Heidi N Closet Is Finally Ready to Return to ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ (Exclusive) originally appeared on Parade.
Heidi N Closet is ready to take on the world, and she’s also ready to take on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars again.
The fan favorite made a splashy entrance into the Werk Room back in Season 12 of the original franchise, where she finished in sixth place and was crowned Miss Congeniality. However, when she returned to compete in Season 8 of All Stars, she made the choice to quit before she’d reached the season’s halfway point, a choice she stands by.
“At the end of the day, I made the right call for myself at the time,” she says, while chatting with Parade as a part of her partnership with e.l.f. Cosmetics. “I feel like everything happens for a reason, so I take what good things and lessons that I can from every experience and grow from it, and I think [leaving the show] definitely allowed me to do that.”
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Flash-forward two years and Heidi has launched her own production company, has starred in Slay, a Tubi Original horror movie and is now the face of e.l.f. Cosmetics as a part of their legal universe parody The Law Offices of e.l.f.ino & Schmarnes. She’s also ready to tackle Drag Race again should the opportunity arise.
“Now, at this point, I think I would go back,” she says. “I feel like it would be a good time, because I always feel like it’s good to show the growth you’ve had since your last time being on the show. So I think I would go back.”
But Heidi doesn’t have too much time these days to fixate on her Drag Race return, because she’s got a full plate working as a “beauty injury attorney” as Ms. E.l.f.ino Esq. In the latest campaign from e.l.f., Heidi and viral comedian Matt Rife spoof a 2000s legal commercial (Cellino & Barnes, anyone?), as a pair of litigators reminding viewers of e.l.f. ‘s “commitment to clean, cruelty-free, high-performance products at jaw-dropping prices.”
Front and center in the spot is Heidi’s bowl-cut wig. “I love weird wigs, and I had a couple of different options,” she says about the shoot. “But we were really trying to go for that early 2000s lawyer commercial, and it just felt correct. I did bring a couple of extra wigs, but as soon as I laid it on my head, everyone agreed, ‘Yeah, that’s the one.'”
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Heidi’s fans from Drag Race will certainly remember her signature wit and humor, which is on full display here, and Heidi says e.l.f. gave her plenty of room to goof around on set.
“There’s a lot that goes into it, because you have to make sure you get the line that they’re wanting. But e.l.f allows us to do a lot of improvising and having fun with it,” she says. “There’s a lot of takes that are just acting a fool and trying to see where we go with the character. Especially with me being in heels, it is a long day, but it is a very fun day.”
E.l.f.ino & Schmarnes isn’t Heidi’s first collab with e.l.f. though. “I’ve actually been lucky enough to be working with e.l.f. since quarantine days,” she says, remembering their first collaboration after she appeared on Season 12 back in 2020. “I first started out doing e.l.f. bingo for them, which was a lot of fun, but of course, it was quarantine, so I was inside my house doing bingo by myself to them on the computer.”
She then appeared as a jury member in Judge Beauty, another e.l.f. cosmetics campaign starring Judge Judy, Meghan Trainor, Benito Skinner and the cast of Suits. “When I found out the details, I was like, ‘Oh, this is insane. I love Judge Judy, and I love the concept.’ I love how whimsical and fun and humorous e.l.f. can be. I’m like, ‘Wow, we got some big hitters. I better get my acting pants on.'”
Related: Will ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars’ Return for Season 11?
Heidi even managed to snag a selfie with Judge Judy, although she was surprised to find out that the famed TV judge is only 5’1″.
Working as a lawyer (albeit a fictional one) has been a long time coming for Heidi. “My grandmother wanted me to become a lawyer growing up, so it kind of felt right,” she says. “I grew up watching Matlock, the old Matlock, with my grandmother, and then I’ve recently gotten into the new Matlock. So I’m like, ‘Okay, I see it for me.'”
Regarding Kathy Bates’ Emmy-nominated turn in the new Matlock, Heidi laughs, “She’s been on a tear. She’s been killing it. It’s incredible. I love it. I’m fully invested in it, and I hope she figures out who did it.”
Heidi would love to parlay her e.l.f.ino experience into a guest spot on Matlock in the future. “I want to be the person who did the crime,” she says. “The villains tend to get the craziest and funnest roles, and I don’t really ever get to play the villain in things. I would love to be a villain or someone who’s getting caught.”
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While probably not yet qualified to serve in a real court of law, Heidi is certainly qualified to call out crimes against beauty, and she’s ready to name perpetrators. “The amount of blush I’m seeing is absurd. Pull back. It’s okay. You don’t need that much,” she says. “Jorgeous and Kandy Muse, you must be stopped.”
Although Heidi may not be caking on the blush, she’s certainly using plenty of e.l.f. Cosmetics’ products and lists Incredi-Curl Mascara and Halo Glow Liquid Filter as two of her go-tos. “My favorite of all time is the Power Grip Primer,” she adds. “They actually just came up with a jumbo size. I love when the company listens to the consumer.”
As a drag queen, Heidi certainly knows her way around makeup and is thankful that e.l.f. never shies away from supporting the drag community. “They’re very much in tune with what drag queens are about, being disruptors and going against the norm,” she says, “and they’ve always been very affordable and price conscious for those of us who may not necessarily have all that.”
While Heidi may have arrived in Season 12 balling on a budget, the “blessed and highly favored” queen is now booked and busy. But she’s still got time to watch Drag Race and throw some slight shade.
“It started out so good. I don’t know what happened,” she says of All Stars Season 10. “The fandom did not like the second half of the season. I thought it was serviceable. I don’t think it was as bad as everyone says. I was thoroughly entertained.”
Related: Will ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars’ Return for Season 11?
Heidi N Closet Is Finally Ready to Return to ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ (Exclusive) first appeared on Parade on Aug 12, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 12, 2025, where it first appeared.
