By Jessica Wedemeyer
11:01am PST, Jan 17, 2023
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No one could have predicted the pop culture force that "Glee" would become after it debuted on FOX in May 2009. The coming-of-age musical dramedy — which centered around the disparate members of a high school glee club, along with their classmates, rivals, teachers and families — won countless fans across the globe, racked up a tidy sum of Emmy nominations and launched several members of its cast to international superstardom. But in the years since "Glee" came to an end in 2015 following six seasons on the air, many former stars of the show have been plagued by various tragedies, scandals and drama, prompting whispers that there's a "Glee" curse. To mark the debut of the new three-part limited series "The Price of Glee" — which "takes a hard look at the intense pressure that results from being catapulted into superstardom and sheds new light on the terrible tragedies that befell the cast and crew of Glee" and premieres on the Investigation Discovery network as well as discovery+ on Jan. 16, 2023 — join Wonderwall.com as we a take a look back at every difficult moment the cast has publicly faced over the years…
Keep reading for everything you need to know about the "Glee" curse…
MORE: The 20 greatest moments from "Glee"
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In January 2013, Playboy model Roxanne Gorzela sued Mark Salling — who portrayed bad boy football player and glee club member Noah "Puck" Puckerman on "Glee" — for sexual battery. According to TMZ, the model-DJ alleged that the actor forced himself on her sans contraception when they hooked up in March 2011. Mark fired back by suing his ex for trespassing, assault and battery, alleging that she broke into his home, attacked him and then vandalized his car. Sadly, it was only the beginning of Mark's troubles…
MORE: The 20 greatest moments from "Glee"
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In December 2015, police arrested Mark Salling for possession of child pornography. An ex-girlfriend reportedly tipped off the cops, who found more than 50,000 pornographic images involving children on the actor's computer. He was indicted in mid-2016, and in September 2017, he pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor. As part of his plea deal, prosecutors reportedly agreed to recommend a four-to-seven-year sentence with 20 years of supervised release. But Mark never made it to sentencing: On Jan. 30, 2018, he died by suicide near a park in the Los Angeles area. He was 35.
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In June 2020 — about a month after Lea Michele announced that she was pregnant with her first child — Samantha Marie Ware, who portrayed glee club member Jane Hayward on the sixth season of "Glee," took to Twitter to accuse the former Broadway star of making her "first television gig a living hell." Samantha alleged that Lea — who headlined "Glee" as star soloist Rachel Berry — made abusive, racially charged comments about her and committed "other traumatic microaggressions" that made the younger actress "question a career in Hollywood." The tweet kicked off a wave of accusations about Lea's allegedly abusive behavior on the set of "Glee."
Tweeted Heather Morris, who starred alongside Lea on all six seasons of "Glee" as Brittany Pierce, "Was [Lea] unpleasant to work with? Very much so. For Lea to treat others with the disrespect that she did for as long as she did, I believe she SHOULD be called out." (Heather stopped short of calling her former co-star racist.) Actor-musician Dabier, who appeared on a 2014 episode of "Glee," tweeted that Lea "wouldn't let me sit at the table with the other cast members cause 'I didn't belong there.'" Actress Monica Moskatow — who was cast to play a Lea look-alike at a 2009 "Glee" party — claimed that Lea called her ugly to her face. Craig Ramsay, who co-starred with Lea in the 2004 Broadway revival of "Fiddler on the Roof," called her "a despicable, horrible human being" who "has lost touch with reality." He added that "the entitlement just took over her body" after she left Broadway to star on "Glee."
Lea eventually issued an extremely tone-deaf and poorly worded public apology in which she failed to take responsibility for her actions or apologize to her former co-stars specifically by name. Instead, she wrote that she was simply "perceived as insensitive or inappropriate." She lost out on several business deals as a result.
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In 2011, Cory Monteith — who portrayed McKinley High's star quarterback and glee club co-captain Finn Hudson on "Glee" — publicly revealed he had "a serious problem" with drugs during his teen years: He was "out of control" and did "anything and everything, as much as possible," he told Parade, adding that he dropped out of high school at 16 and went to rehab for the first time at 19. In March 2013, he landed back in rehab for "substance addiction." The comely Canadian checked out of rehab following a month a treatment and appeared to be in good health throughout mid-2013, though he ultimately relapsed and suffered an overdose of heroin and alcohol that claimed his life on July 13, 2013. He was 31.
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In July 2014 — almost exactly a year after Cory Monteith died in a Toronto hotel room — Becca Tobin's boyfriend, Matt Bendik, was found dead in a Philadelphia hotel room. The nightlife entrepreneur, who was 35, reportedly died from a heart attack brought on by stress related to his work commitments. "Matt was the most extraordinary man I knew and he will live in my heart forever," the actress — who starred as younger cheerleader and glee club member Kitty Wilde on the last three seasons of "Glee" — captioned a photo of her late love on Instagram. (Two years later, she married Zach Martin.)
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In May 2022, Matthew Morrison — who portrayed Spanish teacher and glee club director Will Schuester on "Glee" — got the boot from his gig judging season 17 of "So You Think You Can Dance" because, according to a People magazine source, he developed "an inappropriate relationship with a female contestant." Explained the source, "They didn't have sex, but he reached out to her through flirty direct messages on social media. She felt uncomfortable with his line of comments and went to producers, who then got FOX involved. He was fired after they did their own investigation." The female contestant and the "Glee" alum — who's been married to Renee Puente since 2014 — "never met up off set," clarified the insider, adding that he simply sent "messages that crossed the line." An Us Weekly source echoed that "the messages contained sexual innuendos and were flirty to the extent he was overstepping boundaries." Matthew later released a video calling the allegations about his exit from the long-running reality show "blatantly untrue." The father of two insisted that he only sent one innocent message to the contestant asking for her phone number "to help her get a job as a choreographer" on a different show. But the question remains: If that's all he did, then why did FOX fire him?
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On July 8, 2020, Naya Rivera — who portrayed cheerleader and glee club member Santana Lopez on "Glee" — drowned saving her then-4-year-old son, Josey Dorsey, when the water suddenly turned rough while they were swimming at Lake Piru in the Los Padres National Forest about an hour outside of Los Angeles. The triple-threat actress reportedly "mustered the energy" to push her little boy onto the pontoon boat they'd rented for the day before the current swept her away. A search and rescue team recovered her body six days later. She was 33.
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Naya Rivera also made headlines for her tumultuous love life. In April 2013, she and Big Sean made their red carpet debut as a couple. They got engaged just six months later, but it wasn't meant to be: In April 2014, they called it quits amid rumors he cheated with Ariana Grande. Just three months later, the "Glee" actress shocked fans when she married longtime pal Ryan Dorsey, prompting rumors that she carried out her original wedding plans after swapping grooms. To make matters worse, the rumor mill has long maintained that Big Sean wrote his hit dis track "I Don't F*** with You" about her.
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In late 2016 — a little more than a year after Naya Rivera and Ryan Dorsey welcomed son Josey together — she filed for divorce. Though they briefly reconciled in late 2017, they were over again before the New Year. Naya's second divorce filing followed a sad legal drama over Thanksgiving that year: The "Glee" alum was arrested for misdemeanor domestic battery for allegedly attacking Ryan during an argument regarding their son. "My wife's out of control," the "Justified" and "Big Sky" actor told police during a 911 call, adding that she was "getting physical" with him. Ultimately, he did not pursue the case, and the charges against Naya were dropped.
MORE: Co-stars who didn't get along
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It was a whirlwind, rollercoaster romance for Melissa Benoist and Blake Jenner — who portrayed younger glee club members Marley Rose and Ryder Lynn on the fourth and fifth seasons of "Glee." The duo got engaged in mid-2013, tied in the knot in March 2015, separated in late 2016 and divorced in late 2017. In late 2019 — a few months after Melissa married her "Supergirl" co-star Chris Wood — she released a lengthy video detailing the physical abuse she allegedly suffered at the hands of a former partner. Although she did not call out Blake by name, the timeline of the abusive relationship matches the timeline of her romance with her "Glee" co-star. The following year, Blake released a statement — which did not mention Melissa by name — taking responsibility for his actions, though he also claimed there was "mental, emotional and physical abuse inflicted from both ends."
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In July 2022, Blake Jenner was arrested and charged with DUI after he failed to stop at a red light in the Los Angeles area. According to a police report obtained by NBC News, the "Glee" alum exhibited "the objective signs and symptoms of alcohol intoxication" and consented to a field sobriety test, which he failed. "Mr. Jenner did not perform the tests as demonstrated and instructed," said authorities. He's set to appear in court at a later date.
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In 2010, Dianna Agron — who starred as cheerleader and glee club member Quinn Fabray on "Glee" — took her relationship with "I Am Number Four" co-star Alex Pettyfer to the next level. But just weeks after the comely couple of about a year shot down engagement rumors, they suddenly called it quits. An Us Weekly source later alleged that Dianna was "terrified" of the "Magic Mike" star, whom the insider described as "a psycho loose cannon" who allegedly threatened her when she gave him the boot. In the wake of the breakup, she reportedly hid from him by checking into a hotel under an alias. (Dianna later romanced Sebastian Stan and Bradley Cooper and was briefly married to Mumford & Sons guitarist Winston Marshall.)
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In early 2010, Jane Lynch — who starred as ruthless cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester on "Glee" — got engaged to psychologist Dr. Lara Embry. They tied the knot later that year, but it wasn't meant to be: They split in mid-2013. The actress reportedly lost millions in the divorce, which was finalized in October 2014. She later explained to TV host Billy Bush that because she and Lara were married during her time on "Glee," she was on the hook to split the payout from her "highest earning years" with her ex. (In 2021, Jane married second wife Jennifer Cheyne.)
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Arguably the biggest drama to rock "Glee" while the show was still on the air? In the spring of 2014, there were rumors that Naya Rivera got the boot from "Glee" for feuding behind the scenes with on-screen rival Lea Michele. "They're always icy to each other. Naya is jealous that Lea is the show's main star. … There is a lot of sighing and eye-rolling between them," said an Us Weekly source. "They talk behind each other's backs — a lot," added a second insider. Naya shared her side of the story in her 2016 memoir: "One of the 'Glee' writers once said that Lea and I were like two sides of the same battery and that about sums us up. We are both strong willed and competitive — not just with each other but with everyone — and that's not a good mixture," she wrote, according to E! News.
She added that their "friendship started to break down" when "Santana moved from a background character to one with bigger plot lines and more screen time." Wrote Naya, "I think Rachel — erm, I mean Lea — didn't like sharing the spotlight. On top of that, she had a hard time separating work from our outside friendship, whereas it was a lot easier for me. I'm not offended when people offer feedback or criticism, and if things get heated on set, I try to keep perspective. We're all stressed, yes, but we're all working toward the same goal, so laugh it off and keep it movin'. Lea was a lot more sensitive, though, and it seemed like she blamed me for anything and everything that went wrong. If I'd complained about anyone or anything, she'd assumed I was b******* about her. Soon, she started to ignore me, and eventually it got to the point where she didn't say a word to me for all of season 6." Still, while Naya acknowledged that she and Lea "definitely weren't the best of friends," she insisted that the rumors about their feud were "blown out of proportion."
