Top 10 TV Shows With the Messiest Behind-the-Scenes Drama (5 of 6)

Lost

Years after Lost ended, Harold Perrineau and several former writers came out with some eye-opening allegations about the toxic work environment involving racism, sexism, cruel remarks, and unequal treatment. Perrineau said characters of color were viewed as less “relatable” than the white leads and claimed that this divide not only influenced the storyline but also salaries.

Writer Monica Owusu-Breen also recalled hearing openly racist and sexist remarks off-camera. It took a few years for the co-creator Damon Lindelof to express his regrets about failing to provide a safe working environment, but at that point it was too late.

Glee

Glee was built around the idea of music, friendship, and teamwork overcoming all obstacles, but that cheerful spirit did not always extend to the set. Naya Rivera wrote about her difficult relationship with Lea Michele and accused her of “unprofessional behavior.” Years later, Samantha Ware said Michele had made her first television job “deeply unpleasant” due to an overwhelming amount of offensive microaggressions.

Michele later apologized, acknowledging that her bad behavior had hurt people, and her extremely intense work ethic could create problems. The show may have been full of uplifting musical numbers, but it carried a much darker off-camera tune.