Overview
- Lebanese-French composer Omar Harfouch resigned from the official panel alleging a preselection of Top 30 finalists and conflicts of interest.
- The Miss Universe Organization issued an official denial, said evaluations follow established protocols, accepted his withdrawal, and named Filipino singer Louie Heredia as his replacement.
- The national costume showcase and preliminaries are taking place on November 19 at Bangkok’s Impact Challenger, with the final scheduled for November 21 at Impact Arena in Pak Kret.
- Scrutiny intensified after a November 7 confrontation in which organizer Nawat Itsaragrisil allegedly insulted Mexico’s Fátima Bosch, leading several contestants to leave an event in protest.
- Several entrants withdrew or were replaced in recent weeks for varied reasons, including Persia’s Sahar Biniaz, Germany’s Diana Fast, China’s Zhao Na replacing Xuhe Hou, Niger’s travel issue, and Congo’s delegate change; the event streams on the Miss Universe YouTube channel with regional broadcasts including Imagen Televisión and Telemundo.