“Glee” Actress Naya Rivera Found Dead At 33, Drowned In Lake After Saving Young Son

A majority of you are familiar with Glee, a high school drama centred around a group of misfits who try to find success as part of a singing group. The show was a hit even before Netflix was a thing, and we’re still bopping to their acapella covers after all these years.

Sadly, one of their well-loved stars, Naya Rivera, was recently confirmed dead at the young age of 33. This is the third tragic Glee death, following that of fellow cast mates Cory Monteith and Mark Salling, who died of a drug and alcohol overdose and suicide respectively in 2013 and 2018.

Read on to find out more about Naya Rivera’s disappearance and death

Photo from Fox Television

Naya Rivera played the character Santana Lopez in all 6 seasons of Glee, a sassy cheerleader who eventually became an icon for the LGBT community. She was nominated for and won a handful of awards for this very role which pivoted her to fame.

Photo from @nayarivera via Instagram

Naya was reported missing on 8 July 2020, when her 4-year-old son Josey was found alone and sleeping on a boat in California’s Lake Piru.

Photo from @nayarivera via Instagram

Josey is her first son with ex-husband Ryan Dorsey. Their on-off relationship started briefly in 2010, and after a break, resumed again from 2014 to 2018. The ex-couple remained on good terms after their divorce and had shared custody of their son.

Previously in 2010, Naya found that she was pregnant with Ryan’s child shortly after their first breakup, and aborted it while she was still in the midst of filming Glee.

Photo from John Kopaloff/Filmmagic

Naya’s body was found and identified in the same lake on 13 July, and her death is ruled as an accident. According to Josey, the pair had gone swimming in the lake, and while Naya pushed him back into the boat at one point, she did not manage to get in herself.

Photo from @lake.piru.recreation.area via Instagram

It is unlikely that this was a case of suicide, and it’s highly possible that the doting mother was trying to save her son from the strong currents of the lake - resulting in her own unfortunate demise.

Photo from Lions Share News

Ryan has since reunited with his boy and is still trying to come to terms with the death of his ex-wtife. He was reportedly too distraught to speak to the press after the incident, saying that he needed to care for his young son.

Photo from Al Seib for Los Angeles Times

In a sombre and heartbreaking scene, the former Glee cast members were seen standing by the lake holding hands in remembrance of their deceased co-star yesterday.

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Text by: GirlStyle SG