If you’ve ever stepped foot in a gay bar or tuned into MTV on a Friday night, there’s a good chance you’re familiar with Leland’s work.
In addition to writing hit songs for artists like Troye Sivan and Ava Max, the Golden Globe nominee is also responsible for dozens of original tracks for “RuPaul’s Drag Race” — including “Wigloose,” “Moulin Ru” and “Joan: The Unauthorized Rusical.” Now, he’s taking his talents to the big screen in “Stop! That! Train!”
“Writing these songs feels like taking a Rusical off of the main stage and putting it into a movie theater, and that is such a joy. Writing a Rusical already is one of my favorite things in the world to do, so to write something for Adam Shankman to direct in this context, it was just a dream,” Leland told TheWrap. “It’s such a different beast … such a fun vision that Randy [Barbato] and Fenton [Bailey] and Ru and Tom [Campbell] fought to bring to life. I hope that this is the start of an era of us making movies like this.”
Thanks to his many contributions to the queer community, Leland has even been a guest judge on “Drag Race.” “I feel like, at this point, I have a good barometer of what makes Ru laugh,” he said after gifting the world iconic songs like “I’m That Bitch,” “Break Up (Bye Bye)” and “UK Hun?”
“I think one of the reasons why the show is still on after so many years is just the joy that it brings to people and the stories that it tells. It’s a reflection of what’s happening in the world and the human experience and different people’s experiences; their resilience, sometimes despite their circumstances,” the songwriter added. “What’s so interesting is a lot of these queens that have come through ‘Drag Race’ have gone through so much, but yet they’re able to be funny and be talented and really showcase such a special skill set. It’s just the combination of Ru and the judges and the queens and the magic of the show that helps something like this live outside of the show.”
“Thankfully, the show just keeps getting bigger and bigger, so the audience is there. You can feel it when you go to a gay bar,” Leland continued. “Especially right now, what we need is joy. This movie is so funny and so stupid and does not take itself seriously. That is something we really want to impress upon people: Like, sure, you can go be critical of it, but go have fun and bring your friends — there’s so much in this world to be serious about, this is not one of them.”
“Stop! That! Train!” crashes into theaters this Friday, while “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” Season 11 airs Fridays on Paramount+.
