The current cast of the hit Fox series “Glee,” including breakout superstar Lea Michele, will be replaced in 2012 prior to the show’s fourth season. The Emmy-winning show’s creator, Ryan Murphy, said he made the decision to bring in a new class of characters in order to follow the natural progression of the plot.
“We didn’t want to have a show where they were in high school for eight years. We really wanted it to be true to that experience. We thought it would be really cool if we were true to the timeline,” said Murphy.
Additionally, many of the show’s lead actors, such as Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, and Dianna Agron are in their mid to late twenties (Monteith turns 30 next year), so their ability to portray realistic high school students is becoming increasingly difficult.
Murphy said he has no intention of having the new characters eliminate or replace the beloved original cast.
“I think the thing about this cast is people love them and they are incredibly talented,” Murphy said. “They’ve left sort of an indelible mark.”
Fortunately for ‘Gleeks,’ not every character is leaving McKinley High at the end of the season. Murphy said Matthew Morrison and Jane Lynch will stay and be “the male and female lynchpins of the series.”
Murphy assured skeptical fans that the magic of ‘Glee’ will continue long after the original cast graduates in May.
“I think the fun thing about the show is it’s a celebration of youth and talent and I think that just like with the original cast, I think finding those young unknown people and giving them an opportunity to break into the business and become stars is a really fun and exciting thing and is the spirit of the series.”