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A Glee Docuseries is On the Way—and It's Already Sparked Controversy
It will reportedly dive into the tragedies and behind-the-scenes turmoil.
The Glee docuseries nobody asked for is making its way to Discovery+.
The as-of-yet untitled program will consist of three parts, and boasts access to important cast and crew members who apparently have stories to tell about the behind-the-scenes of the popular Fox musical comedy series.
Glee, which aired from 2009 to 2015, has had more than its fair share of controversies and tragedies, both during and after its run. Actor Cory Monteith died from an accidental heroin overdose ahead of the show’s fifth season, Naya Rivera accidentally drowned during the summer of 2020, Blake Jenner was accused of domestic violence by former costar Melissa Benoist, and Mark Salling committed suicide in 2018 after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography.
Additionally, star Lea Michele has been the subject of scorn among many of her cast mates, who have accused her of making the set a hostile environment and being racist towards several Black actors throughout Glee’s run.
Fans have frequently joked that the behind-the-scenes drama — not the tragedies — would make a good topic for show creator Ryan Murphy to tackle for a season of Feud, his anthology series exploring famous feuds. But having an actual docuseries digging into the darker aspects of making the show, especially less than a decade after it went off the air, isn’t sitting right with everyone.
\u201cGlad we're cancelling projects, liquidating Cartoon Network and laying off God knows how many people so we can get an exploitative Glee documentary.\u201d— RYAN__TOCHERI (@RYAN__TOCHERI) 1665600870
\u201cThis is a terrible idea for many reasons,the biggest one being the exploitation of those that have died. Using Glee tragedies in any way is disgusting & disturbing. Real ppl died, real ppl lost loved ones. Glee was a show that often missed the mark,this appears to be no different\u201d— NatashaGee10 (@NatashaGee10) 1665597080
\u201c@giselleb1234 @DiscussingFilm I knew this would be here\u201d— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) 1665593288
\u201cdianna agron hearing about the glee docuseries and googling \u201chow to enter witness protection\u201d as we speak\u201d— kathleen (@kathleen) 1665594234
\u201c@DiscussingFilm They canceled batgirl for this\ud83d\udc80\u201d— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) 1665593288
Other recovering Gleeks seem thrilled that some tea is going to get spilled, but how the docuseries plans to treat such a wide range of things from tragedies to petty on-set squabbles remains to be seen.
“If the show is going to simply focus on the tragic deaths of the young stars, and dredge up Lea Michele’s bad behavior, I’ll pass,” reads one comment on the Deadline article announcing the show. “Glee fans have been there, done that.”
RELATED | Here's Why Chris Colfer Won't Be Seeing Lea Michele in Funny Girl
Rachel Kiley is presumably a writer and definitely not a terminator. She can usually be found crying over queerbaiting in the Pitch Perfect franchise or on Twitter, if not both.
Rachel Kiley is presumably a writer and definitely not a terminator. She can usually be found crying over queerbaiting in the Pitch Perfect franchise or on Twitter, if not both.
