Critics Choice Real TV Awards: ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Leads With Five Nominations

RuPaul’s Drag Race has topped the list of the 2021 Critics Choice Real TV Awards nominees, racking up five nominations.

The VH1 show is nominated for best competition series, best ensemble cast in an unscripted series, female star of the year (Michelle Visage) and two for host RuPaul Charles (best show host and male star of the year).

Other shows scoring multiple nominations include triple nominees Netflix’s Queer Eye, CNN’s Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy, Hulu’s Taste the Nation With Padma Lakshmi and Bravo’s Top Chef.

Netflix scored the most nominations with 22, followed by HBO/HBO Max with 14.

It was also announced that late Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek will be honored with this year’s Impact Award, recognizing career excellence and an individual’s positive impact on the world of nonfiction content.

“As the number of platforms continues to grow, the quality of unscripted television programming has skyrocketed, and we are thrilled to be able to recognize so much great work, especially at the end of a year when this content was needed more than ever,” said Critics Choice Association CEO Joey Berlin. “We are looking forward to celebrating this year’s winners, and our most deserving Impact Award honoree Alex Trebek, later this month.”

The general manager of nonfiction producers’ organization NPACT, which leads the selection of non-competitive discretionary awards, Michelle Van Kempen, added: “Throughout the unprecedented challenge of the last year, nonfiction content was a touchstone for audiences around the globe. From documentary to reality, competition to game shows, nonfiction provided much-needed connection and entertainment. We are immensely grateful to the family of Alex Trebek for allowing NPACT and the CCA to honor him this year, and to celebrate the positive impact he made on our industry.”

Winners of the third annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards — recognizing the best in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming across broadcast, cable and streaming — will be revealed on Monday, June 21. Winners in two categories — female star of the year and male star of the year — will be chosen by fan voting on CriticsChoice.com.

A complete list of this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Awards nominees follows.

BEST COMPETITION SERIES
RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
The Amazing Race (CBS)
The Great British Baking Show (Netflix)
Top Chef (Bravo)
Tough as Nails (CBS)

BEST COMPETITION SERIES: TALENT/VARIETY
American Idol (ABC)
Legendary (HBO Max)
The Masked Singer (Fox)
The Voice (NBC)
World of Dance (NBC)

BEST UNSTRUCTURED SERIES
Crikey! It’s the Irwins (discovery+)
Deaf U (Netflix)
Lenox Hill (Netflix)
RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked (VH1)
The Real World Homecoming: New York (Paramount+)

BEST STRUCTURED SERIES
A World of Calm (HBO Max)
Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (Food Network)
History of Swear Words (Netflix)
Queer Eye (Netflix)
The Oprah Conversation (Apple TV+)

BEST BUSINESS SHOW
Restaurant: Impossible (Food Network)
Shark Tank (ABC)
Streets of Dreams with Marcus Lemonis (CNBC)
Undercover Billionaire (Discovery Channel and discovery+)
Wahl Street (HBO Max)

BEST SPORTS SHOW
30 for 30 (ESPN)
Defying Gravity (YouTube Originals)
Last Chance U: Basketball (Netflix)
Peyton’s Places (ESPN+)
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (HBO)

BEST CRIME/JUSTICE SHOW
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark (HBO)
Murder Among the Mormons (Netflix)
Murder on Middle Beach (HBO)
The Ripper (Netflix)
The Vow (HBO)
Trafficked with Mariana van Zeller (National Geographic)

BEST ONGOING DOCUMENTARY SERIES
American Masters (PBS)
Dear … (Apple TV+)
Frontline (PBS)
POV (PBS)
The Circus: Inside the Greatest Political Show on Earth (Showtime)
The Vow (HBO)

BEST LIMITED DOCUMENTARY SERIES
1971: The Year That Music Changed Everything (Apple TV+)
Amend: The Fight for America (Netflix)
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark (HBO)
Love Fraud (Showtime)
Murder on Middle Beach (HBO)
Secrets of the Whales (Disney+ / National Geographic)

BEST SHORT FORM SERIES
First Person (Snapchat)
Issa Rae Teaches Creating Outside the Lines (MasterClass)
Lady Parts (ellentube)
OWN Your Vote (NowThis and OWN social channels)
Ready Jet Cook (Food Network Kitchen)

BEST LIVE SHOW
A special winner will be announced on June 21.

BEST CULINARY SHOW
Amy Schumer Learns to Cook (Food Network)
Magnolia Table with Joanna Gaines (discovery+)
Nailed It! (Netflix)
Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi (Hulu)
Top Chef (Bravo)

BEST GAME SHOW
25 Words or Less (Fox/Syndicated)
Jeopardy! (CBS Television/Syndicated)
Supermarket Sweep (ABC)
Weakest Link (NBC)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC)

BEST TRAVEL/ADVENTURE SHOW
Men in Kilts (Starz)
Running Wild with Bear Grylls (National Geographic)
Somebody Feed Phil (Netflix)
Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy (CNN)
The Great Food Truck Race (Food Network)

BEST ANIMAL/NATURE SHOW
Life in Color with David Attenborough (Netflix)
Secrets of the Whales (Disney+ / National Geographic)
That Animal Rescue Show (Paramount+)
The Incredible Dr. Pol (Nat Geo WILD)
Wizard of Paws (BYUtv)

BEST LIFESTYLE: FASHION/BEAUTY SHOW
Haute Dog (HBO Max)
Queer Eye (Netflix)
Shine True (Fuse)
Skin Decision: Before and After (Netflix)
Stylish with Jenna Lyons (HBO Max)

BEST RELATIONSHIP SHOW
90 Day Fiancé (TLC)
Couples Therapy (Showtime)
Indian Matchmaking (Netflix)
Love on the Spectrum (Netflix)
My Love: Six Stories of True Love (Netflix)

BEST LIFESTYLE: HOME/GARDEN SHOW
House Hunters International (HGTV)
Martha Knows Best (HGTV)
Property Brothers: Forever Home (HGTV)
Rock the Block (HGTV)
Selling Sunset (Netflix)

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST IN AN UNSCRIPTED SERIES
Top Chef (Bravo)
RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
Queer Eye (Netflix)
Crikey! It’s The Irwins (discovery+)
The Real World Homecoming: New York (Paramount+)

BEST SHOW HOST
RuPaul – RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
Oprah Winfrey – The Oprah Conversation (Apple TV+)
Stanley Tucci –  Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy (CNN)
Padma Lakshmi – Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi (Hulu)
John Oliver – Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

MALE STAR OF THE YEAR
Trevor Noah – The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)
RuPaul – RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
Stanley Tucci – Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy (CNN)
Guy Fieri – Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (Food Network)
Phil Rosenthal – Somebody Feed Phil (Netflix)

FEMALE STAR OF THE YEAR
Nicole Byer – Nailed It! (Netflix)
Sandra Lee – Dr. Pimple Popper (TLC)
Michelle Visage – RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)
Padma Lakshmi – Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi (Hulu)
Samantha Bee – Full Frontal with Samantha Bee (TBS)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN NONFICTION PROGRAMMING BY A NETWORK OR STREAMING PLATFORM
Discovery+
Disney+
HBO Max
Hulu
National Geographic
Netflix

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN NONFICTION PRODUCTION
The Intellectual Property Corporation (IPC)
Jigsaw Productions
Renegade 83
Sharp Entertainment