Our favorite kids from McKinley High made their second consecutive visit to the Paley Center’s annual Paley Fest on Wednesday night to discuss their character arcs and what may be in store for Season three.
In front of a packed house at the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills, coincidentally, the same venue where they filmed their most recent episode entitled “Original Song,” the producers, writers and cast dished about love, sex and music and found a way to leave us wanting more.
In attendance were, in order of appearance, Darren Criss (Blaine), Heather Morris (Brittany), Naya Rivera (Santana), Mark Salling (Puck), Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina), Kevin McHale (Artie), Amber Riley (Mercedes), Chris Colfer (Kurt), Cory Monteith (Finn), Jane Lynch (Sue Sylvester), Matthew Morrison (Mr. Shu), Dante DiLoreto (Executive Producer), Ian Brennan (Co-Executive Producer and co-writer), Brad Falchuk (Co-Executive Producer and Co-Writer) and series Co-Creator and showrunner Ryan Murphy. Notably absent Gleeks included Lea Michele (Rachel), Dianna Agron (Quinn) and Chord Overstreet (Sam, AKA Trouty Mouth).
The panel was moderated by Tim Stack, who covers the Glee beat for Entertainment Weekly.
Various issues were discussed during the two hour panel, most notably what is in store for Sue Sylvester, Santana, Brittany and the rest of TV’s most successful show choir.
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Jane Lynch was unapologetic about her brilliantly played character, Coach Sue Sylvester. She mentioned envious teachers telling her, “I wish I could say what you say.” She hinted that she will be spearheading “The League of Doom,” in a future episode, comprised of all of Will’s enemies, which will include his ex wife Terri Schuester (played by Jessalyn Gilsig). To our dismay, there are no future plans for another music video starring Coach Sylvester. Lynch appeared as disappointed by the news as the audience.
Murphy alluded to the evolution of gay characters in TV and he praised the network and fans for their support of the various gay storylines in the show, while reiterating that it is a series about a show choir and not just a venue for gay issues.
SheWired readers would be happy to know that the Brittana storyline was discussed at great lengths throughout the evening. But, unfortunately, we are no closer to knowing what the future holds for primetime’s favorite teen lesbian storyline.
For all the non-Glee fans out there, a recap: Santana professed her love for Brittany in the infamous episode entitled “Sexy” that aired on March 8th. In that episode Santana finally realized the depth of her emotions for her “sweet lady kisses” partner during a beautiful rendition of Stevie Nicks’ "Landslide."
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While Rivera claims she will always remember how sweet Nicks was during that taping, fans will remember the episode as a turning point for Santana.
Rivera seemed impressed and moved by the outpouring of emotion for the newly outed lesbian character. She said, “There’s constant Twitter support and one girl actually wrote that she had considered suicide at one point.” Rivera noted that the storyline seems to give people courage and that she hopes that the Glee team is handling it responsibly. She gushed that she is “more than honored to be playing the role.”
Kevin McHale, who plays the boyfriend of Santana’s love interest, interjected that he is getting hate Tweets on a regular basis ordering him to stay away from Brittany. He made sure to point out that it’s not him, it’s his character.
When asked about Santana’s future in light of her coming out, Murphy could not say for certain that Brittany and Santana would end up together. What does that mean? According to Murphy, Santana’s sexuality will evolve over time and that she is indeed in love with Brittany.
However, it doesn’t look good for the characters. While Murphy said the writers do listen to fans and feel a responsibility to them, Falchuk said “it’s more about Santana’s personal journey than a romantic relationship with Brittany.”
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Warning: Shameless song request to follow... the lyrics to Kelly Clarkson’s "Miss Independent" would be a perfect expression of Santana’s mix of emotions in accepting herself as a gay woman and accepting her love for Brittany. Just sayin’…
Fans in the audience were clearly interested in the Brittana storyline. One audience member directly asked the duo, “What do you wish for your characters’ relationship?”
Rivera joked that she would want to get Brittany pregnant and see them get their own spin off. The audience erupted in laughter. She quickly turned serious and confessed that she wants the relationship to happen.
Because Glee tackles many hot button topics such as teen sexuality, bullying and alcohol abuse, Murphy was asked about the show’s relationship with network censors. He said that the producers work closely with the censors to maintain a good relationship. He said that the censors never say no to a storyline, though they do encourage restraint as the show airs at 8pm on a major TV network. Murphy, who previously produced the adult drama “Nip/Tuck,” is clearly sensitive to these concerns and pointed out that Fox is not FX and 8pm is not 10pm.
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The night was perfect for hardcore Gleeks, especially because Chris Colfer (Kurt) let slip that his character will be rejoining New Directions soon. That news was unexpected and greeted with wild applause and great excitement, especially because it seemed as though Murphy was not ready to share that news yet.
What we do know after the panel is that Murphy’s muses, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kristin Chenoweth, will be back. The producers are also planning a “Born this Way” episode and a prom episode, as well as an entire hour devoted to the classic Fleetwood Mac album, Rumors.
The writers discussed another possibility of making an episode in which all of the dialogue is sung.
Referencing the second nationwide Glee tour scheduled for this summer, Murphy promised bigger sets and featuring 80% of the material from season two, while maintaining the underdog vibe.
Finally, Murphy also hinted at a Glee reality show that is shooting now and is expected to air over the summer.
Anxious viewers will have to wait four weeks before the final six episodes of season two air on Fox, beginning April 19th.
