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Some fans think this was a sign we should have noticed.
By Nicole Pomarico — Written on Jul 17, 2020
This week, the world got some heartbreaking news: After almost a full week of searching Lake Piru, the Ventura County Sheriff's department was finally able to recover former Glee star Naya Rivera's body after she went missing while boating with her 4-year-old son, Josey, last week.
Rivera's death marks the third Glee star to pass away under tragic and unexpected circumstances, along with Cory Monteith, who played Finn, and Mark Salling, who played Puck.
Now, there's a new Glee curse death theory that the stars may have foreshadowed their deaths on the show.
And it's a bit eerie.
The theory came up In the comments of a YouTube video.
On a YouTube video that featured Rivera's performance of "If I Die Young" by the Band Perry, a fan commented on the irony of Rivera singing a song about an early death when that's exactly what happened to her, also mentioning that same theory could apply to her co-stars who had also passed.
Rivera may have foreshadowed her death In her performance of "If I Die Young."
In the song, Rivera sings, "Sink me in the river at dawn." Her death has officially been ruled a drowning, though she wasn't in a river at the time — she was in a California lake. At the time, her son told authorities that their pontoon boat had drifted away from them and although Rivera was able to get Josey back to the boat, she was heartbreakingly unable to save herself. As the song states, Rivera also died young at 33 years old.
Monteith is thought to have mentioned his death in the song "Good Vibrations."
Monteith died In 2013, when he was found dead in a Vancouver hotel. Later, his death was discovered to have been caused by an overdose. When he performed "Good Vibrations" by The Beach Boys on Glee, he sung about being "drug-free," which is certainly ironic, since a drug overdose was connected to the way he died.
Salling's performance of "Loser" mentioned suicide.
Salling died by suicide in 2018, when he was found in a riverbed in LA. His death was ruled asphyxia by hanging just weeks before he was set to appear in court for sentencing after he was charged with possession of child pornography. He foreshadowed his death on Glee when he rapped "he hung himself" in the song Loser by Beck.
There's also a theory called the "Glee curse."
Other than Rivera, Monteith, and Salling, others who worked on Glee or were somehow connected to the show or cast have died, which some fans call the Glee curse. This includes crew members Jim Fuller and Nancy Motes, as well as cast member Becca Tobin's boyfriend, Matt Bendik, who was found dead in a hotel room in 2014.
The remaining Glee cast is still sticking together.
Despite the misfortune that has befallen so many of the people they once worked with, it seems like the cast of Glee is still sticking together. They were photographed at Lake Piru this week, holding hands by the water and saying goodbye to Rivera. It's heartbreaking to think of yet another loss of someone so young and so talented and hopefully, now that she's been found, her family will be able to find peace.
Nicole Pomarico is an entertainment and lifestyle writer whose work has appeared in Cosmo, Us Weekly, Refinery29, and more.