A former RuPaul's Drag Race winner has faced backlash for a "disgusting" tweet following The Vivienne's death.
It was announced on Sunday (January 5) that James Lee Williams, best known as drag artist The Vivienne, had sadly died at the age of 32.
The star's public relations representative, Simon Jones, shared the tragic news in a heartfelt Instagram post, which read: “It is with immense sadness that we let you know our beloved James Lee Williams – The Vivienne, has passed this weekend."
“James was an incredibly loved, warm-hearted, and amazing person. Their family are heartbroken at the loss of their son, brother, and uncle. They are so proud of the wonderful things James achieved in their life and career.
“We will not be releasing any further details. We please ask that James’s family are given the time and privacy they now need to process and grieve,” Jones added.
In a deeply insensitive move, Tyra Sanchez, winner of the second season of US Drag Race, resurfaced an old post by The Vivienne, just hours after the devastating news of their passing.
The late drag star's tweet, which was shared in July 2020, read: “Bet Tyra was fuming when she Realised Netflix Spoiled the win Too. Sorry gal. You Tried though."
The post was a dig at Sanchez and criticized Netflix for using their photograph of the season’s winner to promote the Drag Race All Stars 5 finale.
Four and a half years later, the US Drag Race winner responded to Williams' death by sharing the old tweet with the chilling message: "Yet it doesn't compare to the fumes of the crematorium."
Check out the post below:Tyra Sanchez's tweet went viral on the social media platform and sparked widespread outrage, with many people calling them "disgusting".
"I've defended you for years but now you can absolutely go f*** yourself.... you disgusting person," Two-time finalist Kandy Muse commented under the post.
"How miserable do you have to be to come out of the shadows of irrelevancy to mock a recently deceased person?? Viv’s legacy will be twice as memorable as yours will ever be," another slammed.
"This was very twisted. as someone who used to admire you, this is so coldhearted and disappointing," a third said, while a fourth added: "You are disgusting. Shame on you."
The Vivienne, whose drag name came from their love of the fashion designer Vivienne Westwood, rose to stardom after becoming the UK drag ambassador for the US series of RuPaul’s Drag Race in 2015.
They won the inaugural season of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK in 2019 after lip-syncing in the final to 'I’m Your Man', a song by Wham!
Police have released a statement regarding Williams' sudden death, revealing that cops were called to an address in Chorlton-by-Backford, near Chester, at 12:22PM on Sunday after receiving reports of a sudden death.
“Police attended, investigated the circumstances of the death of the 32-year-old man, and concluded there were no suspicious circumstances. A file will be prepared for the coroner,” the spokesman confirmed, per Manchester Evening News.
No cause of death has been publicly released.
Our thoughts continue to be with Williams' family, friends and fans.
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