Naya Rivera, who Rose to Fame on TV show 'Glee,' Dies at 33

Naya Rivera. (AP)
Naya Rivera. (AP)
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Naya Rivera, who Rose to Fame on TV show 'Glee,' Dies at 33

Naya Rivera. (AP)
Naya Rivera. (AP)

Naya Rivera, a singer and actor who played a cheerleader on the hit TV musical comedy “Glee,” was found dead Monday in a Southern California lake. She was 33.

Rivera's body was discovered five days after she disappeared on Lake Piru, where her son, Josey, was found July 8 alone on a boat the two had rented, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said. The Sheriff's Office confirmed that the body was Rivera's.

“Rest sweet, Naya. What a force you were,” wrote “Glee” co-star Jane Lynch on Twitter. Steven Canals, who co-created and produced the FX television show "Pose," tweeted that he was “heartbroken over all the stories that will remain untold.”

Viola Davis sent her prayers to Rivera’s family and Kristin Chenoweth said: “Thank you for what you gave the world.” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that “as a Latina, it's rare to have a rich, complex characters reflect us in media.”

Rivera began acting at a young age, but she rose to national attention playing a teen on “Glee,” which aired from 2009 until 2015 on Fox. She is survived by her parents, Yolanda and George; a younger brother, Mychal; a sister, Nickayla; and her 4-year-old son.

“Naya Rivera was a fierce talent with so much more to do and this is such a terrible tragedy. We are forever grateful for the indelible contribution she made to ‘Glee,’ from the first episode to the last," said a statement from 20th Century Fox TV and Fox Entertainment.

A native of Santa Clarita, California, Rivera began acting at 4, appearing in such series as “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Family Matters” and “The Bernie Mac Show.” As a teen, she struggled with an eating disorder.

“I had the lowest self-esteem in high school possible. I wasn’t popular, I didn’t have friends, but I would say it’s really important that you know who you are and you’re going to win in the end because of that,” Rivera said in a 2011 interview with The Associated Press.

She worked odd jobs as a telemarketer, a nanny, a waitress and an Abercrombie & Fitch greeter before landing the role of Santana Lopez on Ryan Murphy’s “Glee.” She auditioned by singing Destiny’s Child’s “Emotion.” The pilot offered her no speaking lines.

Some of her more memorable songs on the show include a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” with guest star Gwyneth Paltrow, “Here Comes the Sun” with Demi Lovato, and a tearful cover of The Band Perry's “If I Die Young.”

Rivera's “brilliance and humor were unmatched,” said “Glee” co-star Chris Colfer on Instagram. “She could turn a bad day into a great day with a single remark. She inspired and uplifted people without even trying.” Jenna Ushkowitz, another “Glee” co-star, promised "to help the legacy of your talent, humor, light and loyalty live on.”

Rivera struggled to get career traction amid the rising young talent on the show that included Colfer, Cory Monteith, Lea Michele, Darren Criss, Amber Riley, Melissa Benoist and Dianna Agron. She was no longer a series regular during the sixth and final season of “Glee.”

“It would be an understatement to say that ‘Glee’ changed my life. It overhauled it. It got me out of debt. It helped to cement my career. And before the show, I’d never had a group of people I was that close with,” she wrote in her memoir, titled “Sorry Not Sorry: Dreams, Mistakes, and Growing Up.”

After the show, Rivera sought success in film and music. She made her feature film debut in 2014’s “At the Devil’s Door,” playing a woman caught in the middle of supernatural events, and released the single “Sorry” in 2013 featuring rapper Big Sean, a one-time fiancé.

She and actor Ryan Dorsey were married in 2014 and their son, Josey, was born in 2015. She called her young son “my greatest success, and I will never do any better than him.”

Rivera was arrested and charged in West Virginia in 2017 with misdemeanor domestic battery after she allegedly hit Dorsey. The charge was dismissed because Dorsey did not wish to press charges. They divorced soon after.

Most recently, Rivera had a role on Lifetime’s “Devious Maids,” released her memoir in 2016 and played school administrator Collette Jones in the YouTube Red online series “Step Up: High Water” starring Ne-Yo. The show is about a cutthroat performing arts school in Atlanta.

Rivera’s death is the latest death in a tragic arc of “Glee” actors. Monteith died in 2013 — exactly seven years to the day before Rivera's body was publicly identified — from a toxic mix of alcohol and heroin, and Rivera’s ex-boyfriend Mark Salling, who played a jock on the series, killed himself in 2018 after pleading guilty to child pornography charges. Rivera and Salling dated for three years and broke up in 2010.

In the preface to her autobiography, Rivera wrote that motherhood had changed her life and given it perspective. She said she was braver, too.

“Your life doesn’t have to be perfect for you to be proud. In fact, I think it’s the opposite: the more imperfect your life has been, the prouder you should be, because it means you’ve come that much further, and also probably had a lot more fun along the way.”



English Version of Animated Chinese Hit 'Ne Zha 2' Heading to Theaters

FILE PHOTO: Michelle Yeoh poses during the Oscars arrivals at the 97th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, US, March 2, 2025. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Michelle Yeoh poses during the Oscars arrivals at the 97th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, US, March 2, 2025. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
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English Version of Animated Chinese Hit 'Ne Zha 2' Heading to Theaters

FILE PHOTO: Michelle Yeoh poses during the Oscars arrivals at the 97th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, US, March 2, 2025. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Michelle Yeoh poses during the Oscars arrivals at the 97th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, US, March 2, 2025. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

A24 and CMC Pictures are teaming up to bring an English-language version of the globally successful Chinese animated film "Ne Zha 2" to theaters in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand on August 22, the companies said on Wednesday.

The animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" overtook Pixar's "Inside Out 2" in February to become the highest-grossing animated film globally, according to data from ticketing platform Maoyan.

"Ne Zha 2" amassed a total box office of 12.3 billion yuan ($1.71 billion) including pre-sales and overseas earnings, making it the eighth highest box office film worldwide, Reuters reported.

The English-language cast will include Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh. No other voice actors have been announced so far.

"I'm honored to be part of Ne Zha 2, a landmark in Chinese animation and a powerful reminder of how universal our stories can be," the Malaysian actor said in a statement.

The sequel film follows the first "Ne Zha" film from 2019 and is based on Chinese mythology.

The story follows Ne Zha, a rebellious young boy, who is feared by the gods and born to mortal parents with wild, uncontrolled powers.

He's faced with an ancient force intent on destroying humanity and must grow up to become the hero the world needs.

The film, which will be released in IMAX and 3D, was written and directed by filmmaker Yang Yu, who also developed the first movie. Over 99% of the mythological movie's box office income came from mainland China, starkly in contrast to Hollywood films, which typically rely on a more global distribution strategy.

"Ne Zha 2" is based on a 16th century Chinese novel "The Investiture of the Gods," depicting a hero boy with magic power who tried to defend Chentangguan, a fortress town.