Sherry Pie disqualified from RuPaul's Drag Race US for catfishing allegations
The season 12 contestant won't appear in the show's finale
RuPaul's Drag Race star Joey Gugliemelli, aka Sherry Pie, has been disqualified from the current series after multiple “catfish” allegations.
The drag star - who is a contestant on season 12 which kicked off last weekend - has allegedly been accused of posing as a casting director and asking five men to perform embarrassing things on camera under the guise of an audition.
According to Buzzfeed News, one of the men named Josh Lillyman, agreed to record himself performing a sex act, believing he was trying out for a role in a show.
Another one of the accusers, Ben Shimkus, said he was asked to perform things that were “particularly sexual and awkward".
Season 12 premiered on Netflix UK last weekend, however, Sherry Pie will not appear in the finale which is due to be filmed in the next coming weeks.
Joey's disqualification was announced in a statement on behalf of network VH1 and production company World Of Wonder.
Shared to the official RuPaul's Drag Race Twitter account, it read: "In light of recent developments and Sherry Pie’s statement, Sherry Pie has been disqualified from RuPaul’s Drag Race.
“Out of respect for the hard work of the other queens, VH1 will air the season as planned.
“Sherry will not appear in the grand finale scheduled to be filmed later this spring.”
The announcement comes after Joey, 27, released an apologetic statement of his own.
He said: "I want to start by saying how sorry I am that I caused such trauma and pain. I know that the pain and hurt that I have caused will never go away and I know that what I did was wrong and truly cruel.
“Until being on RuPaul’s Drag Race, I never really understood how much my mental health and taking care of things meant.
He continued: "I learned on that show how important ‘loving yourself’ is and I don’t think I have ever loved myself. I have been seeking help and receiving treatment since coming back to NYC. I truly apologise to everyone I have hurt with my actions.”
Season 12 of RuPaul's Drag Race is available to stream on Netflix
