Why was Carson Kressley surprised as Jackie Would revealed her true identity in RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race Episode 3?

RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race season 2 aired its third episode on Friday, August 26, on VH1. Similar to previous episodes, another celebrity contestant was eliminated this week.

According to the show’s format, celebrities perform on stage as drag queens. They reveal their true identity when they get eliminated from the show. In the third episode, Jackie Would was sashayed away.

When RuPaul Charles eliminated Jackie, she had to reveal her real name. Jackie Would turned out to be Queer Eye for the Straight Guy star Thom Filicia. The revelation surprised judge Carson Kressley because he knew the contestant.

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How did Secret Celebrity Drag Race judge Carson Kressley know Thom Filicia?

Carson Kressley and Thom Filicia were co-stars in Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and have been colleagues and friends for a long time. The two also worked together on a 2018 Bravo show called Get a Room With Carson & Thom.

Carson was surprised to see Thom as Jackie Would in RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race Season 2 Episode 3. After the drag queen revealed her true identity, Carson said:

“Wait a minute, I know this Thom Filicia! You're one of my favorite men in the entire world, and now you're one of my favorite women too!”

Carson continued to add:

"I forgot my glasses so I was a little squinty. I had no idea it was you until you started to talk. And then I was like, 'I know that regional central New York finger lakes accent!’”

Thom’s Jackie Would was continously in the bottom since the first episode, and this time, she was sent home. She performed to Britney Spears Work B*tch in Episode 3.

After her performance, she told the Secret Celebrity Drag Race judges:

“Last week I was safe but just barely. I feel like I'm trying to figure out what I can do. My strong suit is not dancing, but I think my strong suit — and Jackie's strong suit — is having fun. I just have to be more authentic for that.”

Towards the end of Secret Celebrity Drag Race Episode 3, Jackie and Donna Bellisima were in the bottom two and had to compete in a lip-sync battle. The two performed to Gwen Guthrie's Ain't Nothing Goin' on but the Rent.

The judges saved Donna as she performed better than Jackie. With the latter’s elimination, audience and the judges learnt that Jackie was Thom Filicia.

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Who is Thom Filicia?

Thom Filicia, 53, is a television personality who is known for his work on the Emmy-winning show, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. He is also a famous interior designer who has appeared in several HGTV shows.

Thom is also an author, product designer, influencer, and international tastemaker. He is the founder of New York City-based design firm, Thom Filicia, Inc., which was launched in 1998. He also founded Sedgwick & Brattle by Thom Filicia, a lifestyle brand in NYC.

Thom’s bio on his official website reads:

“Filicia graduated from Syracuse University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design and is a visiting design professor at the School of Art & Design. Filicia began his career at the renowned design firms, Parish-Hadley, Inc., Robert Metzger Interiors and Bilhuber & Associates and currently resides in Manhattan and Skaneateles, NY.”

The best-selling author also runs a home decor company called Thom Filicia Home Collection.

He recently appeared on RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race Season 2 as a drag queen named Jackie Would. As Jackie, he lasted three weeks before the celebrity was eliminated in Episode 3.

Post this elimination, the remaining contestants on Secret Celebrity Drag Race are Chakra 7, Thirsty Von Trap, Donna Bellisima, Chich-Li-Fay, Milli Von Sunshine, and Poppy Love.

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RuPaul’s Secret Celebrity Drag Race Season 2 airs a new episode every Friday on VH1 at 8.00 PM ET.