Cory Monteith, the 31-year old star of “Glee” who passed away over the weekend in Vancouver, died from a mixture of alcohol and heroin, according to the coroner.
Monteith battled drugs when he was younger and spent time in a rehab facility for an unknown substance as recently as April, but friends and family say he seemed happy and healthy in recent days. His co-star and girlfriend, Lea Michele, hasn’t commented publicly on his death and is said to be devastated.
Monteith once said that he got into the arts as a way to cope, and worked with Project Limelight, a Vancouver charity committed to helping troubled youth.
“I think kids really need a place to go and feel like they belong,” he said in a video for Project Limelight. “When I was a kid, I struggled a lot with who I was and where my life was going and what I was interested in. And I was fortunate to have the arts inspire me.”
Friends, fans, and co-stars have released statements this week regarding Monteith’s death as they grieve for the young actor. A weekend convention celebrating “Glee” turned into a makeshift memorial as fans received the shocking news that Monteith was gone.
We all woke up to hear the story, and no one really wanted to believe it was true,” said Chloe-Louise Bond, a 22-year-old fan from Wakefield, England. “Walking into the main room, you could just feel the tragedy in the air, absolute strangers became a family right in that moment. Everyone was crying and hugging and just trying to get over the shock.”