'Glee' Reboot Gets Series Order at Disney+ and Hulu; Lea Michele Set to Return, Variety Reports

"Glee" is returning. Disney+ and Hulu have given a series order to a reboot of the Ryan Murphy musical dramedy, Disney announced Wednesday, Oct. 21, according to ABC News. The new series comes from 20th Television, the studio that produced the original, which aired on Fox for six seasons from 2009 to 2015.

Disney released few details with the announcement. Variety reported that the company shared nothing beyond the fact that the series is being produced by 20th Television and will stream on Hulu and Disney+. TheWrap reported that no logline, production details or returning cast were revealed, and ABC News reported that no official release date has been set.

Lea Michele Set to Return as Rachel Berry

Later on Oct. 21, Variety reported that Lea Michele will reprise her role as Rachel Berry, the ambitious McKinley High School glee club member she played throughout the original run. The outlet said it confirmed the news with multiple sources. "She's in," one source told Variety, while another said, "It's still early-ish days, but it feels good and we're happy to get the band back together." Variety reported that representatives for Michele and Murphy did not comment.

Michele had signaled interest in a revival earlier this year. In remarks to E! News cited by Variety, she said, "I love 'Glee.' I will always love 'Glee.' I love Ryan Murphy. It just holds such a special place in my heart for me… I will follow Ryan wherever he goes."

Two other original cast members posted on social media in ways that suggest they will also return, according to Variety. Chord Overstreet, who played Sam Evans, wrote "Reunited and it feels so good," Rolling Stone reported. Heather Morris, who played Brittany S. Pierce, wrote on Instagram, "Yes ladies and gentle men of women, rumors are true. Brittany S Pierce was in fact lost in the sewers for all these years. But I'm here to inform you that she is alive and well… And back for more," according to Rolling Stone. Disney has not officially confirmed any casting.

Murphy, Falchuk and Brennan Wrote the Script

The series order follows months of public comments from Murphy about bringing the show back. Deadline reported that Murphy discussed the idea in July while promoting his FX series "The Shards," saying, "That show is interesting because it's come back around. So many young people now watch it. And I'm like, 'Maybe we should revisit that show.'"

Less than two months later, Murphy said he had finished a reboot script, Deadline reported. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight in late September, quoted by TheWrap, Murphy said he had written it with the show's co-creators: "We have a script. Brad [Falchuk], Ian [Brennan] and I, who wrote all the first two seasons, have written something." He added, "I've been in touch with around 10 of the original cast members. It's very sweet, and they all had a lot of questions, but they all were very enthusiastic about the idea."

Murphy also spoke with ABC News last month. "I've been quietly having conversations with people on that show … about, 'What do you think? Should we?,'" he said, according to ABC News. "Maybe I shouldn't, I don't know. It's fun just to try."

Cast Members Reflect on the Show's Losses

Not every former cast member has committed. Chris Colfer, who played Kurt Hummel, told Bustle earlier this month, "It was a really tough show to do, and it would be really hard to do it now that Naya [Rivera] is gone. But I do know that Glee fans would probably come after me with pitchforks and jazz hands if I said no," according to Deadline.

The original series was marked by the deaths of several cast members. Cory Monteith, who played Finn Hudson, died in 2013 while the show was still on the air, and Naya Rivera, who played Santana Lopez, died in 2020, Deadline reported. Variety reported that Rivera was 33 and drowned in a lake while saving her young son.

A Legacy on Screen and on Streaming

Set at the fictional William McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio, "Glee" followed the members of the New Directions glee club as they competed on the show choir circuit, with musical performances in every episode, according to Deadline. The original ensemble also included Jane Lynch, Matthew Morrison, Kevin McHale, Amber Riley, Dianna Agron, Darren Criss, Jenna Ushkowitz and Harry Shum Jr., among others.

Over its six seasons, the show earned 32 Emmy nominations and six wins, nine Golden Globe nominations and four wins, and two GLAAD Media Awards for Outstanding Comedy Series, TheWrap reported. Deadline reported that the Emmy wins included honors for Murphy, whose first Emmy came for directing the pilot, and for Lynch.

The show's audience has persisted since the finale. All 121 original episodes are streaming on Hulu, according to ABC News, and Variety reported that the show's music averages 4.1 million monthly listeners on Spotify.