- The 74th Miss Universe pageant will be held at the Impact Challenger Hall in Thailand on Friday, Nov. 21.
- While the competition hasn’t even started, there’s already been a bunch of drama behind the scenes.
- One of the pageant’s judges recently quit ahead of the pageant on Nov. 21, claiming the Top 30 were chosen ahead of time.
It’s already time for the Miss Universe pageant to take over our social feeds yet again. Though the pageant doesn’t start till Friday, November 21, in Thailand, it’s already making headlines thanks to a bunch of drama that’s blown up behind the scenes.
During a pre-sash ceremony event on November 3, Miss México got into a heated argument with the president of Miss Grand International and Miss Universe executive, Nawat Itsaragrisil, when he called her “dumb” in front of the other contestants. He has since been removed from working on the pageant, and now, another key player has dropped out before the competition even begins.
The latest development in the Miss Universe drama concerns the top 30 contestants, the process of how they were chosen, and a sudden exit from one of the judges who was reportedly part of the selection committee. Oh, and an anonymous contestant has come forward with a reaction to it all, too. Let’s break all of it down.
One of the judges quit Miss Universe days before it began.
On November 17, musician Omar Harfouch revealed he had stepped down from the Miss Universe judging panel after the top 30 finalists were chosen by an “impromptu jury” without the original eight members of the selection committee—including himself—being present.
In a series of Instagram Stories, he claimed that the unofficial judging panel was “composed of individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some [personal] relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants, including the person responsible for counting the votes and managing the results, which constitutes a further conflict of interest.” He expressed his “profound confusion and concern” upon learning that a “secret vote” was placed before the committee had any say.
Omar then revealed he had spoken to the pageant’s officials about the issue, to which they seemingly responded with an Instagram post highlighting members of the selection committee. He was left out of the carousel, which introduced each member without naming their roles or responsibilities.
Omar also called out Miss Universe in an 11-minute-long video.
In addition to his Instagram Stories, Omar took it upon himself to post an 11-minute-long video exposing the organization after officially stepping down.
“I could not stand before the public and television cameras, pretending to legitimize a vote I never took part in. Some of the countries eliminated through this process could be at war, discriminated against, or geopolitically sensitive,” he wrote, in part, alongside the clip. “Viewers would assume the jury made these decisions, and I cannot bear responsibility for a process I did not participate in. Pretending otherwise would be dishonest.”
The Miss Universe organization responded to his claims.
The following day, Miss Universe dropped a statement in an attempt to debunk Omar’s claims and “clarify certain inaccuracies regarding the Beyond the Crown Program and the official judging processes of the 74th Miss Universe competition.”
“The Miss Universe Organization firmly clarifies that no impromptu jury has been created, that no external group has been authorized to evaluate delegates or select finalists, and that all competition evaluations continue to follow the established, transparent, and supervised MUO protocols,” the statement read, in part.
While the organization “respectfully acknowledges” Omar’s withdrawal, it also publicly prohibited him from “using, displaying, referencing, or associating himself with any Miss Universe trademarks, service marks, logos, titles, or registered properties, in any format, medium, or communication, whether digital, written, or verbal.”
An anonymous contestant reveals they learned the news on social media rather than from the organization.
Oh, you thought it was over? We’re far from it, babes. One of the Miss Universe contestants came forward and spoke to People about the whole mishap, all while remaining anonymous.
“Many of us learned through social media, not the Miss Universe Organization, that the preliminary selection for the Top 30 was not only conducted without the presence of the official judges, but before we’ve even competed on stage,” she told the outlet on November 18, adding, “Many contestants in this pre-picked top 30 list violate conflict of interest through personal relationships to people of the organization.”
She added that they learned the “heartbreaking” news “moments after we stepped off stage from our final rehearsal.”
“The truth revealed they have not given us the same respect,” she said of the Miss Universe organization. “If the organization wants to stand for empowerment, then honesty, fairness, and accountability must come before crowns and cameras.”
She then thanked Omar for “standing up for integrity when the organization would not. He showed the very leadership Miss Universe claims to celebrate.”
