‘Glee’ – Curse or Coincidence? The Sad Truth Behind The FOX Show

Just over a decade ago, Glee, a show aired on FOX, came to an end and since then, it entered the realm of pop culture. Not so much for storylines on TV that involved a musical comedy-drama, but because some folks seem convinced it was cursed. Read on to find out why.

A Popular Show

The show was created by Ryan Murphy and others and it seemed very teen-centric. In it, a fictional high school club was named New Directions. The club at William McKinley High was led by a teacher.

Interestingly, it used some licensed songs, explored the LGBTQ community, bullying and more. Backed by strong musical performances, it gained a lot of praise.

Things Went Bad – The First Death

When things started going wrong, plenty of people took three deaths and declared them to be a curse. In fact, it took hold to the point where Discovery+ dropped a docuseries about it. Per The New Daily, “Three of the show’s cast members, Cory Monteith, Mark Salling and Naya Rivera, suffered untimely deaths.”

The first death came when Cory Monteith passed away in 2013. He’d played the role of Finn Hudson. When he died at the age of 31, he passed away after a mix of alcohol and heroin. Well, he struggled with addiction issues that started in his teens. So, sad as it was, there didn’t seem to be anything supernaturally cursed about his death in a Vancouver hotel.

The Second Death

The second death involved Mark Salling who also died in his 30s. On the FOX show, he played the role of Puck. Tragically, he took his own life in 2018. If you don’t know, he’d been arrested and charged with CSAM-connected crimes involving possession.

While he pleaded guilty, he died before his sentencing in court. Again, it seemed that some bad choices led to his ending, rather than a curse. However, theorists started scratching their heads over the two deaths and that intensified with another cast member’s death.

The Third Death

Naya Rivera did well in the FOX show as Santana Lopez, but in 2020, her life ended while on a vacation with her young son. Sadly, it involved a hired boat, swimming, and inadequate lifesavers. Struggling, she managed to save her son, but couldn’t save herslelf. Notably,  her death was ruled normal in terms of an accidental end of life.

Once again, nothing supernatural seemed involved. Even the saving of her four-year-old could be ascribed to a mother’s natural instinct, rather than a superhuman effort of self-sacrifice. And yet, the curse legend had gotten a strong footing by then.

Reactions To The Curse Theory

Movie and TV buffs with a sensitivity to the supernatural took the three deaths and created a culture around them. Why it took off so well seems a bit puzzling. After all, they involved an addiction, a crime, and a boat accident: seemingly all unrelated to each other. Well, apart from the fact that all four starred on the FOX show.

Once the word got out about the rise of the haunted curse, things only got worse. Per Time, who wrote about the docuseries, The Price of Glee, it was in full swing and it also disgusted many fans and even cast members. After all, it seemingly disrespected the lives of those who passed away.

More Deaths

Actually, things also leaned more into a paranomal pattern theory because other people also died. The outlet noted:

They included Jim Fuller, an assistant director, and a man named Paul, who was in charge of props. In addition to Salling, there were two more deaths by suicide: Nancy Motes, a production assistant, and an unnamed rigger. The main stand-in for Matthew Morrison, Mark Watson, died in a car crash.

Those who dismissed the idea of any sort of curse pointed to the hectic pressure that young people experienced while filming Glee. Often, they worked long hours and they also engaged in the typical Hollywood lifestyle of “work hard, play hard.” For young people, it could be a bad combination and lead to burnout with pressure-cooker itineraries on tour.

The Sad Truth

Instead of a convenient curse, the sad truth could lie in the fact that the show was about promise, young lives, joy, and a whole world of opportunity. Naturally, the sad end to so many lives contrasted strongly with the premise of the show.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below, and come back here often for all your TV entertainment and supernatural news and updates.