Within a day of reports that Glee star Cory Monteith was found dead in a Canadian hotel room, the Westboro Baptist Church announced plans to protest his funeral.
Monteith, who played “Finn Hudson” on the popular FOX musical dramedy for four seasons, was discovered by hotel staff when he failed to check out of his room. He and real-life girlfriend and fellow Glee star Lea Michele, were rumored to be engaged.
On its Twitter feed, the WBC praised Monteith’s death as a sign from god and said “@CoryMonteith & @msleamichele enabled proud fag @chriscolfer-now God curses them bitterly, suddenly & w/o remedy!”
Other anti-gay posts by WBC were directed at other Glee stars, including Darren Criss, Kevin McHale and Jenna Uskowitz/
Already the Westboro Baptist Church is getting criticized for its remarks and for its plans to picket a funeral. The group, however, has made a name for itself for picketing funerals of fallen American soldiers and for plans to picket funerals of the slain children of the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting.
Reports say that Monteith returned to his hotel room alone on July 13 and missed his scheduled check-out time. Workers then went into the room to check on him and found his body. A cause of death has not yet been determined, but authorities do not suspect foul play. The 31-year-old had a history of drug problems and recently completed a 30-day stint in rehab.
It is still unclear how Glee will deal with the passing of one of its stars. Monteith’s character, graduated high school at the end of Season 3 and spent much of the most recent season figuring out what he wanted to do with this life. He spent a brief time in the armed services before ultimately enrolling in college and taking on an assistant coach role in the glee club.
He did not appear in the final few episodes because of Monteith’s rehab stint, but reports indicate that he was expected to play a large role in the first two episodes of Season 5, which have already been written. Early speculation claims that producers plan to dedicate the next season in his honor.
