Get your jazz hands ready. “Glee,” the musical comedy-drama that turned show choir into a pop culture phenomenon, is officially returning. Disney+ and Hulu announced on Wednesday, October 21, that they have given a series order to a reboot of the show, which originally ran for six seasons on Fox from 2009 to 2015.

“It’s official, Glee is returning,” the streamers said in a joint Instagram post, as reported by Deadline and the BBC. No release date, plot details or full cast have been announced yet.

Who is behind the reboot

The new series comes from 20th Television, the studio that produced the original. According to Deadline, the reboot script was written by the show’s original co-creators, Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan.

Murphy had been teasing a return for months. Speaking in July, he noted that the show had found a new audience: “So many young people now watch it. And I’m like, ‘Maybe we should revisit that show.'” Less than two months later, he revealed he had finished a reboot script, and he later said he had been in touch with around 10 members of the original cast.

What about the original cast?

That is the question every “Gleek” is asking, and the official answer is still pending. The series order did not come with casting news. However, Variety reported that Lea Michele is returning as Rachel Berry, the ambitious star of the New Directions.

The original ensemble included Lea Michele, Chris Colfer, Jane Lynch, Kevin McHale, Matthew Morrison, Dianna Agron, Amber Riley, Darren Criss and Naya Rivera, among others. The show has also been touched by loss: Cory Monteith died in 2013 and Naya Rivera died in 2020, which several former cast members have said makes any return emotional.

Chris Colfer acknowledged those mixed feelings in an interview with Bustle earlier this month, saying it “would be really hard to do it now that Naya [Rivera] is gone,” while joking that fans “would probably come after me with pitchforks and jazz hands” if he said no.

Why “Glee” still matters

When “Glee” premiered, it was unlike anything else on network television. Set at William McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio, it followed the misfits of the school’s glee club as they competed on the show choir circuit and dealt with bullying, identity, family and first love, all wrapped around weekly musical numbers.

The show won six Emmys, including awards for Murphy and Jane Lynch, along with guest stars such as Neil Patrick Harris and Gwyneth Paltrow. Its cover versions became chart staples, and its cast toured arenas.

That legacy has proven remarkably durable. The original series currently streams on Hulu, and Disney said the show still draws around 4 million monthly listeners on Spotify, a sign that a new generation has discovered the music long after the finale.

What we still don’t know

There is a lot left to learn, including:

  • When the reboot will premiere, and whether it will debut on Disney+, Hulu or both at once
  • Whether the story picks up with the original characters as adults, introduces a new class of students, or mixes both
  • Which other original cast members will return, and in what capacity
  • How the show will handle music in an era when songs go viral on social media before an episode even airs

Murphy’s company has stayed busy with series like FX’s “The Shards,” so fans will also be watching to see how quickly production moves.

The final note

A “Glee” revival felt inevitable once streaming introduced the show to younger viewers, and now it is official. Whether the reboot can recapture the original’s mix of big emotions and bigger performances remains to be seen, but for now, fans can do what the New Directions always did best: keep believing. We will update you as casting and release details are announced.

Image: Bellevue east show choir 2026 by Michael sarratt via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0