AndySmith April 9, 2015 Share April 9, 2015 loooooooooooool That actually makes me want to see the performance now, actually...and I have a feeling I'll have the same reaction ;) 1 Link to comment
phoenixrising April 9, 2015 Share April 9, 2015 I think I've seen that gif more than the performance. Haha. Her reactions are always the best. She conveys disgust like no one else. 3 Link to comment
dizzyizzy01 April 9, 2015 Share April 9, 2015 I didn't mean that Naya's departure was due to her speaking out for her character. It wasn't. Just that the producers' personal feelings about actors, for whatever reason, can bleed into what's being written (or not written) on the show. I mean, this is a tv show that routinely wrote real life situations from the actors into the show, so I don't see why they wouldn't do the opposite too. Sure. There was actor/character bleed driven by the writing, but I just don't think it's some conspiracy of intentionally trying to sideline actors because they "spoke up". I don't believe there's really any evidence of that happening. Dianna's constantly cited as the #1 example of that, and she was featured fairly prominently until she decided to leave the show. There was loss of interest in certain characters and really bad writing across the board, and I suppose it may be speculated that it's driven by some sort of perceived punishment of a certain actor. I just don't think that's true. The writers just write whatever crappy story pops into their heads. Link to comment
LydiaMoon1 April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 Kevin McHale says that Glee's schedule was so demanding that casting directors realized early on that they couldn't use the Glee cast for any outside projects. I'm not making an inference. This is what he actually says. Seems like I remember a very limited few being able to do projects outside of Glee. 'Course, I imagine RIB were selective in who they employed this tactic against and who they didn't. That seems to be in character for them. http://kevinmchalenews.com/post/116289051172/kevin-mchale-on-glee-end-casting-directors-gave# Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 Why on earth would Kevin of all people have a heavy shooting schedule on Glee? He barely did anything for six seasons, talk about money for old rope! Link to comment
caracas1914 April 13, 2015 Author Share April 13, 2015 Even when reacting in choir room scenes, the cast would take up to several days to film those, mind you, even those with NO lines. LOL. Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 I'm sure those long hours doing reaction shots were tough. Lol. Definitely money for old rope. Even the leads can't have had that a hard shooting schedule, even Lea wasn't that storyline heavy. However badly done, it was usually balanced out with someone else. As opposed to say Grant Gustin on The Flash. If they cast wanted to do other work they could. I mean Dianna Agron has been in 11 films since 2009, Harry Shum's been in 6, another 7 short movies and a few TV shows, Melissa's done 5 movies, plus the Supergirl pilot. Link to comment
indeed April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 A lot of that is work not done during Glee. As disorganized as the show was, I have no trouble believing it was hard to fit in other work at times, even with everyone's blessings. Or maybe they were so inexperienced in the ways of TV shows they thought they had grueling schedules and will soon realize Glee all those years--including the tour years--was really just a cakewalk. While he could be exaggerating a tad, I hardly think they're liars. Link to comment
dizzyizzy01 April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 I'm sure those long hours doing reaction shots were tough. Lol. Definitely money for old rope. Even the leads can't have had that a hard shooting schedule, even Lea wasn't that storyline heavy. However badly done, it was usually balanced out with someone else. As opposed to say Grant Gustin on The Flash. If they cast wanted to do other work they could. I mean Dianna Agron has been in 11 films since 2009, Harry Shum's been in 6, another 7 short movies and a few TV shows, Melissa's done 5 movies, plus the Supergirl pilot. Those were mostly done after they left the show as regulars. Also, S1 and S2 and even S3 were extremely time-consuming for the cast, especially Lea and to a lesser extent Chris and Cory. S4 and beyond did free up some time for some though. Lea got to complete her book and album during those seasons. The thing also with TV show contracts is that RIB have dibs on the cast members' schedule regardless if they use them or not. They can't sign contracts to go do other stuff if they're a contracted regular unless they get explicit agreement. Given the planning (or lack therof) that went around on this show, I'm sure that was virtually impossible to work around for the regulars. 1 Link to comment
shoregirl April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 Not to mention that it wasn't just filming or rehearsals. But those plus recording and learning choreography. Didn't the end of the second season basically run into the tour than the third season with very little break in between Link to comment
Casual Viewing April 13, 2015 Share April 13, 2015 I thought where Kevin said ""And then I flew back to do Glee for a week, and then I went back to Connecticut to do this movie but then on the weekends I’d go back to Glee. It was really bad. In classic Glee form it was like, 'I’m going to be gone’, so then they wrote the biggest storyline I had all season.” was typical Glee. It kind of reminded me of the Finchel relationship i.e. Finn only wanted Rachel when someone else was interested in her. Why does it not surprise me that the writers did the same to their cast? 2 Link to comment
Ceeg April 14, 2015 Share April 14, 2015 (edited) Even the leads can't have had that a hard shooting schedule, even Lea wasn't that storyline heavy. However badly done, it was usually balanced out with someone else. As opposed to say Grant Gustin on The Flash. But Grant Gustin on The Flash isn't filming musical numbers that last 2 minutes in the show but can take an entire day to film, rehearsing for said musical number, and recording for it too. Being the lead character on one show can't be compared to being a supporting character on another show, when the content and shooting schedules are completely different. What you see ON-SCREEN in a 42 minute window is not necessarily directly correlated with the amount of work put in BTS. I think it's indisputable that during the first 3 seasons (but particularly the first 2), the cast worked above and beyond normal hours for a one-hour broadcast show. Edited April 14, 2015 by Ceeg 2 Link to comment
shantown April 14, 2015 Share April 14, 2015 I think it's indisputable that during the first 3 seasons (but particularly the first 2), the cast worked above and beyond normal hours for a one-hour broadcast show. Not only ridiculously long hours, but they didn't get a summer break either in 2011 and 2012 because of the concert tour. 2 Link to comment
tom87 April 14, 2015 Share April 14, 2015 Old interview with Heather about taking on a lead role in an episode. http://www.vulture.com/2010/09/glees_heather_morris_on_taking.html Was it strange to all of a sudden have all this attention on you?No! Not at all. I was like, yes! I can dance and I can do things! I got really tired; I do a lot in this episode. I didn’t really know why I was so tired all the time at first. I was just working my ass off. Every day I felt like I was drunk, like what am I doing today?! This must be how Lea Michele feels all the time! But it’s true — I’ve never had to go to vocal records before, and adding it is literally that much harder. Link to comment
tab19 April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 (edited) Or maybe they were so inexperienced in the ways of TV shows they thought they had grueling schedules and will soon realize Glee all those years--including the tour years--was really just a cakewalk. While he could be exaggerating a tad, I hardly think they're liars. I am sure I've seen an interview somewhere with Lea in a group of other actresses, and through the interview it becomes apparent that Glee's schedule truly was horrendous, at least in the beginning. (Might be Hollywood Reporter Emmy roundtable in 2011?) And I've also read that those early choir room scenes - while not physically taxing - were nonetheless an enormous drain on the actors' time, since they all had to sit through everything. Even if they were literally just sitting there with no lines. And in fact that's why they greatly reduced the number of choir scenes with the full cast in later seasons -- to avoid that time suck. So I'm inclined to think Kevin speaks the truth. Edited April 15, 2015 by tab19 1 Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 So I'm inclined to think Kevin speaks the truth. I'm sure he does. But others managed to use the time they did have to do albums, films, and musicals. They did spend their time hosting game shows about you tube clips then complain about not being able to do anything else. Link to comment
caracas1914 April 15, 2015 Author Share April 15, 2015 (edited) I'm sure he does. But others managed to use the time they did have to do albums, films, and musicals. They did spend their time hosting game shows about you tube clips then complain about not being able to do anything else Albums, like writing, can be done on down time away from the set. On screen acting gigs are another matter. Lea, who I'm assuming got the most offers of any of the young cast, got one movie as part of an ensemble, "New Years Eve" during her six year stint on Glee. Darren's one film was actually made before his first year as a regular, and Chris squeezed in "Struck by Lightning" in a laughable tight 3 weeks between the 2nd Glee four and the 3rd season of Glee. So actually that track record for some of the bigger names backs up what Kevin said. It wasn't so much no offers, but offers that coincided neatly with the limited down time they had from Glee. I think those first two summers they toured and had to forgo outside projects were critical, because the show/actors were very hot so I'm sure some opportunities were lost. Edited April 15, 2015 by caracas1914 4 Link to comment
fakeempress April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 I absolutely believe Kevin, not only because other cast members have said the same, but also because industry people have said the same. 6 Link to comment
Hana Chan April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 It had to be especially frustrating for the Glee cast who got tied up with being "regulars" but got little in the way of stories or real screen time (besides filling a chair in the choir room or playing prop to Lea and/or Darren) and couldn't take advantage of the offers coming their way. It was definitely a double-sided sword, being on Glee. On one hand, none of the cast would have gotten these kinds of offers as early as they did without Glee introducing them to the world. But by the time Glee had released the death clench it had on the cast, the best offers had probably dried up for some. Even if they did get offers to do something during the summer break, for the first two years they got stuck on the tour and couldn't take advantage of them. It's heartening to see that many in the cast did manage to get good things lined up now that Glee is over, but we'll always wonder what projects they had to pass on when the demand for the cast was the hottest. 2 Link to comment
dizzyizzy01 April 15, 2015 Share April 15, 2015 I am sure I've seen an interview somewhere with Lea in a group of other actresses, and through the interview it becomes apparent that Glee's schedule truly was horrendous, at least in the beginning. (Might be Hollywood Reporter Emmy roundtable in 2011?) And I've also read that those early choir room scenes - while not physically taxing - were nonetheless an enormous drain on the actors' time, since they all had to sit through everything. Even if they were literally just sitting there with no lines. And in fact that's why they greatly reduced the number of choir scenes with the full cast in later seasons -- to avoid that time suck. So I'm inclined to think Kevin speaks the truth. Yep. It is absolutely the truth that Glee's schedule was unusually long days for a really long time for a lot of the cast. TV production has some weird hours and long days, but Glee was atypical even from that. Even just at a fundamental level, if you thought about it, no other show really required the same type of dance rehearsals learning choreography, learning songs, recording singles etc. on top of the standard TV production stuff like blocking and regular rehearsals. It was a lot for a lot of the cast for a long time. 3 Link to comment
RidingTeach April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 I think I remember reading that when he guested, Neil Patrick Harris jokingly described the conditions as a "sweatshop" & couldn't believe how hard the cast worked. That was at a time when he was arguably the major star of HIMYM, & given his extensive history on tv, I figure he would know! 1 Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 16, 2015 Share April 16, 2015 I think I remember reading that when he guested, Neil Patrick Harris jokingly described the conditions as a "sweatshop" & couldn't believe how hard the cast worked. That was at a time when he was arguably the major star of HIMYM, & given his extensive history on tv, I figure he would know! NPH isn't known for exactly being in touch with the real world. He probably thinks people getting their own coffee is sweatshop conditions. Link to comment
Cranberry April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 It's not really up for debate that Glee's hours were insane. So many people have acknowledged it. 9 Link to comment
indeed April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Sure, NPH doesn't know anything about the television environment, learning choreography, participating in live and taped musical performances, or working long hours. Such a bad example to use. Maybe we need to wait and see what Geraldo Rivera thinks instead. Of course, the Glee actors had to do way more than the average television cast. Probably didn't get paid enough, either. 4 Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Anyone who thinks life on any TV set is comparable to a sweatshop is not living in the real world. Perhaps people like NPH and Kevin McHale should get real jobs. Then they can complain about long hours and awful conditions. Link to comment
ComfySweater April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 I think the point being made is sweatshops are actual human rights violations where people get paid below a living wage to be abused in almost every conceivable way. Glee was a particularly bad tv show workplace, but many of them were paid more than most of us will make in a lifetime and all got significantly more than living wage. All of them had union protections and California labor laws in their corner. Sweatshop is a bad analogy to use as those currently exist in the world and are far worse than anything Glee even thought about doing to them. Link to comment
tom87 April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 I think the point being made is sweatshops are actual human rights violations where people get paid below a living wage to be abused in almost every conceivable way. Glee was a particularly bad tv show workplace, but many of them were paid more than most of us will make in a lifetime and all got significantly more than living wage. All of them had union protections and California labor laws in their corner. Sweatshop is a bad analogy to use as those currently exist in the world and are far worse than anything Glee even thought about doing to them. I wasn't taking that post serious because no one even came close to comparing the glee working conditions to that of a sweat shop. 3 Link to comment
ComfySweater April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 I wasn't taking that post serious because no one even came close to comparing the glee working conditions to that of a sweat shop. Well, the acting is just a hobby thing is frequently lobbed at professional actors, so I'm not sure who was trying to be funny there. None of it strikes me as funny in any way. All of you missed the mark for me by wide margins on both sides. Link to comment
AndySmith April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Did anyone seriously think the Glee set was an actual literal sweatshop when NPH made those comments? 1 Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 You never know with someone like NPH, they don't live in the real world. It's like Paltrow saying a working mother with a 9-5 job has an easier life than her. It was the same thing in Kevin's interview, they think they have a hard life. Say what you like about Lea Michele she probably worked longer hours than anyone but I've never seen her complain. Link to comment
AndySmith April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 (edited) Considering how he said it jokingly, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Also, none of us really know him in real life, so it is a bit hard to make assumptions about him not living in the real world and what he considers real or not. Anyway, maybe we should just stay on topic, instead of discussing how hard actors may or may not have it as far as their jobs are concerned. Edited April 17, 2015 by AndySmith Link to comment
fakeempress April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Anyone who thinks life on any TV set is comparable to a sweatshop is not living in the real world. Let's now eliminate all figurative language from our lives. It will be so much better to be all literal, all the time. 7 Link to comment
AndySmith April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 It will be so much better to be all literal, all the time. Do you mean that literally or figuratively? ;) 2 Link to comment
tom87 April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Well, the acting is just a hobby thing is frequently lobbed at professional actors, so I'm not sure who was trying to be funny there. None of it strikes me as funny in any way. All of you missed the mark for me by wide margins on both sides. I didn't miss the mark becasue I wasn't trying to be funny. I found the comment about acting not being a real job ridiculous. Merely ask what it was if it wasn't a job. 1 Link to comment
indeed April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 (edited) This whole thing is ridiculous IMO. I think some have missed the mark... Merely ask what it was if it wasn't a job.Oh, it can be a job...just not a real job. Anyway, too bad Bryan Ryan never came back! But I guess NPH didn't like to "work" that hard. Edited April 17, 2015 by indeed Link to comment
AndySmith April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 What is a "real" job? You could be guessing wrong, since we don't know why he wasn't on the show again. Link to comment
caracas1914 April 17, 2015 Author Share April 17, 2015 Of course, the Glee actors had to do way more than the average television cast. Which that point still stands, regardless of what you think of acting, TV jobs in generally etc or how much actors are overpaid, etc,. etc. I remember when Chris guest starred on "Hot in Cleveland"; from what I understand they rehearsed a couple of times during the week and then shot the episode before a live studio audience in one day, and Chris was basically "WTF, this is so much easier!" 4 Link to comment
indeed April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Oh, geez. I was kidding. Next guesses then, he didn't want to top that Dream On performance? He made a smart decision? He was too busy living in an unreal world? Link to comment
AndySmith April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 He was busy? Had other commitments? Personal issues? Nobody at the show asked him to come back? Link to comment
tom87 April 17, 2015 Share April 17, 2015 Which that point still stands, regardless of what you think of acting, TV jobs in generally etc or how much actors are overpaid, etc,. etc. I remember when Chris guest starred on "Hot in Cleveland"; from what I understand they rehearsed a couple of times during the week and then shot the episode before a live studio audience in one day, and Chris was basically "WTF, this is so much easier!" Multi camera sit coms have probably the easiest scheulde for scripted shows. So those are really really not real jobs. :) Link to comment
caracas1914 April 17, 2015 Author Share April 17, 2015 (edited) Oh, geez. I was kidding. Your forgot to put your sarcasm in quotes. Multi camera sit coms have probably the easiest scheulde for scripted shows. So those are really really not real jobs. :) Yup, not even equivalent to an assembly line job.... Edited April 17, 2015 by caracas1914 1 Link to comment
Casual Viewing April 20, 2015 Share April 20, 2015 (edited) BWW put up their SAG Foundation interview with Jonathan Groff on video. Around the 25 minute mark he talks a few minutes about Glee. As a reoccurring guest star he had more of an outsiders view of the show so his comment is from that perspective. Of course I'm Groff biased but the entire interview was enjoyable. Edited April 20, 2015 by Casual Viewing 2 Link to comment
Glorfindel April 20, 2015 Share April 20, 2015 From the Jon Groff interview: “It felt like summer camp, cause it was like “you’re in the recording studio, now you’re in the sort of like ghetto like thing with the mirror where you did the dances, now you’re all dressed up and shooting it for like an audience!” Y'know it was like a lot of… it was very joyful. It was busy but it was very like summer camp joyful. For me, ‘cause I think, again, like came in, was like “what’s up,” I sang Bohemian Rhapsody, and then I got out of there. But like for the kids that were there all the time it was a grind because they were doing 16-hour days Monday through Friday, inevitably they would work on Saturdays. And then for the first two years they put them on the road, on the tour, which was like insane. They had like two weeks off, then they’re shooting another 23 episodes back in the thick of it. So they, fortunately they were like young and excited so they were fine, but they really like… drove them into the ground. In a major way." 1 Link to comment
AndySmith April 20, 2015 Share April 20, 2015 Like he knows anything about what it is like in the ghetto. How dare he make that comment! Pfft. but they really like… drove them into the ground. In a major way I also heard the cast got screwed out of royalites from the songs, is that true? 1 Link to comment
tom87 April 20, 2015 Share April 20, 2015 I have always wondered about the song royalties and would love to know more about that. I know they got royalties but in the long run for how much the songs actually made I wouldn't surprise they were screwed. I always wondered since the songs was tagged glee cast did everyone get a piece of each song or did only those who sang on it. Did lead singers get more than someone just proving harmonies? A story way back when saying there were screwed but who knows... http://pagesix.com/2010/08/30/no-glee-over-no-royalties/ Link to comment
jaytee1812 April 20, 2015 Share April 20, 2015 Like he knows anything about what it is like in the ghetto. How dare he make that comment! Pfft. Lol! I'm sure he's been there. Link to comment
dizzyizzy01 April 20, 2015 Share April 20, 2015 I have always wondered about the song royalties and would love to know more about that. I know they got royalties but in the long run for how much the songs actually made I wouldn't surprise they were screwed. I always wondered since the songs was tagged glee cast did everyone get a piece of each song or did only those who sang on it. Did lead singers get more than someone just proving harmonies? A story way back when saying there were screwed but who knows... http://pagesix.com/2010/08/30/no-glee-over-no-royalties/ They got royalties, but it amounted to a paltry sum. And being billed as the "Glee cast" always seemed a little confusing when you didn't necessarily perform on the track, sometimes a person would get a feat. title but it seemed kind of inconsistent. It'd be interesting to know how that ultimately broke down. One of the crappiest things about sales in general though is that the performer rarely gets much. I actually think the biggest place the cast got screwed on in terms of ancillary streams of revenue was the tour. That tour grossed a ton of money that I don't think the cast saw much of. Link to comment
Lady Calypso May 20, 2015 Share May 20, 2015 Well, in regards to the cast working hard, I don't think we can deny that they didn't. At least for the first three seasons, it seems like they worked hard and long hours and possibly got less of what they deserved. But hey, some of them tried very hard to put on a good show, so good for them. I remember reading interviews over the last few years of various actors talking about their long hours, their tours, the rehearsals and choreography but then when the new batch of kids came around, for a while the choreography went downhill and wasn't as intense or as gruelling as the original cast had it. But hey, that's Glee for you! Ok, moving on, what is everyone's favourite background moments of the series? I know there are a whole bunch from the first two seasons, and then they kind of dwindle for the rest of the series, but I'm sure there are good moments. Dianna's background moments were usually decent, as were Naya's (obviously), Chris' (especially during the musical numbers) and Cory and Chord's lack of dancing skills? Link to comment
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