Fox Entertainment chairman Kevin Reilly expressed confidence in Glee on Tuesday at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour.
Speaking to reporters following his executive session, Reilly said he's in the early stages of talks to renew the musical dramedy from co-creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk before the upfronts in May, opening the door for Oxygen's reality competition The Glee Project to return for a third season.
"Yes, that is a real possibility; we're going to negotiate now for the fifth season and beyond, so we're talking about those things now," he said of the global property.
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During his executive session, Reilly touted the show's consistency and said the dual story lines of McKinley High in Ohio and NYADA's New York locations are working well, calling the process "seamless."
With Glee marching toward another graduation this season (with core cast members including Darren Criss, Kevin McHale and Heather Morris, among several others), Reilly told The Hollywood Reporter that he's considered if the series as it currently is could morph into one entirely set in New York.
"I have to talk to Ryan and see where he's at right now; I don't know, I wonder could it and should it naturally move there but we have to talk about it," he said of the story line that was initially envisioned as a spinoff.
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"This was ultimately what became of the spinoff talk: Let's do it within the franchise," he continued. "I do think if we can continue to follow a broad array of characters, it's like life -- you have relationships, you have friends -- they go off, their lives go on and you get together and maybe you maintain a friendship, maybe you lose distance. I think we can do that within this world of people you followed."
The nature of the show as is, he noted, also allows for recent cast members to come in for an arc while juggling other things -- like Dianna Agron, Mark Salling, Amber Riley, Naya Rivera and other cast members have done this season. "Some of them have moved on to other things or wanted to move on to other things but they love the show and this gives them a chance to come back and do an arc. It would be fun to continue that morphing," he said.
Glee returns Jan. 24 on Fox.
Email: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com; Twitter: @Snoodit
