“I just completely broke” - Lea Michele recalls 'fractured' relationship with costars after Cory Monteith's death

Cory Monteith's sudden death was a shock for Lea Michele, 38. She shared the screen with the late actor while shooting for Glee. Beyond the screen, Lea was in a relationship with Cory for around a year.

On July 13, 2013, Monteith died at 31. A drug overdose and mixed toxicity caused the unfortunate death. Despite him staying in rehab in April of the same year, he again struggled with substance abuse a couple of months later.

His death affected the Glee cast, especially his girlfriend, Lea Michele. In a recent conversation with Therapuss, the actor spoke about the disappointing incident and how she felt while continuing to shoot for the musical comedy-drama television series.

"I was 26 and no one handed me a guidebook. It was a fast education on more stuff than I could ever even process."

Reflecting on how the incident impacted her relationship with other cast members of the series, the actress added,

"I think it really fractured so much. I mean, I can’t speak for everyone — I think that maybe, in some ways, it did for certain people. But I think that for me, it was so hard to. I just completely broke."

Lea Michele opened up on her relationship with Glee co-stars after Cory Monteith's death

During her interview with host Jake Shane, the New Year's Eve actress recounted how she dealt with the grief of losing her partner and continued working in the same atmosphere where they had worked together.

"I was 26 and no one handed me a guidebook. It was a fast education on more stuff than I could ever even process."

Lea also opened up about ignoring her "stuff" and pushing herself every day to go back to the Glee set. She further continued,

"If we didn't show up for work then people wouldn't have work to go to. And that was a lot of pressure for me, so I had to put my stuff aside and just show up, so that everybody could continue to work."

Despite experiencing "too much," she tried to give her all and pour herself into the filming process.

Lea Michele added,

"I was really in a one-track mind of just doing my job. It was way too much to try to process at a young age."

During this hard phase of her life, Glee's cast and crew "supported" her. During this recent interview, the actress thanked everyone for being on her side.

"I’m very grateful for everyone there, whether or not they know it. I personally felt a lot of support from everybody in the building helping me to get through."

Michele also credited the crew members, especially for the unwavering support.

"Especially from the crew. The people that would be behind the camera every day— I would be looking at the camera but looking at the person behind it… I was looking at those people like they were holding me up, as well as the people who were on the show."

She also pointed out how "a lot of people" graduating and shifting to other storylines was "hard" to face.

Post-series, Lea Michele shares a beautiful bond with co-stars Darren Criss and Dianna Agron.

Appreciating them, she shared,

"I see Darren all the time. He’s like my brother, and Dianna and I both live in the city now. There is such a comfort because we all really did go through something that only we will ever understand. So I feel so safe with them and so comfortable. Family forever."

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