World of Wonder co-founders Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, the creative force behind the RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise, are set to receive The Hollywood Reporter’s Impact Award at the Banff World Media Festival.

To honor their achievements, THR editorial director Nekesa Mumbi Moody will present the award to Bailey and Barbato, whose reality TV and other content credits over three decades include Party Monster, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Pam: Girl on the Loose, Being Chaz, Tori & Dean: Inn Love, #CandidlyNicole, I Am Britney Jean and Catch and Kill: The Podcast Tapes.

The World of Wonder creatives will also participate in a keynote conversation in Banff led by Moody that is likely to touch on Bailey and Barbato’s long collaboration with RuPaul, the face of the Drag Race franchise, and their subscription-based streaming platform WOW Presents Plus, among other career milestones.    

Banff’s Impact Award is given each year to an individual or group that has made a significant contribution to screen-based entertainment. Past recipients include Julia Louis-Dreyfus, David Shore for ​The Good Doctor; Anthony Anderson for ​black-ish, Justin Simien for Dear White People and last year Netflix’s Bela Bajaria.

The appearance of the World of Wonder founders in Banff comes amid a rise in anti-drag show performance and anti-trans legislation pushed by conservative lawmakers in the United States. Bailey and Barbato, their RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise and MTV have joined up with the American Civil Liberties Union to back The Drag Defense Fund to support LGBTQ+ rights work. 

“We are literally focused on the legal battles that are unfolding across America in a very targeted way. But this is temporary. We’re moving forward. They’re trying to move backwards. Forward movement always wins,” Bailey told THR.

The honor for the World of Wonder founders will come during Banff’s Rockie Awards gala on June 13 at the Canadian Rockies event.