How ‘Glee’ Predicted Lea Michele and Jane Lynch’s ‘Funny Girl’ Drama
Lea Michele has no intention of letting anyone rain on her parade. The controversial TV and Broadway star will finally step into the lead of the musical Funny Girl — a role she’s lobbied for since the first season of Glee. Michele’s fans are ecstatic about her finally playing Fanny Brice. But Glee and Funny Girl co-star Jane Lynch has no intention of sticking around—just like an episode of Glee that seems to have predicted it all.
Lea Michele’s long road to starring in ‘Funny Girl’
The first season of Glee was built mainly around a single moment: Michele belting out the famous Funny Girl song “Don’t Rain on My Parade” to cap an intense competition. Per Vox, the scene was used as the midseason finale but was initially conceived as the entire series finale. Glee creator Ryan Murphy also wasn’t the only one who thought Michele was the ideal Fanny Brice; Michele received a lot of praise when she reprised the performance at the 2010 Tony Awards.
But even though Murphy worked a series of Funny Girl homages into the story of Michele’s Glee character Rachel Berry, a Broadway revival of the famed musical struggled to take shape. Murphy actually bought the rights to a Funny Girl revival, though he let the rights slip as he focused on other projects.
Meanwhile, Michele continued to publicly endorse herself for the lead of Funny Girl—in case a revival finally became a reality. In 2017, Michele performed a series of Funny Girl songs at a Central Park concert. She explained to Andy Cohen that she was ready to play Fanny Brice on Broadway. Before starring in Glee, Michele broke out as the star of the Broadway musical Spring Awakening. But even though Spring Awakening director Michael Mayer led the Funny Girl revival, Michele was originally passed over in favor of Beanie Feldstein.
Jane Lynch’s ‘Glee’ character was a thorn in Lea Michele’s side
With Funny Girl playing such a central role for Michele’s Glee character, her storylines from the show now echo in real life. That is especially true for her onscreen relationship with Lynch, who played the series’ main antagonist, Sue Sylvester. While Rachel leads the New Directions, domineering cheerleading coach Sue lives to bully everyone in her path—especially Rachel.
In the Season 5 episode “Opening Night,” Sue continues to clash with budding star Rachel, who is preparing to play Fanny Brice in a version of Funny Girl. Sue continually undermines Rachel. She even storms out in the first act right in front of a New York Times critic. Sue often boasted she was a star and could just as easily compete with the young performers on the show.
Incidentally, while Michele didn’t land the lead in the Funny Girl Broadway revival, Lynch scored a big part — Fanny’s mother, Mrs. Brice. But soon after news broke that Michele was stepping into the lead role this September, reports surfaced that Lynch was leaving the production just as Michele takes center stage (per The Daily Beast).
This led to rumors stating Lynch was leaving to avoid working with her old co-star. But the actor denied this. “I adore her (Michele),” Lynch told Deadline. “She’s just going to take this show and make it her own,” the actor said. Lynch added that it was important that Michele’s premiere come alongside Tovah Feldshuh, who will take over as Mrs. Brice.
Various ‘Glee’ cast members have clashed with Michele
Lynch and Michele seem on good terms. But that doesn’t hold true for everyone in the Glee community. In 2020, Michele was called out for bullying on the set of Glee—specifically for mean-spirited behavior toward actors of color. Co-stars Samantha Ware and Amber Riley were both critical of Michele, who later issued an apology on Instagram.
Other Glee cast members like Heather Morris and the late Naya Rivera had also been critical of Michele. Years after rumors of a feud, Rivera explained in her book, Sorry Not Sorry: Dreams, Mistakes, and Growing Up, that Michele “didn’t like sharing the spotlight.”
Michele has been ripped for bullying her way into the lead Funny Girl role. But there’s more to the story. Despite some kind words for Feldstein, various critics have questioned her ability to stand in the shoes of Barbra Streisand, the original Fanny Brice. “In song after song, Feldstein’s voice lets her down,” suggested Vulture. It seems producers are hoping Michele has the star quality to elevate the production.
Michele is set to premiere in Funny Girl during the first week of September, while Feldstein will finish her tenure at the end of July. Understudy Julie Benko will play Fanny Brice in the interim until Michele takes over (via Deadline).
