The world is currently enthralled in the case of Michelle Carter, the young woman who encouraged her boyfriend Conrad to take his own life. Carter was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to two and a half years in jail which was then reduced to 15 months. In the end, she ended up serving just 11 months and is currently on parole and is presumably living somewhere within the United States.
With The Girl From Plainville dropping on Stan, there has been a renewed interest in the case as people still battle to understand why Michelle did what she did. The show cuts between various timelines, from Michelle and Conrad’s first meeting to their growing, virtual relationship and eventually, his tragic passing.
While we may never know why Michelle committed her crime, the show raises an interesting theory that you might not have seen coming. As it turns out, Carter was said to have an intense, borderline unhealthy obsession with Glee, which started out innocent enough, but eventually turned quite dark and all-consuming.
In July 2013, Cory Monteith (who played football star Finn on Glee) tragically passed away due to a drug overdose. Lea Michele (who played Rachel) met Cory when they began working on the show in 2009. By 2012 the pair announced that they were dating and just a year later, Cory lost his life. Glee addressed the death of Cory’s character with a series of touching tributes, which Lea heartbreakingly had to act out as she was processing her very real pain.
This storyline apparently resonated with Carter, who is said to have developed an obsession with the show, particularly the grief experienced by Lea both onscreen and off-screen. According to the HBO documentary I Love You, Now Die, Carter had a difficult time making friends and maintaining close relationships and took solace in the similar experiences of Glee’s Rachel Berry who was somewhat of a social outcast herself. The outpouring of love and attention that Lea experienced in the wake of Cory’s death was of particular fascination to Carter, who decided that maybe, she could live out her Glee dreams in a similar way.
The Girl From Plainville peppers Carter’s obsession with Glee throughout, laying the foundations for what would become a plausible theory to explain her eventual actions. From quoting the show to singing along to the songs, Carter’s affinity for the show is undeniable, but it’s not until the end of the first episode where things really start to feel eerie.
In the final few minutes, we see Michelle (played by Elle Fanning) looking at herself in the mirror, crying and reciting a monologue, rattling off every word perfectly alongside Rachel. Then, she begins singing Make You Feel My Love along with the actress in-between sobs. It’s unsettling, and purposely so. It almost feels as though Michelle believes she is Rachel in that moment, living out her grief.
In the same HBO documentary, journalist Jesse Barron explained that he thought Michelle Carter “connected with Lea Michele on a kind of profound level that went beyond what a normal teen identifying with a star.” The documentary’s director Erin Lee Carter seemed to echo these thoughts in an interview spoke with USA Today, saying, “When Lea Michele’s boyfriend died she was able to grieve, and everybody looked up to her and said ‘You’re doing such a good job.’ Potentially, I’m not certain, but what if Michelle Carter was like, ‘Maybe that could be me’?”
While Carter’s exact motivations still remain unclear, the Glee obsession is certainly an important piece of the puzzle. The Girl From Plainville does an excellent job at weaving her fantasy with Glee throughout the show with fantasy sequences and verbatim quotes which work to make viewers feel unsettled and intrigued in equal measure.
Earlier this year, The Girl From Plainville‘s executive producer Liz Hannah appeared in a TCA panel where she elaborated on their decision to include Glee references in the show.
“So much of the show is about loneliness and isolation, and for every character involved . . . something that Glee did that I think was so interesting was make people who were lonely feel included,” she explained. “That was really bittersweet to explore for Michelle’s character – this idea of inclusion through this show when she couldn’t do it in real life.”
We’re yet to see how the underlying Glee storyline will play out, but we’re intrigued to see Michelle’s obsession grow and the potential role it plays in her devastating decision to assist Conrad.
