Why is Lea Michele Insisting She Knows How to Read?
Lea Michele really wants everyone to know that she can read.
As she gears up for her debut in Funny Girl, the actress spoke with The New York Times about the show, the backlash over her casting, and the general social media response to her in recent years — including the long-running joke that she is secretly illiterate.
“I went to Glee every single day; I knew my lines every single day. And then there’s a rumor online that I can’t read or write?” she lamented. “It’s sad. It really is. I think often if I were a man, a lot of this wouldn’t be the case.”
For people who aren’t extremely on the internet, her fervent insistence of her literacy probably raises more questions than answers, so let’s dive back into one of the wildest pop culture conspiracy theories in recent history.
Why do people think Lea Michele can’t read?
This all started with a 40 minute video from the people behind the One More Thing podcast, self-proclaimed major Gleeks who came up with a pretty hilarious theory about how because Michele spent her childhood on Broadway, playing roles with minimal speaking required, she never actually learned how to read.
They provided ample amounts of “evidence,” including co-star Naya Rivera’s claim that Michele refused to go off book when Tim Conway guest starred on the show and wanted to improvise, as well as suggesting the actress never refuted these claims because she couldn’t even read Rivera’s memoir to find out about them. They also theorized the actress only works with Glee creator Ryan Murphy these days because he knows her secret and reads all of her lines to her so that she can memorize them.
The video has since been removed from the internet, although a TikTok summarizing it is still making the rounds:
None
— \ud83c\udf1fglitterb//ch\ud83c\udf1f (@\ud83c\udf1fglitterb//ch\ud83c\udf1f) 1652197852
It spread like wildfire across the internet due largely to the obvious absurdity of the claim, and “Lea Michele can’t read” jokes became an undying favorite of both genuine fans and those who were more prone to criticize the actress after several cast members came forward about bullying they claimed to have experienced from her on set.
Speaking as someone who has watched the entire glorious 40 minutes of the original video, it was clearly intended to be in good fun. And after Michele herself caught wind of the joke, she initially took it that way as well.
\u201cLea Michele responds to the internet conspiracy theories about her being illiterate: \u201cLoved READING this tweet and wanted to WRITE you back\u201d\u201d
— Pop Crave (@Pop Crave) 1521733373
Years after her acknowledgement, the theory persists, and was frequently deployed on Twitter in response to her being cast in Funny Girl.
\u201cif lea michele could read this she'd be ecstatic\u201d
— Emily Andras (@Emily Andras) 1657560167
\u201clea michele made a deal with the devil so she could be in funny girl on broadway\u2026 she\u2019s like ariel but instead of trading her voice she traded the ability to read\u201d
— freya (@freya) 1657499642
\u201clea michele forcing jonathan groff to read her funny girl lines to her rn\u201d
— rio (@rio) 1657560207
\u201cLea Michele texting the director of Funny Girl\u201d
— m. knowles \ud83d\ude80 (@m. knowles \ud83d\ude80) 1657559020
Various “evidence” has been added to the back-and-forth about whether Michele can actually read, with so many people committing fully to the bit even after she actually read a book out loud on video (we can’t see her other ear to check for an earpiece!), and a background actor on the show recounted a time in which she allegedly read tweets about her and got his then-boyfriend fired over them.
@jegaysus #stitch with @Patty Breaking News; I have personal information re: Lea and her set behavior #gleek #canleamicheleread #leamichelecantread #backgroundactor #extras #gleecast
Unfortunately for Michele, the whole thing was a lot more fun when she was acting like she was in on the joke. Taking it seriously and scolding people for, in her mind, genuinely questioning her literacy isn’t winning anyone over.
And honestly, it’s not going to stop the jokes anyway — not that she'll ever get the chance to read them.
\u201cWhenever people say Lea Michele can't read, she gets furious. But when people write it, she is undisturbed.\u201d
— Sridhar Ramesh (@Sridhar Ramesh) 1662056794
\u201ci am obsessed with 1) \u201clea michele can\u2019t read\u201d being in the times, 2) lea michele saying that people thinking she\u2019s illiterate is misogyny, thank you NYT for this gift\u201d
— ali sousa \u2728 (@ali sousa \u2728) 1662043468
\u201cOf Course I Can Write. Of Course I Can Read. I Wrote My Name in the Devil\u2019s Book, Read the Curs\u00e9d Scroll of Hecate, and Now My Reflection Appears in No Mirror. Grow Up. (Op-Ed by Lea Michele)\u201d
— The Broadway Beat (@The Broadway Beat) 1662051986
\u201ca rumor going around that Lea Michele can't read and her taking it seriously and earnestly responding like "if i was a man this wouldn't be happening" is such a Glee season 5 plot\u201d
— kalamata olive enthusiast (@kalamata olive enthusiast) 1662049649
RELATED | The Beanie Feldstein/Lea Michele Funny Girl Saga, Explained