‘Stop! That! Train!’ Review: ‘Drag Race’ Icons Bring Fresh Life to Disaster Movie Parodies
Stop! That! Train! has RuPaul’s Drag Race icons swapping the runway for the rails. After spoof movies containing many transphobic tropes and jokes, this Adam Shankman-directed disaster-comedy puts drag performers front and center, giving them the parody they deserve. It's the fun, silly premise – drag queens on a bullet train speeding toward a tornado called “Stormaganza” – that delivers crowd-pleasing antics. RPDR icons Jujubee and Ginger Minj headline with star performances. Not every joke lands, but the film stays light, keeping the tone more fabulous than disastrous.
Image copyright (©) Courtesy of Bleecker Street
MPA Rating: R (for sexual material, strong language, some drug content, and brief nudity.)
Runtime: 1 Hour and 32 Minutes
Language: English
Production Companies: World of Wonder Productions, Bleecker Street, Unapologetic Projects
Distributor: Bleecker Street
Director: Adam Shankman
Writers: Christina Friel, Connor Wright
Cast: RuPaul, Ginger Minj, Jujubee, Brooke Lynn Hytes, Symone, Marcia Marcia Marcia, Latrice Royale, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Joel McHale, Rachel Bloom, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Nicole Richie, Raven Symoné, Lisa Rinna, Charo, Jerry O'Connell, Monét X Change, Drew Droege
U.S Release Date: June 12, 2026
Longtime stewardesses Tess (Ginger Minj) and DeeDee (Jujubee) dream of working for the glamorous Glamazonian Express, the first American cross-country bullet train catering to upscale passengers. When their Spirit Airlines-like employer Stank Rail shares a fate with Spirit Airlines, they join Glamazonian Express, only to be noticed by rival Amber (Brooke Lynn Hytes) and her companions. As a massive storm called Stormaganza threatens the train's route to Florida, Tess and DeeDee step up to answer underappreciated dispatcher Donna Dusk’s (Rachel Bloom) call to guide the passengers to safety, involving everyone from the conductor (Chris Parnell) to Madame President Judy Gagwell (RuPaul Charles).
Stop! That! Train! cruises at maximum camp.
Caption: Marcia Marcia Marcia, Brooke Lynn Hytes, and Symone in STOP! THAT! TRAIN! Courtesy of Bleecker Street and World of Wonder Credit: World of Wonder / Bleecker Street
Stop! That! Train! is Airplane! on a train, if it slayed. The film stands out for the drag community, free from transphobia, xenophobia, and other phobias that persist in spoof comedies (even down to the latest Scary Movie). Comedically, co-writers Christina Friel and Connor Wright contemporize the “disaster movie spoof” archetype pioneered by Jim Abrahams and the Zucker brothers, aiming for endless, inoffensive gags that are as commercial as possible. Granted, its goofy, accessible-for- all approach is fine, but it could’ve pushed some buttons in mocking straight culture and had some sort of edge. The best they have is a Lea Michele diss, which I laughed at the hardest.
Many jokes are rooted in gay culture but also offer broad sight gags, slapstick, and witty dialogue. The hit ratio is about 60:40; some jokes miss due to timing. Sometimes running bits shine, like DeeDee and Tess’ former coworker Barbra (Latrice Royale) randomly popping up in new jobs or good-sport Sarah Michelle Gellar as Sarah Michelle Gellar thinking that she’s being approached because she’s recognizable, only to piss off other passengers. Its pacing wears out its welcome, especially while juggling three plots: Tess and DeeDee on the Glam express, Donna trying to find visibility in her workplace, and Gagwell’s handling of the incoming disaster. Whilst a lot of humor is mined between all of them, it's jumbled in the edit. The pacing is slightly off, with B and C plots sometimes disrupting the emotional momentum (weird to critique in a movie like this, but I digress) in the A or some scenes straining for far too long. During its NewFest Pride premiere, the crowd was boisterous, but when jokes fell flat, it was noticeable.
There’s a nice balance of drag performers, LGBTQ cast members, reality TV icons that gay culture loves, and professional comedic cast members that amplify the humor, aware of their demographic. Even Chris Parnell made me perk up during his introduction, with his Leslie Nielsen-like role as Davenport. RuPaul Charles also evokes “Nielsen in Scary Movie 3” energy with her self-absorbed but unserious Madame President role acting completely unserious towards a catastrophic event. She’s pretty funny and provides some refreshment to the incompetent president role, elevated by her dynamic with Matt Rogers as her expressive Press Secretary.
Not every actor is used to their advantage (Guy Branum is criminally underused), and man, there are some really unfunny running gags – an ongoing one-note jokes of a snooty passenger (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) grossed out by his pregnant seatmate (Mayan Lopez) never got a chuckle out of me.
Ginger Minj and Jujubee’s chemistry keep this disaster comedy on the rails.
Caption: Ginger Minj and Jujubee in STOP! THAT! TRAIN! Courtesy of Bleecker Street and World of Wonder Credit: World of Wonder / Bleecker Street
Ginger Minj and Jujubee are nothing short of spectacular, and they bring heavy steam to Stop! That! Train!. Their supportive and loving friendship as DeeDee and Tess serves as the film’s core anchor and heart. DeeDee exudes a charming southern hospitality, and Tess is a straight-up lovergirl, both eager to please passengers. There are so many components at play, but the film is at its strongest when it focuses on their friendship being tested amid Stormaganza, with Tess falling for the brainless and reportedly hung co-conductor Cal (Brian Jordan Alvarez) and DeeDee finding her spotlight. Without a doubt, both are hilarious, committing to the silliness with a resounding sincerity, but they make you care about their friendship.
Jujubee, marking her feature debut, proves to be a force of nature, illustrating sudden emotion and softness that caught me off guard. Given that this is their major leap to the big screen, the drag performers generate their own screen presence, giving the film its flair. Brooke Lynn Hytes is a captivating force as Amber, running the G.E. like she has a PhD from Mean Girl University. All the drag ladies prove their star potential, leaving you wanting to see them in many comedic projects as the main course and not the side dish.
A first-class set trapped in coach filmmaking.
Caption: Rachel Bloom and Latrice Royale in STOP! THAT! TRAIN! Courtesy of Bleecker Street and World of Wonder Credit: World of Wonder / Bleecker Street
Before the film started, Shankman mentioned Stop! That! Train! was shot in a whopping 19 days, and uh, it shows. The filmmaker known for the 2007 Hairspray adaptation, and that hot-garbo Rock of Ages, is probably on his most indie film to date. Sometimes, those extravagant ambitions are restrained, but he finds a way around them to elevate their potential. The film has about two musical numbers, both featuring stewardesses in a coach car singing to their passengers. The scenes are similar to a drag performance, but they lack the cinematic flair that Shankman usually shines at. They consist mostly of medium shots, and the same angled composition renders the sequences repetitive. It dazzles thanks to the queens, production designer Alessandro Marvelli’s sophisticated, classy train-car set decor, and the colorful uniforms courtesy of costume designer Salvador Pérez Jr.
After this year involving watching Airplane! for the first time and binging the Scary Movies, I needed more of a cinematic flair or directional innovation to complement the well-produced sets. I get it, everything is shot digitally but damn it, the filmmaking doesn’t go above anything beyond streamer or YouTube quality. Even most of its extended shots of Stormaganza or the train breezing through vistas are done with really bad CGI effects that take you out of the experience. CG so bad it was mistaken for AI in recent discourse controversy which had Shankman come out and make a statement denying the claim. Its opening credits feature a miniature train set, which, if it had leaned more into the feeling of an arts-and-crafts project, would’ve added to the humor and a distinctive feel. Movie is already colorful both figuratively, literally, and…gayly. It feels like it’s trying too hard to ape Airplane! stylistically for its audience, but doesn’t consider creatively sharpening the areas in which they know they fall short.
Final Statement
Stop! That! Train! may not always stay on track with its pacing, but Ginger Minj and Jujubee’s star-making turns, paired with its refreshingly queer spin on the disaster spoof, make for a charmingly chaotic ride that delivers more laughs than derailments.
