In December, this international follow-up to the Mister USA pageant had contestants fly in from around the globe to compete for the title of Mister Universe in Los Angeles. We spent a day with the contenders, starting with breakfast in their communal residence before heading to the gym. We arranged candid photoshoots at the Hollywood sign as well as by the pool. Between poses, we discussed the diversity and pride they each brought from countries far and wide.
For several contestants, this is their second male pageant. Cormac Murphy aka Mr. USA arrived here after competing as Mr. New York months prior. Ntando Lurwengu aka Mr. South Africa was crowned Mr. South Africa in 2021. Guilherme Warner aka Mr. Brazil had previously participated in Mister Supranational in 2022. Yusuf Hendratno aka Mr. Indonesia was Man of the Globe International 2019. Matteo Dall’Osto aka Mr. Italy was crowned Mister Italia 2024.
However, for some, including this year’s reigning winner, Patrick Callahan aka Mr. Ireland, this is their first: “I’ve done a few different runway events and modeling events where I have to speak to a camera or to an audience, but this is actually my first pageant and I’m excited.” Despite being new to this world, they showcase no fear, with Matt Koelen aka Mr. Canada enthusing, “this is my very first pageant—but I’m a dancer, I dance in front of audiences. I’m built for the stage so I’m hoping I’m going to crush it.”
Markki Stroem aka Mr. Philippines: “This is my first pageant as a candidate, but I used to host, sing and perform. I’m a little bit older and I realized this may be the last time I get the chance to be part of a pageant. When they asked me, I said: why not?”
Mister Universe • Patrick Callahan aka Mr. Ireland.
How did you mentally and/or physically prepare yourself for this?
Cormac Murphy: “I think taking my experience from the last pageant and bringing in anything that I might have done wrong gives me a little jump start into the competition.”
Ntando Lurwengu: “I’d say my biggest take away from Mister South Africa 2021 would have to be the consistency—you adjust your lifestyle slightly. You spend a lot of time and schedule your eating, since a lot of it is about appearance, particularly in swimwear.”
Ntando Lurwengu aka Mr. South Africa.
Guilherme Warner: “Everything here is new for me. I’m enjoying it; this is a dream, and I think this is my last pageant so I’m just having fun. That’s why I’m here—to have fun and do my best.”
Matt Koelen: “I’ve been dancing for the past two years and living my best life. It’s the best job in the world. Honestly, I grew up on a farm—it just wasn’t for me—I wanted a fresh start, so I flew to Calgary Alberta where I didn’t know anyone. I happened to watch the movie Magic Mike, got some inspiration, started calling up all the clubs—found this great group called Body Heat Canada and I’ve been dancing ever since.”
Xavier Rodriguez aka Mr. Dominican Republic: “I prepared questions just to have a better understanding of how to speak, how to present myself, just to get me started.”
Xavier Rodriguez aka Mr. Dominican Republic.
Adam Emerick aka Mr. Croatia: “The thing I’m most nervous about is definitely the questions. I’ve walked in runway shows so that should be kind of normal for me but the questions I’m a little bit nervous about. I’ve watched some past pageants and watched the past Mr. USA—watched those questions—and I think I prepared myself pretty well. It’s kind of luck of the draw, so hopefully I get lucky on something I know.”
Yusuf Hendratno: “Actually, this is such a unique experience for me because it’s my first time going to LA. I’m representing my country. I’ve always been preparing myself for what I’m doing now. It’s all about preparation and I’m doing my best. It’s a proud moment for me!”
Yusuf Hendratno aka Mr. Indonesia.
Chris Bedmarik aka Mr. Slovakia: “Actually, I found a coach, a trainer, so I had online lessons, and he showed me how to walk on the stage, how to communicate with the audience and judges—but I had only three or four lessons, so…”
Markki Stroem: “I have been on a radio show for six years. I’ve been in the entertainment industry for 14 years now, I starred in a show called Philippines Got Talent, got into the finals and gone on to theater. That has been something that has helped me out in terms of public speaking especially on the stage. I also have a radio show from 6 to 10:00 AM every morning for the past six years and what happened was my co-host started asking me pageant questions the past two or three months just to get me ready—my mind space ready—and it’s on the live radio, so I can’t make any mistakes. I’m very excited to showcase what I learned and especially in the presenter/hosting side of my career in the Philippines and what I could bring to the table here.”
Cormac Murphy aka Mr. USA.
Regarding the sense of camaraderie amongst the Mr. Universe competitors:
When asked how this camaraderie compares to the Mister Usa pageant, Cormac Murphy replies, “There are different backgrounds with everyone, but I think so far everyone’s getting along really well. Similar to Mister USA, but honestly, I think it’s a little closer this time between groups.”
Patrick Callahan: “You know at first when I came in here, I thought I’d be kind of competitive. I didn’t know what to expect—but instantly we all just connected. We became good friends. I think it’s more like elevating each other. At the end of the day the judges will decide who wins.”
Chris Bedmarik: “The first day when I came, I was a little bit nervous because there are many beautiful guys from all around the world but now this is my third day here and they are really friendly guys, really nice people, so I feel very comfortable here.”
Chris Bedmarik aka Mr. Slovakia.
Andres Castellini aka Mr. Colombia: “Honestly, I think it’s nice that we are all together. Sometimes I forget it’s even a competition because we are all being friendly with each other.”
Adam Emerick: “I really love hanging out with people from all over the world because they know so many different things and they have so many different experiences and we can all share different stuff.”
Matt Koelen: “Everyone here is super chill. We’ve got influencers here, so I’m always learning and picking things up from them. Honestly, the modeling industry is a little bit new to me. I’m used to dancing and all the guys I hang out with, their social media is more dancing-related. So this is like huge for me to learn about the modeling industry—the beauty pageant, the runway, learning how to walk, just how to eat and smile and make a huge presence on stage—definitely learning a lot from all the guys. There’s so much diversity here which is also super exciting for me because I get to learn a lot about every single country.”
Matteo Dall’Osto aka Mr. Italy.
What is it you want to represent most about your country on the world stage?
Patrick Callahan: “I think the best part about Ireland is its people. Ireland has had a rough history but they’ve always found a way to come out on top, to be resilient and they are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, so whether they moved to the United states or all across the globe it seems like everyone always has something nice or good to say about Irish people. And that’s what I hope to embody in this competition: that character, and spreading positivity.”
Guilherme Warner: “For me it’s an honor to be Mr. Brazil—I want to show everyone how the Brazilian people are fire and I always do my best.”
Guilherme Warner aka Mr. Brazil.
Markki Stroem: “To be honest, I am an ambassador for a group called Love Yourself which is an HIV and AIDS awareness group. They’ve been around since 2012 and I’ve been working with them for a while with two winners from the Philippines—Miss Universe winners—so it’s very exciting for me to be part of this, so that I can really just present our HIV and AIDS awareness campaign in the Philippines. We have so many rising cases now especially from the 13 to 18-year-olds. We have a lack of sex education in the Philippines, and I just really want to help by pushing the initiative for growth and understanding that “U equals U: untransmissible is undetectable.”
Andres Castellini: “I really like to emphasize about Colombia that we are very into hospitality and we are always curious about what’s going on. I want to show that we are friendly people.”
Andres Castellini aka Mr. Columbia.
Xavier Rodriguez: “I would love to take this opportunity to basically share with the world the vibrant culture and warmth of our people. We have a unique sense of joy and love that is found within our communities.”
Chris Bedmarik: “I like to motivate and inspire people, and I want to tell people not to care what other people think about them. Just be a kind person and do what makes you happy.”
Watch the backstage video and more tantalizing photos exclusively on PLAYGIRL+
Adam Emerick aka Mr. Croatia.
