Press
"Out Loud & Live!" Podcast Episode #412: Interview with Anthony Hand
Everyone needs a hero, and Creator/Producer/Director ANTHONY HAND is about to unleash one for the ages! Get set to save the world from evil and chaos in the animated adventures of "Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero" featuring the voice talents of some of the biggest legendary queens to emerge from the hit competition series RuPaul's Drag Race. This queen packs a punch and has swept the Independent Festival Awards with her unique style and dazzling skills! This is one origin story with a kick!
Published July 30, 2025.
East London LGBTQ+ Film Festival 2025 Interview - The Metronome & Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero
Carrie Kendall, director of the East London LGBTQ+ Film Festival, interviews Olivia Grace Bennett of "The Metronome" and Anthony Hand, creator/director/producer of "Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero."
Recorded February 15, 2025 in Romford (East London), UK.
Press Appearances
The Fanzite
"iFeature | Introducing MAXXIE LaWOW: DRAG SUPER-SHERO'", July 30, 2025
Exclusive interview with creator/director Anthony Hand
"The summer blockbuster is in full swing, and if the box office is any indication, superheroes are cool again! ... There is one superpowered personality that is making her (or is it their?) earth-shattering debut. If you feel that seismic wave, that’s only this new sensation making an entrance! Are you ready for Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero!"
"The film is also a call-to-action for anyone, especially those in the LGBTQ+ community, to share in the spotlight of inclusivity. Finally, there’s a superhero that’s ready to lead the charge and represent us all."
PinkNews
"Drag Race stars feature in world's first animated drag superhero film: 'It's important to have queer people seen as heroes'", July 11, 2025
Journalist Marcus Wratten interviews creator/director Anthony Hand and RuPaul's Drag Race icon, Rosé.
"I think that, you know, if I had seen something like this when I was a kid, I would have felt so much more seen and understood a lot more about myself," Rosé says. "It is really important and forward-thinking to have heroes very blatantly presented as queer people."
"Hand grew up during the AIDS crisis, a time where media depictions of queer people saw them as 'typically victims, typically [having] to die for the sin of being gay'. Now they can be the heroes of the story, or even the 'villain, if we want to,' Hand grins."
David Magazine Atlanta
"The Name on Everybody’s Lips is Gonna be Maxxie!", June 18, 2025
Journalist Robbie Todoro interviews creator/director Anthony Hand.
"With the world eagerly awaiting the next great superhero, director Anthony Hand is answering the call — in heels. Hand’s groundbreaking animated feature Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero makes its glittering debut on TVOD platforms including Amazon, iTunes, Google, and Dish this June 17."
"Centered around a shy barista who transforms into a fierce drag queen superhero, the film is a dazzling mashup of drag culture, pulse-pounding music, and high-flying fantasy. Featuring the voices of celebrated RuPaul’s Drag Race stars like Jinkx Monsoon, BenDeLaCrème, Monét X Change, and Rosé, Maxxie LaWow isn’t just an animated spectacle—it’s a heartfelt story of self-acceptance, community, and the magic of becoming your true self."
Gayming Magazine
"Maxxie LaWow, the world’s first drag superhero, is here with an all-star cast", June 9, 2025
"Capes optional, glitter mandatory"
OMG!! We love these fabulous quotes from the review!
- • "It’s bold, it’s camp, and it features an awesome cast."
- • "Broadway and TV star Terren Wooten Clarke gives villain realness as Dyna Bolical."
- • "Erika Ishii, fan-favorite voice actor and queer icon in the gaming and animation worlds, also lends her talents."
- • Maxxie is a hero who can "kick ass and contour."
- • "The film is shaping up to be a milestone for queer cinema."
Film Threat
"Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero - 7.5/10", May 29, 2025
"…silly glitter fun, with a serious message..."
"In Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero director/co-writer Anthony Hand has created a 2D animated romp featuring a drag queen superhero, glittery dance numbers, and a Scooby-Doo style plot to catch a drag super-villain. In fact, if one combined a Scooby story with RuPaul’s Drag Race, this film might be the result."
"Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero is as super-campy as it is super-powered. Jokes and one-liners are fired like sapphire bullets of pure love."
"This film is silly glitter fun, with a serious message that drag culture is harmless camp, meant to entertain. If the festering 'anti-woke' Orc hordes think drag story time is an offense to their fi-fi’s and bad for the children, wait until they get a load of this film."
Las Vegas PRIDE Magazine
"Fabulous, Fearless, and Fierce: Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero Breaks New Ground in Queer Animation," Issue 57, May 2025
"In a world craving bold new heroes, Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero struts onto the scene in six-inch heels, glitter blazing, and heart fully exposed. Premiering on TVOD platforms June 17, this vibrant animated musical fantasy is more than just a groundbreaking celebration of drag — it’s a love letter to queer resilience, chosen family, and the power of personal transformation."
"Directed by first-time filmmaker Anthony Hand, Maxxie LaWow is the world’s first animated feature to center a drag queen superhero. But while the premise is delightfully campy, the heart of the story beats with sincerity."
QUEERTY
"Entertainment Hot Sheet: The Final Hump," Cameron Scheetz, April 30, 2025
"We all know drag queens will save the world, and a fabulous new film is set to bring a colorful new story of herstoric heroics to a screen near you! Billed as “the world’s first animated feature film centered on a drag queen superhero,” Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero will release on digital/VOD platforms on June 17 following a crowd-pleasing festival run."
"From writer-director Anthony Hand, the colorful comedy follows Simon (Grant Hodges), a shy barista who discovers a magical wig that turns him into the super-powered queen Maxxie LaWow. So, when the villainous Dyna Bolical (Terren Wooten Clarke) hatches a plot to snatch beauty from other queens’ tears, Maxxie might be the last hope to save the community. Who says superheros don’t wear heels? And that’s not all: the voice cast features Drag Race royalty like Jinkx Monsoon, Monét X Change, BenDeLaCreme, and Rosé, plus cutie Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman & SNL icon Laraine Newman."
PrideSource
"'Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero' Set to Premiere at Lansing's Capital City Film Fest," Sarah Bricker Hunt, April 3, 2025
Michigan filmmaker transforms drag artistry into superhero fantasy
"'Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-Shero,' the world's first animated feature centered on a drag queen superhero, will make its Michigan premiere April 9 at the Capital City Film Festival in Lansing."
"Directed by Michigan native Anthony Hand, this groundbreaking film blends drag culture, superhero fantasy and high-energy music to create a vibrant celebration of queer identity and self-empowerment at a time when LGBTQ+ representation in mainstream media remains limited."
Broke-Ass Stuart
"Maxxie LaWow: The Drag Super She-Ro You’ve Always Wanted," Vita Hewitt, February 22, 2025
"Do you ever wish that a drag superhero could just whisk you away from the daily doom and gloom of the headlines? Even if it’s just for a minute? Well, guess what? Your wish has been granted in the form of Maxxie LaWow, a new film that’s storming through the film festival circuit like a fierce glitter tornado. Directed by the talented Anthony Hand, this movie is all about escaping the chaos and diving into a world where drag queens save the day."
KGO ABC7 News
"Midday Live at 11am - Reggie Aqui Interviews Anthony Hand," February 7, 2025
Watch Anthony's first TV interview with the very handsome & super nice KGO news anchor, Reggie Aqui. Reggie asked great questions & they showed a fun selection of film clips. The interview segment is at about 35:50 min mark.
Celluloid Dreams: The Movie Show
"Tim Sika Interviews Anthony Hand," February 6, 2025
Tim Sika asks insightful questions about the filmmaking process. Interview starts at about the 14:40 min mark.
Bay City News
"Pass the Remote: SF IndieFest, drag films, Cinequest, ‘Flow,’ Mostly British," Randy Myers, February 3, 2025
"For those who simply want an escape, and to show a little pride while doing so, San Jose director Anthony Hand’s sweetheart of an animated confection “Maxxie Lawow: Drag Super-Shero” is just the ticket. Equal parts “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “Scooby-Doo” (not necessarily in that order), Hand’s colorful creation finds a cute, often frazzled barista named Simon (delightfully voiced by Grant Hodges) putting on a pink wig and transforming like a superhero into the absolutely fab, far more confident Maxxie LaWow."
StoryCorps
"StoryCorps: Steve Interviews Anthony about Maxxie LaWow," July 12, 2023
Let's Gather Podcast
"Animation With Chubby Beagle Productions," October 25, 2022
Animation Industry Podcast
"Karen And Bill On Animating Maxxie LaWow - The First Drag Queen Superhero Film," June 15, 2022
Out Front Magazine
"‘Maxxie LaWow’ to Make Herstory on the Silver Screen," January 10, 2022
Authority Magazine
"Bill & Karen Drastal of Chubby Beagle Productions: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became An Artist," November 29, 2021
Lez Taco’Bout It
"Drag Super-Shero Maxxie LaWow," November 9, 2021
Queer Retrograde w/Hobbes & Linds
"Anthony Hand introduces Maxxie LaWow, drag super-shero!," November 4, 2021
Intercontinental Kiki
"Interview with Anthony Hand!," October 29, 2021
Go Black Boy Go
"Anthony Hand," October 19, 2021
Gaydars for Gaysians
"Drag Anime She-ro: Maxxie LaWow," October 11, 2021
MEGASheen
"Drag Queens can be Heroes feat. Anthony Hand," October 3, 2021
Just Breathe
"Introducing Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero With Anthony Hand," October 1, 2021
40 Plus: Gay Men. Gay Talk.
"All The Sh*T You Can Do After 40 - Anthony Hand," October 1, 2021
Queerly Recommended
"Romance Womance," September 28, 2021
Life (Un)closeted
"Why We All Need a Drag SUPER-SHERO – Anthony Hand," September 22, 2021
Painted Trash
"Drag Queen Super-shero," September 21, 2021
An Older Gay Guy Show
"Maxxie LaWow – Drag Super-shero," September 18, 2021
The Good, The Brad & The Ugly
"SHEroes with Superpowers," September 16, 2021
Gay Men’s Life Lab
"Meet Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero with Filmmaker Anthony Hand," September 13, 2021
RelationSh!t! Podcast
"Meet Maxxie LaWow: Drag Super-shero with Filmmaker Anthony Hand," September 10, 2021
Wrote Podcast
"She’s Dyna Bolical!" September 10, 2021
LGBT Chat
"Maxxie LaWow," September 2, 2021
Best Gay Life Podcast
"Reality TV & Super-sheros with Maxxie LaWow," August 28, 2021