Former co-star calls Lea Michele a ‘despicable human being’

Yet another performer who used to work with Lea Michele has spoken out against the star, calling her a “despicable human being”.

One of Lea Michele’s former co-stars has described the actress as a “despicable human being”.

Craig Ramsay starred alongside Michele in Fiddler On The Roof on Broadway in the early 2000s.

Speaking on the Behind The Velvet Rope With David Yontef podcast, Ramsay was less than thrilled when Michele’s name was brought up by the host.

“I just didn’t want to hear Lea Michele’s name in this interview – at all,” Ramsay said. “I think she’s a despicable, horrible human being.”

Ramsay went on to say that Michele “has lost touch with reality”.

Ramsay is the latest in a long line of stars who have made claims of shocking behaviour from the former Glee star in the past month.

In response, Michele released an apology on Instagram.

RELATED: How Lea Michele’s reputation fell apart in a week

Lea Michele and Chris Colfer in Glee. Picture: Channel 10

HOW IT ALL BEGAN

As posts supporting the Black Lives Matter campaign flooded social media following George Floyd’s death in police custody, Samantha Ware responded to a tweet Michele shared endorsing the movement.

Ware – who played Jane Hayward on the hit musical series for its sixth season in 2015 – claimed the actor made her time on the show a “living hell”.

“George Floyd did not deserve this. This was not an isolated incident and it must end. #BlackLivesMatter,” Michele had shared.

In an all-caps response to Michele’s post, Ware wrote that she would “never forget” the “traumatic microagressions” she claims to have received from the star – including a shocking allegation that she had “told everyone that if you had the opportunity you would ‘sh*t in my wig’.”

Samantha Ware in 2019. Picture: Presley Ann/Getty Images

A number of other Glee stars publicly backed Ware’s allegations.

Heather Morris, who played Brittany S. Pierce on the series, also described Michele as “very unpleasant” to work with.

Chase Edmondson, who worked in production for seasons three and four, shared a shocking story of an encounter with the star.

“My strongest memory of you was storming out of the Glee classroom set yelling, ‘Does anyone have gum?’” he replied in the comments section of her apology.

“I was standing about 10 feet from you with gum already in hand. When I said ‘I do’, offering it to you, you just looked at me and said ‘Ew’ before walking off to crafty on the next stage.

“Hopefully you’ve grown as a person and treat people better on sets.”

And actress Imia Edwards, who appeared in season six, claimed Michele made background performers on set feel as though they were “nothing” and referred to them as “cockroaches”.

“I’ve never really seen anyone treat extras like that, to that level of, ‘Ugh, don’t look at me, don’t make eye contact, ugh cockroaches, there they are,’” Edwards, 34, told The Sun.

Chord Overstreet, Mark Salling and Lea Michele. Picture: Channel 10

She went on to detail shooting a particular scene, claiming that between sets, Michele’s behaviour was astonishing.

“She walked by me and burped in my face, this loud burp, directly almost face-to-face, it wasn’t even like, ‘Oh she wouldn’t have known.’ She knew she burped in my face.

“Two other people saw it and an operator said, ‘Oh my God, I’m so sorry she did that.’ I was just like, ‘Yeah, whatever.’ You’re on set trying to be professional, you’re not trying to make a huge deal about things.

“(After) the second or third take she walked by me and stepped on my foot really hard. You know when you bump into someone you can feel it, again nothing, no reaction, like I wasn’t there.

“Another extra rolled her eyes like, ‘Wow, that’s so like her to not acknowledge.’ It made me feel like I was nothing, even if she just said in a half-a**ed kind of way like, ‘Oh, I’m sorry,’ but no.”

Another extra actor named Dabier revealed that Michele told him he “couldn’t sit at her table” because he “didn’t belong there”, and popular drag queen and actor Willam Belli weighed in, saying he left the set of Glee after Michele treated him “subhuman”.

Glee cast: Kevin McHale, Chris Colfer, Jenna Ushkowitz, Amber Riley, Cory Monteith and Lea Michele. Picture: Adam Rose/AP/Fox

OTHER CASTMATES AND INDUSTRY FIGURES

Her alleged mistreatment of colleagues is claimed to have continued far beyond the Glee set – even extending to fans.

Former castmates from Broadway musical Spring Awakening, in which she starred from 2006-2008, described her as a “nightmare” to others on set.

Actor, singer and dancer Marcus S. Daniel claimed Michele was “abusive, rude, condescending and at many times downright cruel” in the “many times” they’d worked together over the years.

“There was no excuse for your behaviour. You have so much talent, but there is so much hate within your heart,” he wrote beneath her apology on Instagram.

“You said one incredibly cruel thing to me once and you didn’t even know my name. Everyone who has worked with you carries those memories with them.

“An Instagram apology written in your ‘notes’ app just doesn’t cut it. This isn’t an isolated incident. It’s YEARS of crap you’ve pulled that people are bringing up.

“You used to call extras on Glee ‘cockroaches’ and you got people fired on a whim. You have much work to do. MUCH.”

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Lea Michele at a Golden Globes bash last year. Picture: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for InStyle

30 Rock actor Keith Powell also said he was co-signing Ware’s statement, saying: “Lea Michele is a terrible human and has said terrible things to many different types of people, including racist microagressions to/about black people.”

On Instagram, a woman who was hired to work as a “lookalike” at the premiere party for Glee shared yet another story of Michele’s nasty behaviour – before the show had even aired and she had become a relatively well-known actress.

“September 2009 I was hired to work at the premiere party for Glee at a high school. They hired lookalikes of the show’s characters to perform at the party. I was the Rachel Berry lookalike.

“I didn’t know my character was the lead let alone who played her. When the actors arrived at the event and found out there were lookalikes of them Lea came searching for me.

“When she saw me she said, ‘Oh my god! Could they have picked someone uglier!’

“Cory Monteith saw the look on my face and said, ‘Don’t listen to her, she’s just jealous, you’re beautiful.’ I never forgot that,” she recalled of the actor who played Finn Hudson, Michele’s former partner who died of a drug overdose in 2013.

Lea Michele and Cory Monteith in 2012. Picture: Christopher Polk/Getty Images for VH1

LEA MICHELE’S APOLOGY

The actor issued a lengthy three-page statement on Instagram, claiming that while she doesn’t “remember” the specific behaviour she’d been accused of, she had “clearly acted in ways which hurt other people”.

“Whether it was my privileged position and perspective that caused me to be perceived as insensitive or inappropriate at times, or whether it was just my immaturity and me being unnecessarily difficult, I apologise for my behaviour,” Michele wrote.

The star, who played Rachel Berry on all six seasons of Glee, is currently expecting her first baby with husband Zandy Reich, and added that she “wanted to be a real role model” for their child.

“We can all grow and change and I have definitely used these past several months to reflect on my own shortcomings.”