#PorDee: Michelle Dee, Miss Thailand Anntonia Porsild’s friendship in Miss Universe 2023

(From left) Michelle Dee, Anntonia Porsild. Images: Instagram Broadcast Channel/@michelledee

Michelle Dee and Miss Thailand Anntonia Porsild may not have taken home the Miss Universe 2023 crown for their respective countries, but they gained a close friendship that will surely last beyond the global tilt.

From pre-pageant activities, pageant watchers have seen how the two queens have become closer, such that they were being “shipped” together and were given the hashtag #PorDee or #PorDeeUniverse, which is a portmanteau of their surnames.

Despite issues pitting them against the other prior to the global tilt, it’s clear that both stunners share a lot in common, including the time they represented their countries in different pageants prior to Miss Universe 2023. Dee ended her Miss World 2019 stint in the Top 12, while Porsild was crowned Miss Supranational 2019.

It’s unknown how they started being friends in El Salvador, but many netizens took notice of their bond when photos of Dee seemingly comforting Porsild after Nicaragua’s Sheynnis Palacios was declared as Miss Universe 2023 is clear proof of how close they have become.

While their friendship seemingly began during pre-pageant activities, Dee and Porsild started to share glimpses of their bond during their rehearsals on their respective platforms, with fans reuploading clips of their Instagram Stories on social media.

Dee also shared clips of herself hanging out with the Thai stunner and their fellow beauty queens on her Tiktok page as well.

Porsild was also spotted bonding with her fellow crossover stunner during a skincare event prior to coronation.

(From left) Anntonia Porsild, Michelle Dee. Image: Instagram/@annejkn.official

Meanwhile, Dee and Porsild upped people’s interest on them when they began referring to one another as “Daddy” and “Mommy,” which can be seen in the comments of the Filipina’s Instagram post.

Image: Screengrab from Instagram/@michelledee

‘We really have each other’

Contrary to claims of an alleged rivalry between the two, Porsild revealed during a pre-coronation interview that her friendship with Dee started when they were in the “same bus” during rehearsals.

“[Michelle] was sitting next to me because she put her bag on the bus chair and I was like, ‘Is somebody sitting here?’ Then she said no and moved her bag,” she said in a video reuploaded by one @Dainsleif_10 on X (formerly Twitter). “And from there, we just kinda bonded. She’s super, super nice. She’s super chill and so much fun.”

She then clarified that there’s no “drama and beef” between them, while noting that the candidates were “busy with fittings” and other respective activities when they first arrived in El Salvador.

“Everyone was all over the place so everyone just had to get things done. So, Michelle and I kept passing each other… We never actually had the time to sit down and talk. But we did say hi and greet each other,” she said.

In a separate interview with INQUIRER USA, who covered the Miss Universe coronation night, the Thai stunner said she and Dee “really have each other” throughout their pageant stint.

“Michelle and I just really have each other. And a lot of people were saying that we don’t like each other, they’re in a feud, whatever it is, but that’s not true,” she said. “Michelle is such a sweetheart. She’s such a calming soul that brings calmness and peace.”

Dee and Porsild, who are currently in Mexico for a Miss Universe skincare event, recently went live on the latter’s Instagram account to talk about their friendship while laughing about the rumors pitting the two of them against each other.

A full video of them going live was also posted by a fan account going by the username @AltheyuhMoves on X last Tuesday, Nov. 21.

“She welcomed everyone except me,” Dee quipped before laughing, which made the Thai explain the actress was “nowhere to be seen” when she first arrived.

Dee ended her Miss Universe 2023 stint in the Top 10 while Porsild was named as first runner-up. The Filipina also bagged the Spirit of Carnival and fan vote awards, and was noted as one of the pageant’s “Voice for Change” gold awardees.