Fans React To Project Runway's Season 22 Winner

After 21 seasons of choosing the best up-and-coming fashion designers around, the folks at "Project Runway" know how to crown a winner. September 10, 2026 was the big night for fans of the beloved reality competition series. It narrowed Season 22 down to its final four and, ultimately, "Project Runway's" latest victor. Now, fans are reacting to Jude Mikulencak joining the hallowed ranks of "Project Runway" winners, and let's just say there are some strong opinions going around online. 

Mikulencak went up against fellow designers Joseph McRae, Anna Molinari, and Bi Pham, as the final four each created a collection of five designs in just five days. Did the judges make the right choice in the end? Based on the buzz among netizens, it's clear that this is up for debate. Mikulencak certainly raked in quite a bit of support. "Loved the finale and the winner! Amazing season," one viewer commented on divisive new judge Law Roach's post about the finale on X. Another impressed X user tweeted, "Project Runway got it right this season, in case you were wondering." 

A third opined, "Project Runway redeems itself from a clunky season by picking the [100%] correct winner," with another commenter adding, "Thank god they rewarded taste, talent, and professionalism when it came down to the winner of project runway." Evidently, plenty of folks would have made the same decision if they were in the judges' shoes on finale night. But many think mistakes were made.

The results of the finale definitely didn't sit well with certain fans, like one X user who wrote simply, "Project Runway loves being wrong omg." Another similarly disappointed fan complained, "Jude winning Project Runway was so dumb to me. His collection was really good but there is no fire to his clothes. The other 3 designers had a story, something to say. Jude is the epitome of beautiful gowns but [that's] it." Another viewer echoed this, writing, "Project Runway is a joke at this point, cuz HOW did he win!!" As one commenter admitted, "The clothes were nice but I was surprised he won." 

In fact, one "Project Runway" fan even asserted, "[Jude's] collection was a [bore] and it looked ill fitting...cancel project runway." Suffice it to say, there are plenty of fans who don't think designer Jude Mikulencak was responsible for any of "Project Runway's" best fashion moments this season. Of course, it's rare for a winner to have 100% support from every viewer. Even with the backlash, it's clear that Mikulencak has a dedicated fanbase. Besides, the positive response to his victory among netizens did seem to outweigh the negative reactions, so it's unlikely the up-and-comer minds too much.

Understandably, the big winner and the contestants who didn't go home with the coveted title were the most talked-about elements of the "Project Runway" finale after it aired. And yet, there was also quite a bit of discourse online about how exactly the victor was chosen. In the end, the requirements for the final four's collections and the quick timeframe they had to complete them offered new and unique obstacles compared to past seasons of the long-running show. Fans are used to watching contestants in the finale design bigger collections over a much longer period of time. In the wake of the finale, this change has become one of the biggest complaints about "Project Runway" Season 22.

"The Project Runway judges talking about the finale designs looked rushed. DUHHHHH you gave them five days to make a collection," one user pointed out on X. "They need to bring back when ppl would go back home for a month or 2 to create [their] final collections for project runway," another wrote. "I do not want to see thrown together looks for the finale! I needs to see months of work!" one fan whined. With this kind of feedback, it wouldn't be surprising if the top brass at "Project Runway" decided to give the final four contestants more time to complete their finale collections in subsequent seasons. Of course, we won't know what the future holds until Season 23 rolls around.