Glee star Matthew Morrison has turned another year older.
The actor, who turned 45 on October 30, shot to fame on the high school-set series debuted in 2009 and ran for six series, and produced a number of familiar faces that would eventually make it big in the UK too. However, a series of unfortunate events for the cast kicked off following shock deaths and and serious allegations.
READ MORE: Amber Riley’s life since Glee – The Masked Singer, heartbreaking split and pop fame
READ MORE: Want more TV? Daily Star has just the thing for you!
Fans have since have started to speculate the beloved show was actually cursed – and it’s easy to see why. On Matthew’s birthday, Daily Star takes a look back at the some of the tragedies that have hit the cast.
Matthew Morrison – Will Schuester
(Image: FOX Image Collection via Getty Images)
Matthew’s career went from strength to strength following the show’s ending in 2015, as he soon went on to judge a host of TV shows. However, he was sacked from his judging role on So You Think You Can Dance in June 2020 after being accused of sending a female contestant “flirty” messages on social media which “made her uncomfortable”.
He issued a statement to announce his exit, saying he had “broken competition production protocols, preventing me from being able to judge the competition fairly”. Matthew then took to social media to reveal what the message to the contestant said, reading: “Hey, it’s Matthew. If you don’t mind, would love to get your number and talk you through some things.”
Naya Rivera – Santana Lopez
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Naya received her breakthrough role as an adult as cold-hearted cheerleader Santana Lopez on Glee. In July 2020, the breakout star went missing on Lake Piru in California – with her four-year-old son Josey found asleep alone on a rented boat. Her body was found five days later and her death was ruled as accidental. Naya shared son Josey with actor Ryan Dorsey, whom she began dating in 2014.
In November 2016, the actress filed for divorce but later called off the separation in October 2017. In late November 2017, Rivera was arrested and charged in Kanawha County, West Virginia with misdemeanour domestic battery against Dorsey after she allegedly hit him in the head and face during an altercation over their child. The charges were later dropped. The former couple later agreed to temporary shared custody. Career-wise, she starred as Collette Jones on YouTube premium’s Step Up: High Water, a spin-off of the Step Up franchise, and appeared as a judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race in 2017.
Cory Monteith – Finn Hudson
(Image: FOX Image Collection via Getty Images)
Cory had a number of minor roles prior to portraying Finn Hudson, the star quarterback of his high school football team, who risked alienation from his friends by joining the school’s glee club. Having previously battled with drug abuse during his teenage years, he admitted himself into a treatment facility for substance addiction in 2013.
He was written out of the final two episodes of Glee’s fourth season after being assured that he would still have his job upon his return by show creator Ryan Murphy. In April of that year, he had completed his treatment, but by July he was found dead in his Vancouver hotel room. Later reports stated that alcohol and heroin were found in his system.
On the 10th anniversary of his death on July 13, 2023, Cory’s ex and co-star Lea Michele paid tribute, saying: “Hey you. 10 years. It feels like only yesterday that you were here and yet a million years ago all at the same time. I hold all of our memories in my heart where they will stay safe and never forgotten. We miss you every day and will never forget the light you to brought to us all. I miss you big guy. I hope you found Taylor up there and are playing the drums together.”
Lea Michele – Rachel Berry
(Image: Getty Images North America)
Lea had already carved out a successful career on Broadway before joining the Glee cast as Rachel Berry – the show’s female lead and star singer. The songstress struck up a relationship with Cory after the pair met on set, and she was with him up until his death in 2013.
She has since released three albums, published two books, and starred in the Fox horror-comedy series Scream Queens, among other TV shows. In 2020, after vocalising her support for the Black Lives Matter movement, Samantha Marie Ware accused co-star Lea of making “traumatic” micro-aggressive comments towards her while on set.
Samantha claimed the Glee actress made her life “a living hell” and said the experience made her question if she wanted a career in Hollywood. More recently, Lea became the laughing stock – perhaps unfairly – of the internet, when fans became convinced that she couldn’t actually read. Luckily, Lea saw the funny side and has joined in on the joke a number of times.
Mark Sailing – Noah “Puck” Puckerman
(Image: WireImage)
Mark Salling starred in Children of the Corn IV and The Graveyard, before portraying American football star Noah “Puck” Puckerman in Glee. Alongside appearing in the hit TV programme, he released two albums, Smoke Signals in 2008 and Pipe Dreams in 2010. On December 29, 2015, he was arrested at his Los Angeles home on suspicion of possessing several thousand photos and videos depicting child pornography.
Two years later, he pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography, and was facing serving a four-to-seven year sentence behind bars. As part of his plea deal, he was required to enter a sex offender treatment programme. On January 30, TMZ reported that he had taken his own life in a recreational area near his California home, just weeks before the actor was due to be jailed over child pornography charges.
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
