If voguing were an Olympic sport, Leiomy Maldonado would be its recurring champion. Even if you’ve never stepped foot in New York’s ballroom scene, you should know the Bronx native’s work. There she was, tutting under the spotlight as a contestant on America’s Best Dance Crew in 2009 with her group Vogue Evolution, imprinting her signature dance move—the Leiomy Lolly, a truly inimitable hair flip copied by Beyoncé and Lady Gaga—onto the masses. There she was, in a historic Nike ad for Pride Month in 2017. There she was, choreographing all the ballroom scenes in Pose, appearing in a handful of episodes herself.
Now, Maldonado, a trans icon and a global voguing star, is serving as a judge on HBO Max’s Legendary, a ballroom competition series featuring eight notable houses—including the House of Ninja and the House of Lanvin—fighting for “legendary” status and a $100,000 grand prize. The series is emceed by Dashaun Wesley, a former member of Vogue Evolution and a close friend of Maldonado’s, upping its ballroom bonafides.
“Having a show like Legendary is important,” Maldonado said in a recent phone interview, her voice draped in a velvety Bronx drawl. “It shows why [voguing] is so important to us.”
Initially, HBO asked Maldonado, mother of the House of Amazon (she’s referred to as the “Wonder Woman of Vogue”), if she wanted to compete in the series. She declined. HBO returned with an offer for her to judge, which she accepted; she stars alongside Megan Thee Stallion, stylist Law Roach, and actor Jameela Jamil. Maldonado is the only member of that panel with actual voguing experience.
When the series was initially announced in February, it was misreported that Jamil would serve as its emcee—provoking heaps of backlash, as well as questions about the show’s authenticity. Transparent star Trace Lysette and Pose star Angelica Ross were just a few of the high-profile voices who weighed in on the matter, wondering whether Legendary was really giving due credit to the black and Latinx members of the LGBTQ community who created the ballroom scene in the 1970s. The controversy hit a dramatic peak after Jamil posted a lengthy note on Twitter in which she clarified her role on the show and came out as queer. “This is absolutely not how I wanted it to come out,” she wrote.
Maldonado was quick to support Jamil on Twitter at the time, and echoed her words in our interview.
“I had to let her know, like, girl, I got her back,” she said. “She’s so amazing. She brings such a great energy to the show.”
Like any competition show’s panel, Legendary’s seems designed to draw in a wide range of viewers, including those who may not be familiar with the history of the ballroom set. Roach is there to assess each house’s fashion (which he does, with stern, Simon Cowell-esque aplomb). Megan is there to judge overall performance, as well as to attract her huge fanbase to a nascent streamer. Jamil is there to serve as a proxy for viewers who are new to ballroom and will be learning about it through the series. “It’s fun to see people come into ballroom not really knowing much, and then over the weeks, you see them flourish and you see that ballroom essence coming out of them,” Maldonado said. “That’s what you’re going to see with Jameela. I love it.”