Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines for June 11
Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what's clicking today in entertainment.
"Glee" star Samantha Marie Ware is opening up about Lea Michele's alleged poor behavior toward her co-stars while on the set of the hit show.
The actress recently made headlines when she called Michele out on Twitter, claiming the "Scream Queens" actress made her time on "Glee" a "living hell."
Since then, a handful of Michele's other co-stars have spoken out with similar accusations. Such celebs have included fellow "Glee" stars Alex Newell and Heather Morris, as well as stars from other shows and Michele's time on Broadway.
The 23-year-old actress spoke to Variety recently, claiming that she sensed tension from Michele, 33, very early into their time working together.
Samantha Ware called out Lea Michele over behavior she alleges happened while on the set of 'Glee.' (Getty Images) (Getty Images)
“I knew from day one when I attempted to introduce myself. There was nothing gradual about it. As soon as she decided that she didn’t like me, it was very evident,” Ware alleged before further claiming: “It was after I did my first performance, that’s when it started -- the silent treatment, the stare-downs, the looks, the comments under her breath, the weird passive-aggressiveness. It all built up.”
Ware played Jane Hayward in the sixth and final season of "Glee," having a history on Broadway before making the jump to television. The actress made her debut in the second episode of the season, singing "Tightrope" by Janelle Monáe.
Michele's alleged actions were never reported by Ware because she didn't know that was an action she could take at the time.
“Lea’s actions were nothing new, so I guess since it was such a common thing, my case didn’t seem like that big of a deal,” Ware said. “I remember the first day I actually spoke up and unfortunately no one did anything. They just shrugged it off, like ‘That’s her.’ No one was stopping these things, which is an issue because the environment was helping perpetuate this abuse," Ware claimed.
Lea Michele as Rachel Berry in 'Glee.' (Ryan Murphy Productions/20th Century Fox Television)
Among the alleged incidents recounted by Ware was one in which Michele, who starred as Rachel Berry in the show for its entire run, threatened Ware's job in front of a large group of people.
Ware explained that during the scene, she wasn't appearing on camera and wasn't giving a "full-throttle performance," which apparently upset Michele, despite not even the director raising any concern.
“She waited until the scene was over and she stopped in the middle of the stage and did a ‘come here’ gesture, like how a mother does to their child,” the actress told the outlet.
LEA MICHELE HIT WITH MORE BAD BEHAVIOR CLAIMS FROM CO-STARS FOLLOWING HER PUBLIC APOLOGY
Ware said she politely refused Michele's demands.
“I said ‘no,’ and that’s when she decided to threaten my job, and said she would call [executive producer and creator] Ryan Murphy in to come and fire me," Ware alleged.
The actress said she doesn't have any reason to believe that Murphy, 54, was informed about the alleged incident, stating that Michele was likely just trying to scare her. In fact, the outlet reported that Murphy's involvement with "Glee" during its final seasons was non-existent.
Naturally, Ware was feeling uneasy at the time.
Samantha Marie Ware (left) and Billy Lewis Jr. on 'Glee.' (Photo by FOX Image Collection via Getty Images)
“It’s scary. For the full week, I was thinking I’m probably going to get an email and I might not be able to do the last three episodes, or I might not be able to sing another song," she told Variety.
Additionally, when Ware tried to stand up for herself, Michele allegedly said Ware didn't "deserve" her spot on the show.
“She talked about how she has reign. And here’s the thing: I completely understood that, and I was ready to be like, ‘This is your show. I’m not here to be disrespectful,’" Ware said. "But at that point, we were already past the respect and she was just abusing her power.”
'GLEE' STAR SAMANTHA MARIE WARE SEEMINGLY RESPONDS TO LEA MICHELE'S APOLOGY
In her initial statement about Michele's behavior, Ware claimed that the star once threatened to 's--t in' Ware's wig, which she said took place during a screening on set.
“She had an issue because I had laughed [when watching a scene] and that’s when the ‘I’m going to s--t in your wig’ comment happened,” said Ware, noting that Michele intentionally spoke loudly so others could hear. “Some chuckled and some gasped. It was mortifying. The whole point was for her to embarrass me. People heard her, but no one was going to stand up to her.”
While Ware said it could have been unintentional, the comment was racially charged because, as she put it, “black women historically are known for their wigs.”
Clockwise from left: Billy Lewis Jr., Laura Dreyfuss, Matthew Morrison, Lea Michele, Becca Tobin, Noah Guthrie, Samantha Marie Ware and Marshall Williams in 'Glee.' (Ryan Murphy Productions/20th Century Fox Television)
It was Michele's tweet in support of the Black Lives Matter movement that spurred Ware's accusations.
Michele has since issued a public apology for her behavior, saying: "Whether it was my privileged position and perspective that caused me to be perceived as insensitive or inappropriate at times or whether it was just my immaturity and me just being unnecessarily difficult, I apologize for my behavior and for any pain which I have caused."
Ware seemingly responded by suggesting Michele make a donation to the family of James Scurlock, a black man who was shot and killed in a recent protest in Omaha, Neb.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“It shouldn’t have to take my tweet. When you tweet, 'Black lives matter,' that would mean you have an understanding of what that hashtag means, but it’s clear that it doesn’t,” Ware said in the interview with Variety. “Does Lea even know what a microaggression is? I don’t know. All that her apology did was affirm that she hasn’t learned anything. Am I calling Lea a racist? No. Does Lea have racist tendencies? I think Lea suffers from a symptom of living in this world in an industry that is tailored to white people.”
A rep for Michele had no comment when reached by Fox News. Reps for Murphy and FOX did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.
Trending
