lifelong love for all-things spooky, which inspires her artistry.
PopHorror: It’s such a pleasure to speak with you! I always watch the show and on the first episode, as soon as you said that your namesake is Lydia Deetz, I was like, “I’m rooting for that one!”
Lydia B Kollins: Yes!
PopHorror: To start, I’d love to talk about the LaLaPaRuza episode, it was so much fun. What was it like to be back in the Werk Room with everybody?
Lydia B Kollins: Honestly it was great, it was like a family reunion. It was just lovely. It was nice to see where everyone was in their drag careers at this point. It was nice to see how everyone’s evolved since the season was filmed. It was just lovely all around. It was like a celebration of everyone’s drag more than anything.
PopHorror: There was a really nice moment where you got a bit emotional talking about all of the love that you’ve been receiving from viewers. Can you elaborate on what the reception has been like from fans?
Lydia B Kollins: Yes! It’s been overwhelming. I’ve been doing drag longer than it may seem. I’ve been doing drag privately since I started out as a bedroom queen. This is something that I’ve just been striving for for so long and the fact that I am a physical artist in the drag community is very cool. I appreciate that the fans and just people in general enjoy my drag. It just moves me. I really appreciate the fans’ support.
PopHorror: Going off of that, I’d love to learn more about your background and how you came to be the queen that we see today. How and when did you discover drag and get into it?
Lydia B Kollins: RuPaul’s Drag Race was a main source of my drag intake when I was younger, as well as film and television, movies like Tim Burton’s Ed Wood. And Miss Congeniality 2 was actually the first instance of drag that I saw in the media, that one scene in the drag club. When I saw that, I was just confused, I was very intrigued. And then RuPaul’s Drag Race sort of elaborated on what that was and I just fell in love with it.
PopHorror: And what was the process of bringing Lydia to life? Was Lydia Deetz the inspiration from the beginning or did you toy around with other names?
Lydia B Kollins: It was a couple other things. I was Indigo at one point, I was Tina Edgewood. That’s my alter ego, she’s like my Sasha Fierce. But no, it was kind of always Lydia. She was just my favorite character in my favorite Tim Burton movie and I just ran with it.
PopHorror: Are you a fan of the horror genre as a whole?
Lydia B Kollins: Yes! Tim Burton did get me into horror movies and people like David Lynch as well. That’s kind of like the horror for toddlers until you get to the real heavy shit, you know?
PopHorror: What do you love most about horror? What are some of your other favorite movies?
Lydia B Kollins: I think horror is just the greatest genre of filmmaking. It’s just the best. You can tell stories with horror that you can’t tell with other genres. Everything that is terrible and horrible that happens in the world can be filtered through the lens of horror. So I think it’s a great way to tell stories, not only in the moment and physically, but it’s great to have a metaphorical meaning. I like a metaphor in my horror movies. But I also love disgusting, sludgy, nasty, gross, shock factor movies. It’s just the greatest genre of all time and Evil Dead is probably the greatest franchise, I would say.
PopHorror: How would you say horror influences your drag?
Lydia B Kollins: I think that movies in general influence my drag. Every look on Drag Race I would say is inspired by some movie one way or another. There’s no other way for me to do drag. I always will look at it through a cinematic viewpoint.
PopHorror: Was this your first time applying to Drag Race?
Lydia B Kollins: I applied when I was a teenager just for fun. But this was my first time actually applying for Drag Race.
PopHorror: What was your favorite part of the entire experience?
Lydia B Kollins: Getting to meet all of the girls on my season, because I could not have imagined a better cast. Everyone in the cast gets along so well and was very supportive of each other. But besides that, I would say all of the lip syncs. Getting to lip sync in front of RuPaul, it’s like the biggest honor of all time, to be a drag queen lip syncing in front of RuPaul.
PopHorror: Was that nerve-wracking at all?
Lydia B Kollins: Absolutely! It’s horrible. Terrifying. You can feel your heart speed up and slow down at the same time. She’s just staring at you with her dagger eyes. Very scary, but it’s very fun.
PopHorror: I always thought Michelle Visage would be scarier!
Lydia B Kollins: Not really! Something about Michelle is comforting. But RuPaul, she could open the trap door at any time.
PopHorror: What would you say was the hardest or most challenging aspect of the experience?
Lydia B Kollins: Getting out of your own head. Getting out of your own way of things. If you think you can’t do something, then you’re probably not gonna do good at it. But acting…acting is the thing that is very tough, being funny when prompted to. But besides that, it was a breeze!
PopHorror: I always give the contestants so much credit for being able to do the skits, create looks from scratch. I could never!
Lydia B Kollins: I’m sure you could!
PopHorror: Do you make all of your own looks?
Lydia B Kollins: I’ve been recently working with a lot of great designers. But I do make pretty much everything that I wear. I try to. I love the creation aspect.
PopHorror: Do you have a favorite look that you wore on the show?
Lydia B Kollins: Oh! I like the penis look. I think it’s funny. It’s just very Lydia Kollins. It’s very stupid.
PopHorror: And I have to ask about the scissors…did you think it was going to go better than it did?
Lydia B Kollins: Yeah, I definitely thought that something else was gonna happen. I should’ve just left them in the dress where they were, but something in me was saying, “You need to get out of this dress immediately!” So the scissors were brought out and it ended in disaster. I thought it was going to be just a cute little, “I’ll cut my dress and I’ll be able to perform better,” but the scissors got me. Future note to all contestants: Do not bring scissors on stage.
PopHorror: Do you have any advice, since you started drag when you were a teenager, for young, up-and-coming queens who watched you on the show and want to follow in your footsteps?
Lydia B Kollins: Just keep creating. Don’t create for no reason, especially in the time that we’re in now. The next couple of years are going to be terrible, to say the least. So I think you just need to keep making art, keep being inspired. I would sit in my room just getting in drag night after night until I was old enough to go out. So I think that you just need to keep making art. That’s the most important thing.
PopHorror: Is there anything upcoming for you that you’re able to speak about?
Lydia B Kollins: I have a lot of shows coming up, which will be posted very soon. But the biggest thing, I’m going to Australia with Kori King on the “Kiss Me Deadly” tour, that’s going to be very fun. Besides that, no. But can’t wait for Smile 3!
PopHorror: Are they making that?!
Lydia B Kollins: Listen, I’m putting it out there into the universe. If Smile 3 is happening, I would love to be cast in it. Please put a drag queen in Smile 3, I’m begging you! And that’s my final remark. [laughs]
PopHorror: That would be so fun! There’s so many good ones coming out. And I’d love to ask, how is Kori doing?
Lydia B Kollins: Kori’s doing well! She’s doing very well. She may or may not be in the other room. She’s doing great and says, “Mwah!”
PopHorror: That’s awesome! I feel like there’s been little romances in the Werk Room, but they never carried past the show. I’m so happy for both of you!
Lydia B Kollins: We met in the confines of the Drag Race Werk Room, but it turns out she’s actually a very cool person outside of that.
Thanks for speaking with us, Lydia! After our interview, it was announced that Lydia will appear on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Season 10, premiering May 9 on Paramount+.
Photos courtesy of MTV
