Introduction
Roy Haylock (born June 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Bianca Del Rio, is an American actor, insult comedian, costume designer, and drag queen. He is a fixture in the New Orleans and New York City club scenes, often working with Lady Bunny, and is best known for being the winner of the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race.
Early life
Haylock grew up in Gretna, Louisiana. He is of Cuban and Honduran descent and is the fourth of five children. He started acting and designing costumes for plays at West Jefferson High School. After high school, Haylock moved to New York City and worked at Bloomingdale's for nine months, but later returned to Louisiana.
Career
Haylock has primarily worked as a costume designer. In 1993, he won a Big Easy Entertainment Award for Best Costume Design for Snow Queen at the age of 17. He has been nominated for 13 Big Easy Entertainment Awards for costume design, winning six. Haylock has also made costumes for New Orleans Opera.
In New Orleans, Haylock started performing as a drag artist in 1996 in the play Pageant. The local drag queen Lisa Beaumann saw him in the play and later cast him in shows at the nightclub Oz. Haylock won the New Orleans Gay Entertainer of the Year for three years as drag queen Bianca Del Rio.
In 2001, Bianca Del Rio was selected as co-grand marshal, with Pat "Estelle" Ritter and Rick Thomas for Southern Decadence XXIX.
2005–present: Move to New York
Haylock moved to New York City after Hurricane Katrina. In addition to performing in drag, Haylock builds costumes for Broadway shows, ballet and opera having worked for Barbara Matera, Ltd. Del Rio performs weekly in various NYC nightclubs including in cabaret with Lady Bunny at XL Nightclub. Notable events include a roast of Patricia Krentcil, better known as "Tan Mom."
Haylock starred in the first regional production of Rent (following its initial Broadway closing) at Le Petit Theatre in New Orleans, playing the role of 'Angel' opposite Christopher Bentivegna as Collins.
Del Rio was featured in the web series Queens of Drag: NYC by gay.com in 2010. The series featured fellow New York drag queens Dallas DuBois, Hedda Lettuce, Lady Bunny, Mimi Imfurst, Peppermint, and Sherry Vine. In 2011, Del Rio appeared on One Night Stand Up: Dragtastic! NYC by Logo TV. The episode was filmed live at the Bowery Ballroom and was hosted by Pandora Boxx.
He appeared on the cover of Next for their Summer Yearbook 2012 issue. Del Rio appeared on the variety show She's Living for This, hosted by Sherry Vine, in 2012.
In 2013, Del Rio was announced starring in the film Hurricane Bianca. An Indiegogo campaign was made for the film and was sponsored by Fractured Atlas, a non-profit art services organization in New York City. The film is directed by Matt Kugelman, who works as an editor on CBS This Morning.
RuPaul's Drag Race
In December 2013, Logo announced that Bianca Del Rio was among 14 drag queens who would be competing on the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race. She quickly became a front-runner among the contestants and a fan favorite, eventually becoming part of the final three, having won three challenges along the way.
On May 19, 2014, Del Rio was crowned the winner of the sixth season over runners-up Adore Delano and Courtney Act. She was the second winner and fourth contestant to reach the finale without having to lip sync for her life, and remains the only contestant in the history of the series to make it through the entire competition without ever placing low or in the bottom of a challenge. Del Rio is also the first and only Hispanic winner of RuPaul's Drag Race.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Cypress Edge | Assistant wardrobe | |
| 2010 | The Sons of Tennessee Williams | Himself | Documentary |
| 2011 | National Lampoon's Dirty Movie | Drag Queen | Direct-to-video |
| 2016 | Hurricane Bianca | Richard Martinez / Ms. Bianca Del Rio | Released September 23, 2016 |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | MTV Mardi Gras | Herself (in drag) | TV Special |
| 2011 | One Night Stand Up | Episode 10: Dragtastic NYC | |
| Threesome | Season 1, Episode 3 Season 1, Episode 4 Season 1, Episode 14 Season 1, Episode 15 |
||
| 2012–13 | She's Living for This | Season 1, Episode 5: "The Bianca Del Rio Episode" Season 2, Episode 4 |
|
| 2014 | RuPaul's Drag Race | 14 episodes, Winner | |
| 2015 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Episode 7: "Snatch Game" (via video message) Episode 13: "Countdown To The Crown" Episode 14: "Grand Finale" |
|
| 2015 | Big Brother's Bit on the Side | Celebrity panelist for the show on September 17, 2015 | |
| 2016 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Episode 9: "The Realness" | |
| 2016 | Bianca's Rolodex of Hate | 60-minute special of Bianca doing stand-up comedy, aired May 9, 2016 on Logo TV. The special was recorded in Austin, Texas. | |
| 2016 | RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars | Season 2, Episode 2: "All Stars Snatch Game" |
Web series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Queens of Drag: NYC | Himself (in drag) | Produced by gay.com |
| 2013 | Kings of New York | Himself | Produced by Lucas Entertainment |
| 2014 | Really Queen? | Himself (in drag) | Produced by WOW Presents |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Theatre | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Psycho Beach Party | Marvel Ann | True Brew Theatre | |
| At The Club Toot Sweet On Bourbon Street | Cooch Deville | Southern Rep Theatre | ||
| ...And The Ball And All | Ernesto | North Star Theatre | ||
| 1999 | Southern Rep Theatre | |||
| 2002 | Cabaret | Emcee | Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre | |
| 2003 | Bianca's Remote Out of Control | Various roles | Le Chat Noir | |
| Hollywood Heaven | ||||
| 2004 | Grease | Vince Fontaine | Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre | |
| Murder at Movary Manor | Daphne | Marigny Theatre | ||
| The Bad Seed | Hortense Daigle | Le Chat Noir | ||
| 2005 | At The Club Toot Sweet On Bourbon Street | Cooch Deville | Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre | |
| Pageant | Miss Industrial Northeast/Tawny-Jo Johnson | |||
| 2008 | Cabaret | Emcee | ||
| Rent | Angel Dumott Schunard | |||
| 2010 | She'll Be Dying | Bowery Poetry Club | ||
| Mayo on Your Breakfast at Tiffany's |
Comedy Tours
- The Rolodex Of Hate Tour (2014)
- Not Today Satan Tour (2016–2017)