The Fox network and television studio said on Friday that they would delay the start of production on the new season of “Glee,†their hit musical-comedy series, as well as the premiere date of the show, after the death of the cast member Cory Monteith.
In a brief statement, the studio and the network said, “In light of the tragic passing of beloved ‘Glee’ cast member Cory Monteith, the series’ executive producers, 20th Century Fox Television and Fox Broadcasting Company have jointly decided to delay the start of production of ‘Glee’ until early August.†The premiere of this new season, originally scheduled for Sept. 19, will now take place on Sept. 26, they said.
Mr. Monteith, who played Finn Hudson, the high-school quarterback turned glee-club member on the series, was found dead in his hotel room in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Saturday. A coroner’s report issued later in the week said that he had died of “a mixed drug toxicity, involving heroin and alcohol.†Mr. Monteith, who was 31, had battled a substance-abuse problem and voluntarily checked himself into a rehabilitation facility this past spring.
The Fox statement offered no further details about how “Glee†might address Mr. Monteith’s death when the series returns. It described Mr. Monteith as someone who “worked closely with several charitable organizations†and was “devoted to helping people effect positive change in their lives,†and said that the groups Virgin Unite, Chrysalis and Project Limelight Society would be accepting donations in his name.
