Ryan Murphy Says Glee Shouldve Ended After Cory Monteiths Death, but Now Asks:

March 2024 · 5 minute read

“Glee” co-creator Ryan Murphy thinks the Emmy-winning Fox musical series stayed on the air longer than it should have. During an interview on the “And That’s What You REALLY Missed” podcast, hosted by “Glee” cast members Kevin McHale (Artie Abrams) and Jenna Ushkowitz (Tina Cohen-Chang), Murphy said the show “probably” should have never come back after series regular Cory Monteith tragically died in July 2013 ahead of the show’s fifth season.

“If I had to do it again, we would’ve stopped for a very long time and probably not come back,” Murphy told Ushkowitz and McHale (via Entertainment Weekly).

Murphy added that if he found himself in the same position now, he would say “that’s the end.” The co-creator added, “Because you can’t really recover from something like that. It wasn’t a normal death where someone is sick, and you can see them. It happened so quickly with no warning.”

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It’s now been seven years since “Glee” aired its series finale on Fox after six seasons, 121 episodes, one 3D concert movie and more. Has the time finally come for a “Glee” reboot? Not just yet, but Murphy appeared more open to a “Glee” revival during his interview.

“I’m at the phase now with that show where it’s like, well, there’s been enough time,” Murphy said (via IndieWire). “Like, maybe we should really re-examine it as a brand. You know, should we do a reboot of it in some way? Should we do a Broadway musical of it in some way?”

Murphy continued, “Like, it’s sort of like an interesting legacy that I’m interested in doing in a positive way after sort of pausing for a while. But I don’t know. I just love what it says and what it did. And there will never be in my life another ‘Glee,’ anything close to it, in terms of me feeling so close to it.”

“Glee” was co-created by Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan. Murphy revealed last month that the original pilot for “Glee” was a far darker take on the world of high school show choir.

“Mr. Schue, I believe, was a crystal meth addict in Ian’s script,” Murphy said. “The NC-17 version of show choir with a weird protagonist who was unraveling…I just need something optimistic.”

Whether or not “Glee” gets revived in some capacity remains to be seen. The show and its numerous controversies and tragedies will be the basis of an upcoming Discovery+ documentary series. The show is currently untitled.

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