Entertainment | Television

Don't stop believin'

Gleeks on tenterhooks about the fate of the musical comedy's characters

— Reuters
Published: 00:00 August 14, 2011

Image Credit: AP
From left, Chord Overstreet, Kevin McHale , Cory Monteith and Lea Michele

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Lying low must not be in the vocabulary for the television musical comedy Glee. For a show that has been on summer break, it's been an active few months for the popular series about the high school singing choir.

The cast members have been on a live concert tour that is now part of the feature-length Glee: The 3D Concert Movie, which opened in the US on Friday, and they have been the subject of massive fan speculation over who will "graduate" from the show after the third season, which premieres on September 20.

For all those Gleeks wondering just who is in, and who is out, the cast members say it will all clear up, soon enough.

"Everything is going to be revealed in the very first episode," Amber Riley, who plays Mercedes, said while promoting the Glee concert feature film. "You'll see who are juniors and you'll see who are seniors."

Much has happened to the show's performers during their summer break. They travelled across the North America and the UK for the Glee Live! In Concert tour where cast members — including Lea Michele, Chris Colfer, Corey Monteith and Heather Morris — sang many of the memorable songs from the series' first two seasons including Don't Stop Believin', Teenage Dream and Slave 4 U.

The concert movie not only showcases the tour, but goes backstage to get some behind-the-scenes glimpses of the stars, and it throws the spotlight on some extraordinary fans.

CAN'T STOP THE BUZZ

But neither fan fervour over the live tour or movie release seem able to stop the incessant buzz about which students will be leaving the show since creator Ryan Murphy told showbusiness website The Hollywood Reporter in July that in order to keep the high school setting credible, actors Michele (Rachel), Colfer (Kurt) and Monteith (Finn) would not be back for season four.

Murphy fuelled even more speculation about the upcoming season when he said the show would return to some of the darker comedy and plotlines that marked the first season in 2009.

The news stunned fans and even the actors. Glee producers then scrambled to get out the news that plans were under way for the three stars to appear in a spin-off — an idea from which they later retreated.

While promoting the concert movie, the actors also tried to play down any controversy.

"Just because people are graduating doesn't mean they're not gonna be on the show any more," said Kevin McHale, who plays the wheelchair- bound Artie. "Graduation is a normal part of high school so people don't need to freak out."

Colfer wouldn't confirm his fate at the end of next season, saying only that things have "completely blown out of proportion", while Monteith said he was "looking forward to reading the script and seeing who's there".

Regardless of her own fate, Michele already has ideas on how she'd like to see the new season unfold for Rachel.

"I think it's seriously time to meet my dads," said the actress of the two character who play her fathers, who have not so far been seen on screen.