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Here’s What You Missed on ‘Glee’! Where the Cast Is Now, and the Show’s Stars Who Died

Entertainment

Jul 5, 2024 4:18 pm·

By Mike Hammer

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Glee danced its way onto television when the Fox hit musical series premiered on May 19, 2009. Starring Lea Michele as fame-hungry teenager Rachel Berry, the show followed a glee club at the fictional William McKinley High School.

After six seasons, Glee concluded on March 20, 2015. While many of the show’s multitalented cast members made their way to Broadway and continued in film and television, some of the series’ stars were plagued by tragedy.

In Touch takes a look at where the show’s stars are now as well as the cast members who died shortly after the series concluded.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Matthew Morrison

Matthew Morrison (Will Schuester)

The Tony Award-nominated actor, who got his start on Broadway before playing teacher Will Schuester on Glee, revealed in a February 2024 episode of the “And That’s What You REALLY Missed” podcast that he was “actually trying to get off the show” before it concluded its run. “In season 5, I asked to be off the show, because I was just like, I’m no longer being used in the way I wanted to,” he said. “We are at a high, I was like, ‘Maybe if I get off the show, I could go do something else, go do a movie or whatever,’ and they agreed to let me off the show.” However, plans changed after Cory Monteith died in 2013, and the production team “said they couldn’t do it.” When Glee ended, Matthew went back to Broadway to play J.M. Barrie in the musical adaptation of Finding Neverland. He has also been seen on Younger, The Good Wife, Grey’s Anatomy, American Horror Story and the TV special Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch Musical!.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Jane Lynch

Jane Lynch (Sue Sylvester)

The actress and comedian, who played cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester on the series, won a Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award and more for her work on the show. She has also been seen on Broadway, starring as Miss Hannigan in the 2012 revival of Annie and as Mrs. Brice in the 2022 revival of Funny Girl (though she exited the production before Lea Michele stepped into the title role). From 2017 to 2023, she appeared on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel as comic Sophie Lennon, for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award. In May 2024, she told People she would “absolutely” be interested in reviving her Glee character, saying, “It would be so much fun.”

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Lea Michele

Lea Michele (Rachel Berry)

Before Glee, Lea was already a Broadway star, appearing in Les Misérables, Ragtime, Fiddler on the Roof and Spring Awakening. However, she rose to prominence for playing Rachel Berry on the musical series. Lea was dating costar Cory Monteith during their time on Glee until his untimely and sudden death in July 2013. After the show ended, she was rocked by accusations of bullying and making microaggressions to others on set. She has since apologized and made her way back to Broadway, starring as Fanny Brice in the revival of Funny Girl after Beanie Feldstein exited the production. She is now a mother and married to businessman Zandy Reich.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Cory Monteith

Cory Monteith (Finn Hudson)

Cory played the handsome high-school quarterback Finn Hudson in the first four seasons of Glee. The summer before the fifth season of Glee hit the air, the actor tragically died at age 31 on July 13, 2013, from an overdose of heroin and alcohol in a Vancouver hotel room. The fifth season’s third episode, titled “The Quarterback,” served as a tribute to Cory and focused on the death of his character Finn Hudson. During the episode, Lea Michele performed a heartbreaking rendition of “Make You Feel My Love.”

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Kevin McHale

Kevin McHale (Artie Abrams)

During his time on Glee, Kevin played Artie Abrams, who uses a wheelchair due to a spinal cord injury he sustained as a child. After Glee ended, he appeared in Dustin Lance Black‘s miniseries When We Rise as AIDS activist Bobbi Campbell and was featured in an episode of American Horror Stories. He and Glee costar Jenna Ushkowitz reunited to host the podcast “Showmance,” which recapped episodes of Glee. They rebranded the podcast, which is now called “And That’s What You REALLY Missed.”

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Chris Colfer

Chris Colfer (Kurt Hummel)

The actor, who played Kurt Hummel on the musical series, appeared in Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie, Julie’s Greenroom and RuPaul’s Drag Race. In recent days, Chris has primarily focused his attention on writing, starting with 2011’s The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell. He also wrote, produced and starred in Struck by Lightning, which debuted at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival. As of June 2024, he has published 20 books.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Amber Riley

Amber Riley (Mercedes Jones)

Best known for playing Mercedes Jones on Glee, Amber has also guest-starred on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and starred in NBC’s The Wiz Live!. In 2016, she took on the role of Effie White in a West End revival of Dreamgirls, earning an Olivier Award for her performance. She released an EP titled RILEY in 2020, and in 2022, she competed in and won the eighth season of The Masked Singer as “Harp.”

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Jenna Ushkowitz

Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina Cohen-Chang)

After her time on Glee — during which she played Tina Cohen-Chang — Jenna spent a lot of time working on Broadway. She temporarily assumed the role of Dawn in the Broadway musical Waitress and then appeared alongside Rachel Dratch in Broadway’s The 24 Hour Plays. In 2018, she received a Tony Award for her role as a producer on Once on This Island, which won Best Revival of a Musical. And in 2020, she won another Tony for her role as a coproducer of that year’s Best Play, The Inheritance. She hosts the “And That’s What You REALLY Missed” podcast alongside Kevin McHale.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Mark Salling

Mark Salling (Noah “Puck” Puckerman)

Known for his role as Noah “Puck” Puckerman on Glee, Mark’s career was cut short after he was arrested for possession of child pornography. In 2017, he pleaded guilty to the charges as part of a plea deal. He died by suicide on January 30, 2018, after he was reported missing.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Dianna Agron

Dianna Agron (Quinn Fabray)

The actress, who played head cheerleader Quinn Fabray on Glee, began working more in film after her time on the musical series. Her credits include I Am Number Four, The Family, Bare, Novitiate, Hollow in the Land, Shiva Baby and As They Made Us. Dianna also acted in and directed part of the 2019 anthology feature film Berlin, I Love You, and she is known for being an activist for LGBTQ+ rights and human rights.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Naya Rivera

Naya Rivera (Santana Lopez)

Naya played Santana Lopez on the series, but a few years after Glee ended her life was tragically cut short. On July 8, 2020, she drowned at Lake Piru in California while on a boat with her then 4-year-old son, Josey; following a five-day search, her body was recovered from the lake. At the time of her death, she was between seasons of the TV series Step Up, in which she played Collette Jones.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Heather Morris

Heather Morris (Brittany S. Pierce)

Heather’s role as Brittany S. Pierce started small on Glee, but she went on to become a main cast member on the show — and a fan favorite. She was previously a backup dancer for Beyoncé. After the show came to a close, she competed on the 24th season of Dancing With the Stars but was eliminated in the sixth week. However, she won the British version of The Masked Dancer in 2022.

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Glee Cast Where Are They Now and the Show s Stars Who Died Darren Criss

Darren Criss (Blaine Anderson)

Darren didn’t enter the Glee universe as Blaine Anderson, a love interest for Kurt, until the show’s second season. He has had an extensive career in theater and television since Glee played its final episode. He took over the title role in the Broadway production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch and won an Emmy and Golden Globe for playing killer Andrew Cunanan in The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story. He returned to Broadway in 2022 with the play American Buffalo.