Darren Criss, Chord Overstreet & Harry Shum Jr. - Who's In and Who's Out Next Season on GLEE - Give Me My Remote : Give Me My Remote

Darren Criss, Chord Overstreet & Harry Shum Jr. – Who’s In and Who’s Out Next Season on GLEE

July 1, 2011 by  

GLEE creator Ryan Murphy caused quite a stir in the Gleekdom recently when he confirmed to Ryan Seacrest that some of the McKinley High kids will indeed be graduating next year and moving on.  Since then speculation has run rampant as to just who will be sticking around and who will be leaving.  The season finale made it clear that New Directions co-captains Rachel and Finn are in fact seniors, but could the show survive without the talent powerhouse that is Lea Michele?  Would Ryan Murphy and Fox allow it?

And what about other GLEE breakout stars such as Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale and Heather Morris?  When asked about the graduation rumors, Golden Globe Winner Chris Colfer told the L.A. Times “I don’t know what I can say on camera with a straight face and what I can’t!…I would just tell the fans: Don’t be worried. That’s all I’m gonna say because a lot of fans are worried that the characters are going to graduate and leave the show, but that’s not necessarily the case. Don’t fret.”

So where does that leave us and more importantly where does that leave our favorite Gleeks?  Perhaps only Ryan Murphy and his inner circle know for sure (then again, this is GLEE and there is a really good chance they’ll wait until the very last minute and just make something up.)

No doubt the speculation as to the fate of the cast will continue throughout the summer and the course of next season. However, it seems some of those casting decisions are being made now, and the news will have some gleeks singing for joy and others a little down in the (Trouty) mouth.

According to TVLine.com, GLEE has upgraded Darren Criss (who plays Kurt’s boyfriend, Blaine Anderson) and Harry Shum Jr. (the delightful dancer, Mike Chang) to full time series regulars next season. But the news is not so good for Chord Overstreet (Sam Evans) as it seems his option was not picked up. TVLine sources say that the actor “could return as an occasional guest star.”

No official word on this casting news has been confirmed by Fox or Ryan Murphy, but Overstreet posted a rather cryptic and perhaps telling tweet earlier today:

 

 

Just a few minutes ago, Overstreet and director Jon Chu exchanged tweets in which Chord didn’t refute this unfortunate casting news.

 

 

Those who know me know that I couldn’t be more ecstatic about the news that Darren Criss will be returning to GLEE as a full time cast member next season. Given his meteoric rise in popularity since joining the show, I really didn’t have any fears. (Ok, I did have some fears and those fears may or may not have kept me in a constant state of panic since the series finale…but oh how I’m going to sleep well tonight.) Darren Criss and Chris Colfer’s romance as Blaine and Kurt became a strong draw for many GLEE fans last season.  As for whether or not Blaine will remain with The Warblers at Dalton Academy or spend his days singing at McKinley High, that we don’t yet know.  At the GLEE panel at the Paley Festival in March, Ryan Murphy did allude to the notion that he would have to find a way for Blaine to audition for New Directions, but for now Blaine’s scholastic whereabouts are still up in the air.

While I’m thrilled that Harry Shum Jr. will be back on the show next season, I only hope that the newly expanded GLEE writing staff will find an interesting way to integrate him into the series and not just cut to him when showcasing his (insane) dance skills. Talking with EW about expanding character storylines in Season 3, Murphy said “I wanna know more about Tina and Mike.” That could only be a good thing for Shum…and us.

As for Overstreet’s Sam Evans, who knows if he’ll be transferring out of McKinley or not. There’s is a small (ok, really small) chance that Chord’s not going anywhere.  Think about it…Harry Shum Jr. has been in almost every episode since the show premiered and he wasn’t a series regular until now.  I guess we’ll have to wait and see. But if he’s gone, I’ll miss Trouty Mouth, his (not from a bottle) blonde hair and those silly impressions.

Of course you can be sure that there will be more than a few new faces popping up on GLEE next season.  The winner of THE GLEE PROJECT will be joining the show for at least a seven episode arc (please let it be Cameron…fingers crossed, although I don’t think it’s him). Also, Ryan Murphy has alluded to new characters that might appear in the fall and then make their way back when the show returns from its annual winter hiatus. Let’s just hope the fresh new talent in the GLEE writing room translates into better character development for the already super-sized cast.

So fellow gleeks, what do you make of this news?  Are you as ecstatic as I am that Darren Criss will be back?  What about Harry Shum, Jr? Bummed out about Chord? Thoughts on some of the cast possibly leaving the show after next season?

(And if any of you are secretly hoping that this happens…just know that I’m with you!)

 

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Comments

6 Responses to “Darren Criss, Chord Overstreet & Harry Shum Jr. – Who’s In and Who’s Out Next Season on GLEE”

  1. Chelsea on July 1st, 2011 11:57 pm

    While I’m beyond excited for Darren & Harry, I’m sad to see Chord go (if he doesn’t come back at all). I think someone who’s been on the show for a whole season & went on a world tour deserves more than an ambiguous “he may or may not be on next year.” There may be some other reason as to why he’s going, but I have a feeling Murphy just got bored again.

  2. Julie {isCocoandCocoa} on July 2nd, 2011 10:02 am

    I’m going to be really upset if Chord is gone for good!

  3. Jess on July 2nd, 2011 12:59 pm

    I just hope they don’t ignore the Sam-Mercedes relationship from the finale. Maybe he will be in a few eps, then hopefully his dad gets a job and they have to move. Hopefully they won’t pull on him what they did to the African American kid from season one and just have him disappear. Then maybe (this is all pure speculation) he and Mercedes would be long distance which would allow for the “occasional guest appearances”.

  4. Marisa Roffman on July 2nd, 2011 1:01 pm

    So insane. Poor Mercedes…she finally gets a guy and then he’s gone?!

  5. alli on July 2nd, 2011 1:11 pm

    Yay for Darrin! Happy to hear that news, he is the one characters i am truly invested in. Happy for Harry too, but lets be honest, without much character development for him, it was his dancing that took center stage. I hope Ryan Murphy and writers fix that this year.

    Gonna miss Chord. If i remember correctly he is a bottle blond though. Looks good that way though, so he should keep it.

    I am rooting for Cameron on Glee Project as well. He has something very magnetic about him and i love his voice. None of the girls in the Glee project really shine in my opinion, they are just good voices.

  6. Sam on July 11th, 2011 11:00 pm

    Not sure how popular this opinion is: there are certain cast members who I never want to leave the show – including (but not limited to) Finn, Rachel, and Kurt. I’d love to see all the original cast members stay forever, except I really dont think there is anything to do about Tina’s character at this point. But everyone else. Point is – I am invested in the characters, not the concept of the high school glee club. It would be much more compelling to see how these characters develop post-high school than to just be rid of them, have a bunch of new kids come in, and start all over. I’m thinking yeah they will bring in new high schoolers, it will still be about Glee club, but we still need to follow certain characters after they graduate. I’m thinking something like One Tree Hill, but better writing. It would be difficult, since it annoyed the heck out of me when Kurt/Warblers scenes didnt have much to do with McKinley, and it seemed like a separate show. So following Rachel’s career on Broadway, college storylines, etc. might get weird. But if the writers used some of the brilliance they had in the pilot, i think it could work. Anyway, as Robin Thicke once sang, that is my dreamworld. But I’m not holding my breath. I agree about Shum needing to be more integrated. Looking back, I actually preferred when he had no lines, because part of the humor was that he was sort of a background guy who we knew nothing about. Like the piano player. But now it’s kind of like – eh, ok he talks sometimes, he has a “storyline” as tinas bf, he’s token Asian … and that’s it? He doesn’t sing, and we still don’t really know anything about him at all. Love Harry Shum, but keeping Mike around better be worth it. Or else…or else
    I don’t know, these are empty threats because truth is I will never stop watching this show no matter how ridiculous it gets and how much it frustrates me. Ok I’m done rambling.