Gleeks continue to mourn the loss of Cory Monteith 11 years later after passing away from a drug overdose. The actor, who died at the age of 31, was known for his role as the high school athlete and heartthrob Finn Hudson on Glee. 

Cory’s Overdose

On July 13, 2013 the news broke that the star from the hit teenage music comedy series was found unconscious in a Vancouver hotel room. Cory’s cause of death was due to drug toxicity as a result of the mixing of heroin and alcohol. This of course caused a sudden shock to the world including his girlfriend at the time and co-star Lea Michele. “Thank you all for helping me through this time with your enormous love & support. Cory will forever be in my heart,” she noted in an Instagram post  after his passing. The then-couple had been dating for a while and it was even said by an insider who told People, that the two were planning to get engaged.

Battle With Addiction

He had been very vocal about his addiction in the past. At the age of 13, the actor had already been surrounded by drugs. Since his initial encounter with drugs, he entered rehab three times. His mom, Anne McGregor, shared to People, “he was a very vulnerable young man all the way through his life…I raised him to be honest and open and I raised him with love. But I did not teach him about the other side of the world. There’s a bad side out there…He was a very vulnerable young man all the way through his life…I raised him to be honest and open and I raised him with love. But I did not teach him about the other side of the world. There’s a bad side out there.”

Cory even chimed in on his addiction and told CBC during an interview in 2011, “People have always made a lot of assumptions. You see this young All-American quarterback on the show, and you immediately make assumptions and I think people started really  identifying me with those assumptions which is the media, and I understand that. But at the same time, I felt like I had to step in at some point and relate to people my experience and relate to people the truth of my life and where I come from.”

Cast Remembers Cory

11 years later, and the cast still of course misses him deeply – along with his later co-star Naya Rivera. Jane Lynch – who played the role of Sue Sylvester – recalled to E! News during the Critics Choice Real TV Awards, “Just such youth…They were so excited, as we all were. We knew that we were breathing rarefied air when the show became such a big hit.”