‘The Queen vs. Texas’ Revisits the Battle over Lone Star Drag

Raemonn James, better known as Hermajestie the Hung, teamed up with a filmmaker to tell a moving story of activism and queer culture.

In reality, The Queen vs. Texas—a new short film recently screened at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival in Austin— isn’t exactly a supervillain origin story, but it does depict the transformation Raemonn James, better known as “Hermajestie,” undergoes as she applies her drag makeup to become a queered-up version of that mischievous comic book character.

She’s dressed up for a performance of Vanguard, the drag troupe she led from 2020 until she left the state in 2023, in the wake of a flood of anti-LGBTQ+ laws passed by the Texas Legislature. In a way, the 15-minute film also depicts James’ Joker-like political transformation, as the former Texas resident realizes how unbearable and unlivable the cultural landscape has become for her, her son, and her partner.

“The seriousness of not taking anything seriously that is so iconic about the Joker character, that energy resonates with me,” James told us. “Why are we taking these bozos seriously? These politicians, [these] criminals … why are we taking them seriously? Why are we playing their games? … The character seems to have a very good understanding that the real joke is reality.”

That good-natured heckling helped convince him that there was something special about James which he wanted to capture in a documentary. In all, he would spend about five months following James in 2023, documenting several drag performances and following her to three protests against anti-drag bills at the Lege. At one point, James wears a jacket emblazoned with the words “Fuck Patriarchy” as she chants in the Capitol and marches through the streets of downtown Austin.

We’re also given an intimate glimpse into the home life James shares with her partner and their son—the family that James ultimately moved out of Texas in order to protect, even though it meant the end of the Vanguard drag troupe (other drag queens now manage a weekly performance night instead).

“Whenever legislators are writing laws about how they think drag queens should not be around children, it completely ignores the very real fact that some drag queens have children,” James said. “It showcases how stupid they are but also, I guess it showcases how little they know. People who are trying to ban drag shows have never been to a drag show.”

After SXSW, Lozada plans to circulate the film to other festivals in the hopes of ultimately finding a home for it on a streaming service. In an email sent after we spoke, Lozada told me he hopes the film inspires people to support nonprofits that fight against anti-LGBTQ+ laws but also to support their local drag shows too.

“Having spent time behind the scenes and witnessed the immense amount of effort poured into each performance, my love and appreciation for this art form has greatly deepened,” Lozada wrote. “Performance art serves as a pivotal medium for conveying messages of love, justice, and activism, with these performers playing a crucial role in shaping a world where everyone is celebrated for being their authentic selves.”