Why Ryan Murphy Wishes He Ended Glee Earlier

Ryan Murphy and Fox decided to drop the curtain on “Glee” after Season 6, but if the series co-creator had his way, they’d have ended it much sooner.

Speaking to “Glee” stars Jenna Ushkowitz and Kevin McHale on an episode of their “And That’s What You REALLY Missed” podcast (via People), Murphy admitted that he regretted continuing the show following the death of series star Cory Monteith. “Now, if this had happened, I would be like, ‘That’s the end,'” Murphy revealed. “Because you can’t really recover from something like that.”

Cory Monteith died in 2013 at age 31, shortly before the Fox comedy returned for its fifth season. One month later, the show’s cast and crew came together to make a tribute episode titled “The Quarterback” to pay their respects to the actor who played Finn Hudson.

During the conversation, Ushkowitz and McHale recalled feeling pressured to be part of the aforementioned tribute episode, even though no one was forced into it. What’s more, while grief counselors were available to help everyone deal with the loss of their co-star, they still broke down during the shoot. 

“We’re in a scene talking about a character. Obviously, we’re talking about our real friend,” McHale recalled. “Then there’s a camera on you. When those things happen, you don’t know when you’re going to lose it and not lose it and break down.”

It seems that there was a general lack of desire to make more “Glee” episodes following Monteith’s death, which is understandable considering the circumstances.

“Glee” had already lost some of its momentum before Cory Monteith’s death, and the idea of watching it without Finn didn’t win back many viewers. For context, the musical comedy’s first few seasons could attract up to 13 million viewers, most of whom dropped out long before the series concluded. Some of those fans returned for “The Quarterback,” which attracted 7.4 million viewers, but there were spells in Season 5 where the show drew under 3 million viewers per week.

Multiple factors led to viewers’ declining interest in “Glee,” but to its credit, the show managed to wrap up on a conclusive note, ensuring that the fans who stuck around until the finale got a definitive ending.

As for Ryan Murphy, he has continued to make successful shows in the wake of “Glee,” including “American Horror Story,” “Monster,” “American Crime Story,” and the “9-1-1” franchise. He has also teased rebooting “Glee” in the past, suggesting that he still has fond memories of the experience, despite his regrets over continuing it after Monteith passed away.