Franki Russell out as representative for Miss Universe 2024 as New Zealand loses franchise

Fil-Kiwi model-turned-actress Franki Russell will no longer compete in Miss Universe 2024.

This came after the local license holder of the Miss Universe New Zealand canceled its franchise for "not complying with a specific order from the Miss Universe Organization."

"As a result of our team's non-compliance with a specific order from the Miss Universe Organization, we have decided to cancel the franchise held by Yugen PR for Miss Universe New Zealand for 2024," Ian Borromeo, the managing director of House of Yugen, said in a statement.

The former Pinoy Big Brother Otso housemate has yet to comment.

Last March, the 29-year-old beauty queen was announced as Miss Universe New Zealand by Dubai-based magazine XPEDITION. 

In an Instagram post, Franki said the achievement felt like a "ten-year journey in the making."

“A new chapter. This really feels like a ten-year journey in the making. I applied for Miss Universe New Zealand in 2014 – I was 19 at that time and really didn’t know who I was as a person. A lost girl just wanting to find her purpose and her place in this world. Now that I am 29, ten years older and with far more life experience, I realized that life definitely works in mysterious ways. As the saying goes: ‘everything happens for a reason’. and has [led] me to this new role,” she said.

Franki competed in Miss Universe UAE in 2021 where the half-Filipino beauty landed in the pageant's Top 30. The competition, however, was canceled "due to time constraints."

Aside from pageantry, Franki also became a talent of Viva Artists Agency and portrayed various roles in Ang Probinsyano (2019), Pabuya (2022), and Martyr or Murderer (2023).