‘Glee’ Season 5 Moving “Exclusively” to New York, Season 6 Ending Confirmed
The fifth season of FOX's starmaking 'Glee' became mired by change with the death of actor Cory Monteith, as well as news that a sixth season would likely prove the last for the series. Now, FOX president Kevin Reilly reveals even more change on the horizon, as the remainder of the fifth season will shift focus to its New York setting, potentially moving the series there for the duration of its run.
Speaking from the ongoing Television Critics Association press tour, Reilly reaffirmed that season 6 would be the last, also confirming that the remaining episodes of season 5 would be set "exclusively" in New York, meaning that certain Lima characters would either make the move themselves, or step back to a diminished focus in the series:
Some are going to be graduating and moving; creatively, it would be ridiculous that everybody moves to New York. There will be some that will graduate and move on and they'll arc back in when we do special episodes. They'll always be a part of it. The way it's going to dovetail next season, we'll see some familiar faces coming around in some capacity. But for this season, there will be a graduation, several of the castmembers will move on and a few others will go to New York.
The move had been rumored for some time, thought it remains unknown if the series would have charted the same course had Cory Monteith not died. Series creator Ryan Murphy recently confirmed was was to have been the original ending for the series, as described by Rachel Berry (Lea Michele) in Monteith's tribute episode "The Quarterback," which would have seen Rachel returning from a life of Broadway stardom to find Finn as a teacher at McKinley high school.
'Glee' will soon celebrate its 100th episode with a two-hour installment airing over March 18 and 25, set to feature such returning guest stars as Gwyneth Paltrow and Kristin Chenoweth, among others. What say you, though? Does the full-time shift to New York seem the best way to consolidate the 'Glee' story? How would you like to see the sixth and final season play out next year?