When making Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, everyone on set was really nice to each other. Nina West, a former participant in RuPaul’s Drag Race, was present, so we know this to be true. In The Roku Channel’s biopic of the iconic parody artist, the winner of Season 11’s Miss Congeniality competition and sixth place finalist overall will shine as Divine. West, a member of the illustrious West family of Columbus, Ohio, and a passionate activist for the LGBTQ+ community used her season of Drag Race to preach a message of love.
She was well-liked by both contestants and viewers for her wildly funny actions, which regularly brought smiles to the faces of the judges. Many famous people, such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rihanna, and Dolly Parton, have become fans of hers since her time on the programme. She has also released many CDs and toured the country. West’s talents have taken her all the way to Broadway, where she presently stars as Edna Turnblad in a national tour of Hairspray. If you’re familiar with the work of John Waters, you’ll know that Divine invented the part of the loving, but the harsh mom in Waters’ 1988 film of the same name. Divine became renowned thanks to Waters’ Pink Flamingos.
The performer took on the job in November and hasn’t slowed down since, to the delight of her own drag mother, Virginia West. Divine, played by Harris Glenn Milstead, is widely regarded as the most famous drag queen in history. Although Milstead is most known for her work with Waters, the drag queen eventually found success in non-queer films as well, including 1985’s Trouble in Mind, in which she starred alongside Kris Kristofferson. Milstead’s life was cut short when, shortly after the premiere of Hairspray, he suffered a heart attack and died, despite having been nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his contributions to the picture.
An all-star cast, including West, reenacts Yankovic’s life from childhood to his rise to fame and famous love affairs. With Rainn Wilson as Dr Demento, Evan Rachel Wood as Madonna, Quinta Brunson as Oprah Winfrey, and Toby Huss and Julianne Nicholson as their satirical son’s parents, the cast is led by Daniel Radcliffe as the accordion-playing songwriter. Eric Appel will make his directorial debut with this flick. Today, West announced the film’s release on Instagram in honour of its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. The film will be available to the public at midnight Eastern Time on Friday. On November 4th, the function will be made available through The Roku Channel.