A heroic last act, memorizing lines at a glance and taking on a diva.
Here are the things we learned about Naya Rivera after the actress's tragic death.
Following the tragic discovery of Naya Rivera's body in California's Lake Piru,
authorities revealed that the "Glee" star had been hugely courageous in her final moments. In fact,
if it wasn't for the actor's bravery, her four-year-old son would also have lost his life.
At a press conference Bill Ayub, the Ventura County Sheriff, disclosed what was believed to
have happened during that fateful day. While getting into difficulties in the water while
swimming together, Rivera managed to lift her only child Josey onto the pontoon boat she'd
rented that afternoon, but according to the youngster, she was unable to pull herself in.
"He told investigators that he looked back and saw her disappear under the surface of the water."
Ayub went on to theorize exactly how the pair got into such trouble, saying that currents
that usually only appear in the afternoon on the lake caused the boat to drift away from
them while they were swimming and that the young mother used all her strength to save her son.
A year after the drowning of Naya Rivera,
her dad George Rivera revealed that she'd FaceTimed him just moments before the tragedy
occurred. The grieving father told People that he'd actually warned the "Glee" star
not to go out swimming in Lake Piru after learning of her intentions, explaining -
"I could see that the wind was blowing and my stomach was just cringing. I
kept telling her, 'Don't get out of the boat! Don't get out
of the boat!' [...] I had this bad feeling that was just killing me."
Unfortunately, their conversation cut out around the three-minute mark and Naya decided
not to take the advice. A heartbroken George added that he's still trying to come to terms
with what had happened, saying - "It's still pretty much a big blur
of pain almost a year later. Things are slowly coming a little more into focus,
but I don't know if I'll ever find closure from this. I miss her every day."
A wrongful death lawsuit
In 2020, Naya Rivera's ex-husband Ryan Dorsey filed a wrongful death lawsuit
against Ventura County on behalf of their son Josey following the tragic drowning of the
"Glee" actor in Lake Piru. The actor alleged that its parks and recreation department had
been negligent in its lack of warning to visitors about the dangers of its waters.
Furthermore, the suit also accused the county of causing Josey emotional distress and failing
to provide the necessary safety equipment. The attorney representing the Rivera family later
revealed that both parties had agreed to a global settlement, saying in a statement -
"Through this settlement, Josey will receive just compensation for having
to endure the drowning of his beloved mother at Lake Piru. Though the tragic
loss of Josey's mother can never truly be overcome, we are very pleased that the
monetary settlement will significantly assist Josey with his life beyond this tragedy."
Naya Rivera had always been frank about her own battles with eating disorders,
revealing in her memoir, "Sorry Not Sorry," that she'd suffered from anorexia as a teen. In 2022,
Heather Morris revealed that she was once directly challenged by
her "Glee" co-star over worries that she was developing an eating disorder too.
The actor, who played ditzy cheerleader Brittany S. Pierce,
told the "Glee"-themed podcast "And That's What You Really Missed" that the confrontation
occurred as a result of her refusing to eat food in front of her castmates, saying -
"I had developed an eating disorder. I stopped getting my period. I was
so in my head about food and what it was doing for me […] she was approaching me
about my eating disorder because I know she herself had eating disorders. [...] So she,
of course, was the first to speak up about it."
Morris told Rivera that she didn't have a problem and the subject never came up
again. But she remains grateful for having a friend looking out for her, saying -
"That's who she was. She was just always ready to talk about it. We're all like that now. It
just takes that time and place in your life where you realize […] 'Life's too short.'"
"She was so powerful and so strong and such an inspiration to everybody
who knew her and everybody who didn't know her personally."
If you need help with an eating disorder, or know someone who is, help is available. Visit
the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline
at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).
Naya Rivera might not have been the most prepared cast member of Ryan Murphy's musical drama "Glee"
when it came to script reading. But according to co-stars Jenna Ushkowitz and Kevin McHale,
she still put the rest of the New Directions gang to shame when it came to script reciting.
While reminiscing about Rivera on "And That's What You Missed,"
the actors admitted that they'd often be panicking over just two lines that they'd
rehearsed countless times before. Rivera, however, would just rock up to the set,
take a quick look at her dialog and reel it off word for word, with Ushkowitz remarking -
"It was the wildest thing to actually witness."
McHale joked that he had mixed feelings about Rivera's photographic memory, saying -
"It was really infuriating and also incredible
to watch […] it was a gift that we got to be around every single day."
The same year that he split from Naya Rivera, Big Sean released a track that many interpreted as an
unflattering message to the "Glee" star. But following the actor's tragic death,
her former lover was keen to point out that the song "I Don't F*** With You"
wasn't the diss that everybody believed it to be. Big Sean told
Vulture that the track actually had Rivera's seal of approval, saying -
"I truly made the song and played it for her. She knew about it, and she liked it. We had a
breakup that was very public, and we were young and we forgave each other and moved on from that."
Although the hitmaker insists that the song's message wasn't anti-Rivera,
he still expresses regret at having recorded it, saying -
"If I would have known something this tragic would have happened, I would have never made the song."
Big Sean also revealed that five years on,
he's still struggling to process Rivera's death. As he wrote on Instagram -
"I appreciate and cherish everything that ever
happened between us for making me wiser and a better person."
As well as wowing her "Glee" castmates with her ability to recite pages of dialog at a
moment's notice, Naya Rivera was also the star everyone called upon when they needed
some cheering up. Matthew Morrison was just one of many who spoke fondly of his late co-star's
zest for life in the wake of her tragic death, saying in an interview with ET -
"Naya was a huge bright light [...] She was always the one who is just so witty and just, like,
always joking. On that show, it was difficult. We pulled long, long hours — like 16 to 18 hour
days — and we needed that, that team morale, and she was always there to give us a good laugh."
Morrison, who worked alongside Rivera for six seasons of the show, admitted he was
still trying to come to terms with the fact he'd no longer hear her laughing again, reflecting -
"It's crazy saying 'was.' But she was a special
person and my heart just goes out to that family who is grieving."
As two of William McKinley High's most popular cheerleaders, Naya Rivera and Dianna Agron's
characters were initially kept apart from the geekier characters in "Glee." As a result,
they forged a friendship that remained strong until the former's tragic death in 2020.
During an appearance on the podcast "Allison Interviews," Agron recalled how
she and Rivera quickly became BFFs, saying - "We had our very brief moments in the pilot,
and everybody else was very involved in the singing, dancing, and all the rehearsals. So,
she was my point person and we kind of instilled each other with confidence in those moments."
Agron went on to tell host Allison Kugel how in awe she was of her fellow pom-pom shaker, saying -
"She was just very unique and special in the way she just carried herself
with such confidence and certainty. If she believed in something, or in you as a person,
she would always uplift those ideas. She was very, very strong in a way that
I think I have adapted to moments in my own life that have been quite difficult."
Josey Rivera went through an unspeakable tragedy at the age of only four,
but judging by the various updates posted by his father Ryan Dorsey in the years since,
it appears as though the youngster is still thriving.
In a heartfelt Instagram tribute uploaded a year after Naya's death, Ryan wrote -
"He's such a resilient strong kid. He misses you but knows he'll see you again, and the invisible
string is something that's helped us out during this ever-evolving transition of
your time with us on earth that was unfairly and for reasons we'll never understand cut short..."
The actor -has also kept his followers updated on several
other milestones in Josey's life including his kindergarten graduation and seventh birthday,
something the boy celebrated by throwing the first pitch at a baseball game.
Lea Michele suffered a major backlash in 2020 when several "Glee" cast members
called her out for acting like a diva on set. The actor was accused of a number
of micro-aggressions by the likes of Samantha Marie Ware and Dabier Snell.
But while speaking on the podcast "Everything
Iconic with Danny Pellegrino," Heather Morris revealed that Naya Rivera was the
only person who'd spoken out against Michele for her behavior at the time.
"Cuz I just try to be really really honest with people when I think that they suck!"
Morris confirmed that the stories circulating about Michele were indeed true,
and that she wished she had backed Rivera up, saying -
"It was something that was very hush-hush on set. We absolutely could have stepped up
and gone to the Fox execs and said how we felt about the situation,
and nobody really did. And so now we are living in a culture where it's acceptable
to go do things like that, whereas I think many people were very scared."
You might not know that long before dating rapper Big Sean and marrying fellow actor Ryan Dorsey,
Naya Rivera went out with another famous face. Yes, the "Glee" star had a childhood romance with
"Smart Guy" lead Tahj Mowry after first meeting him as a young kid on an advertising campaign.
Following Rivera's death, Mowry took to Instagram
to share his grief about the individual he shared his first kiss with, writing -
"No woman has ever measured u–p what you gave me or how you made me feel. I've never liked to
admit it but I have never stopped loving you. A part of me always wished for the
day where God would bring us back together to be what we dreamt we could have been."
Mowry also revealed to E! News that their on-and-off relationship permanently changed
to off just before Rivera got her star-making role as cheerleader Santino Lopez, saying -
"I think our last sort of breakup [was] in my early 20s, [...] it was one of those moments
where you keep seeing your ex on billboards and you're like, 'Oh my gosh, I can't escape!'"
Unlike other stars on "Glee," Naya Rivera wasn't the kind of
actor who made life on set miserable for others.
"There was never a moment where I was not belly
laughing being around that woman. So clever, so funny."
In one of the most glowing Instagram tributes paid to Rivera in the wake of her tragic death,
Amber Riley revealed how there was a refreshing lack of ego around the Californian, writing -
"There was never competition, or shade,
or intimidation with us. Just pure adoration and mutual respect. You deserved better. You
were so much more than just this show. Your talent outshined us all so many times!"
Riley also spoke about how Rivera was as intelligent as she was gifted,
and concluded her eulogy with the following words -
"I've cried until my tear ducts have dried out, now it's time to celebrate the fact
that us mere humans got to experience walking through life with an earth angel. Rest well.
I pray you found the peace we all are searching for."