Kevin McHale, Jenna Ushkowitz Have ‘Nothing to Do’ With New ‘Glee’ Doc: Stars Aren’t ‘Out for Blood’

Former Glee stars Kevin McHale and Jenna Ushkowitz aren’t “out for blood” over the new documentary about the show, they told In Touch exclusively while attending Jingle Ball in Los Angeles, California, on Friday, December 2.

“We’re not really associated with it,” Jenna, 36, said about the upcoming Discovery+ series, adding that her and Kevin’s podcast – “And That’s What You Really Missed” – has added meaning in light of the forthcoming documentary.

“We were there and we experienced it and we just wanna show people what it was really like being there,” Jenna said.

The three-part docuseries, which was first announced in October, will break down the behind-the-scenes controversies of Glee that took place while the show was on the air from 2009 until 2015.

Cast and crew members are expected to share first-hand stories from their time on the show and will discuss the highs and lows of production.

While they don’t want to make an issue of the documentary, Kevin, 34, shared they will debunk any false information “if we feel like we need to” or “if there’s anything glaring.”

“You don’t necessarily want to give something more attention than it maybe deserves or needs,” he continued. “But we’ll see. Us and all of our friends have nothing to do with it, so we’ll see what happens.”

In addition to the public controversies surrounding the popular series, the docuseries will also examine some of the difficulties the cast and crew faced while filming, including the sudden death of star Cory Monteith following an accidental heroin overdose.

Another topic of conversation will be Lea Michele, who was accused of creating a toxic work environment on set. The allegations first came to light when costar Samantha Ware blasted the Funny Girl actress on Twitter in June 2020. 

“LMAO remember when you made my first television gig a living hell?” Samantha, 31, wrote at the time. “‘Cause I’ll never forget. I believe you told everyone that if you had the opportunity you would ‘s–t in my wig’ amongst other traumatic microaggressions that made me question a career in Hollywood … ”

 Several other stars from the show – including Heather Morris, Alex Newell and Amber Riley – came to Samantha’s defense after she made the claims against Lea, 36.

Lea later apologized for her behavior, though claimed she didn’t recall the past allegations made against her.

An additional topic that will be discussed is Naya Rivera’s death, which took place five years after the show’s finale. In July 2020, the late actress drowned while on a boating trip with her son, Josey Hollis Dorsey, whom she shared with ex-husband Ryan Dorsey. 

In November 2020, Kevin and Jenna opened up to Us Weekly about “the Glee curse and the deaths of [their] friends and some of the on set drama that you hear.” 

“We all come from different backgrounds and different experiences, and there were definitely moments of, like, ‘Is that normal?’” Kevin said, referring to Lea’s behavior on the set. “But we didn’t necessarily know any better and we were all learning together.”