Glee’s Kevin McHale and Jenna Ushkowitz Reveal Whether They Thought of Quitting During Grueling First Seasons (Exclusive)

The Gleeks rejoice now Kevin McHale Y Jenna Ushkowitz reported his podcast. They’re starting over with theirs And that’s what you really missed podcast and opening on all🇧🇷 hollywood life spoke EXCLUSIVELY to Kevin and Jenna on whether or not they thought about retiring from show business when they were doing everything from show filming to touring to constant lobbying.

“I don’t think anyone asked me that,” Jenna said. “I think in those early days, if you’d asked me, I think from season 3, 2, 1, rider time, I never thought I’d quit. It just wasn’t an option. I loved the show so much. I think once we start seeing cast members go from series regular to recurring or leave or whatever, and then obviously Cory [Monteith] happening, I think it was a different story. I think there are definitely times where we all feel that way. There have definitely been times where I’ve said, ‘It’s time to move on. But looking back, I don’t know if I would do anything different. But perspective and time make you really appreciate things.

Kevin added: “I don’t think I’ve ever felt like this before. I think things got weird towards the end, for lack of a better word. I think we all came from a place where we all worked a little bit, but we were like workhorses. We loved what we did, it didn’t matter where we came from, whether it was theatre, television or music, we were all really obsessed with what we did. We were obsessed with each other and knew what we did was unique, like a rarefied and special air. Especially as the show grew in terms of success and beyond the numbers, how much it really meant to people, I think it really made us so thankful day after day just to be there.

He continued: “I can’t speak for everyone. I think there were some people who wanted to leave earlier, which I understand because, as you’ve heard, we haven’t even had a break to do other projects where, on a regular schedule, you have time to get things done. This became a problem for some of us because we were getting offers to do things left and right. At some point, you think, I had to turn down every other opportunity that was given to me. But at the same time, it’s like we only get these opportunities because we’re in them. I think you have to respect whoever gave it to you.”

Also being “exhausted” balancing as many things as Happiness Exploding in popularity, Jenna said the cast tried to “soak up” all those experiences. “Thank God we had the energy to do it because I don’t know how we would do it now. We also had photo shoots on the weekends. That was the only time they could push us or get us a photo shoot because we were working so hard. I think at that time everything was new and exciting. It was like checking things off bucket lists, like being in Fashion September issue and be on the cover of Rolling stone and all these amazing things that even in the madness of it all and how exhausted we were and hard at work, we were so thankful.

Kevin noted that the cast “brought each other up in those moments where everyone’s tired, the crew is tired. And this is also the other thing. It’s like the team was there before you and left after you. I think remembering that perspective of, at the end of the day, there are many hours and it’s hard, but we sing, we dance, we make people laugh and cry, and that’s a privilege. .”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kevin McHale (@kevinmchale)

This isn’t the first rodeo with a Happiness podcasts. Their showmanship the podcast was put on hold after that Naja Rivera tragic death in 2020. When it came to returning to the podcast platform, Kevin admitted it wasn’t an instant decision. “It was kind of like iHeart talking and then we were like, ‘What would it be like if we did it again? We want? Is it going to be very difficult, honestly, to see the show again?’” he said.

The actor said the iHeartRadio team made him and Jenna feel “really safe.” He added, “I feel like we were excited to do it again, to do it in a different and more thoughtful way, I think, and to really cater to the fans in a way that they deserve to have an unfiltered view from our perspective of our experience.” .

The cultural climate of 2022 is much different than it was in 2009. However, Jenna and Kevin are not shy about addressing things on Happiness They don’t work in today’s world.

“It’s actually a sign of the times and the progress we’ve made. I think it’s great if there are clear things that aren’t working anymore and I can point them out and talk about them,” Jenna said. hollywood life🇧🇷 “Even in another hit show like FriendsThings don’t age well. It’s that things don’t work out. In fact, I think that’s a very good thing. I think we will definitely lean into things like that because there’s no reason to avoid them. It’s the only way to progress.”

Kevin agreed with Jenna on constructive criticism of the show. “We love the show and we respect it. It’s okay if things aren’t as good as they used to be. It’s okay,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing to be able to talk and be honest about something that happened. It’s a snapshot of time and where we were.”

The co-stars revisited the pilot episode with the creator. Ryan Murphy in the first episode of his new podcast. hollywood life asked the pair if anything had changed in the pilot before it aired.

“I think, and I think I can say, ‘Leaving on a Jet Plane’ should be a different song,” Jenna said. “It wasn’t clear or something, so it changed very quickly to ‘Leaving on a Jet Plane’, which Company [Morrison] singing. I can’t imagine it being anything else right now. Of course, Ryan brought up Mr. Schu and when he was in high school doing that number, which was kind of polarizing, and they brought it up. We also filmed a musical number. we made one a chorus line and this was also in him. And then also redo the “being part of something special makes you special” scene when light [Michele] Not anymore in that yellow dress because I didn’t read it correctly. That scene is so powerful and so iconic, so I’m really happy Ryan has the wherewithal to see it.”

Discovery+ will launch at Happiness documentaries that will delve into the ups and downs of the successful series. When asked if they would tackle the docuseries at launch, Kevin said, “We’re not part of it.” Jenna continued, “I don’t know who’s a part of it… There’s no one that we know of who’s a part of it, at least. That says a lot, I think, already. I do not know. I mean, we’ll have to see when it comes out, to be honest. I like what goes on top because like I said before, you just have to look at your sources. You have to look at who is doing things and what experiences you are seeing.