Thirsty Gay Twitter Obsesses over 'Drag Race' Star Amanda Tori Meating Out of Drag

Amanda Tori Meating is the current favorite of "RuPaul's Drag Race" – more so now that images of her out of drag from her college days are going viral and thrilling thirsty fans, causing gay Twitter to melt down.

Images of the "Drag Race" Season 16 queen from her days as a theater major have hit social media in a big way, prompting an outpouring that, reports say, have crowned the queen as a freshly minted icon.

The Dayton Daily News noted that Meating is "a 2018 Wright State University musical theatre graduate who has performed drag as Amanda since 2021."

And before that? Videos that have come to light show her with close-cropped blond hair, muscles that go on for days, and wholesome good looks that speak to what the Daily News call Meating's "Dayton roots."

Even in the Daily News piece, the fierce queen drops a killer quote:

"Drag unleashes the menace I've been keeping inside for a long time."

It's that energy that ushered Meating to the show after only one audition, while others in the long-running franchise have had to knock at the door repeatedly for their shot.

The 28-year-old drag sensation gave the Daily News the scoop on why so many in the LGBTQ+ community tune in so feverishly week after week and year after year.

" 'RuPaul's Drag Race' is unquestionably the largest platform for queer people on television," Meating – whose out of drag name is Philip Stock – told the newspaper. "There is no other television show where you can see that many queer people in the same room."

The writeup noted that Meating's "drag trajectory can be traced back to being cast in the national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical 'Kinky Boots' while a senior at Wright State."

"I thought drag would be something I would do on the side to fulfill myself," Meating told the newspaper. "But there was something about the 'Kinky Boots' experience that made me feel alive. Some friends of mine also said when they saw me in a normal dance audition I was good, but when they saw me audition in heels for shows like 'Kinky Boots' or 'La Cage aux Folles' I was like an unstoppable diva.

"So," the drag diva added, "I began to wonder if I was experiencing some sort of gender euphoria... and started performing in drag in the West Village in 2020."

Fast forward to Meating getting the call to join the ranks of this season's cast of 14 queens.

"I was weeping on the phone and was so excited when I got the 'Drag Race' call but I also felt this was always supposed to happen," she told the Daily News. "I sort of have had this narrative in my head of being the underdog, but I knew if I kept hustling and grinding someone would see it eventually."

And now... everyone is seeing Meating, both in her drag finery and in viral images showing her to be just as captivating out of drag. A video of pre-drag Meating performing a snippet of a song from :The Bridges of Madison Country" – and stills from that video – have taken social media by storm, as has a pre-"Drag Race" "musical theater reel" showing off Meating's range of talents.

Needless to say, gay Twitter is smitten.

For still more ferocity, check out these images from Meating's Instagram: