Former Glee star Mark Salling, 35, was awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography charges before his tragic suicide on January 29. He was facing four to seven years in prison after reaching a plea deal, according to court records, and the stigma of his criminal record was haunting him, according to sources close to the actor. “Mark knew he would have nothing to come back to after he went to prison,” a source close to Glee‘s Noah “Puck” Puckerman told Us Weekly. “His acting career was beyond over. He was in a dark place. He was very lonely. He was going to prison soon.”
It wasn’t just the state of his career that allegedly had Mark in distress. He was allegedly feeling lonely, as well, according to the Us Weekly insider. “Whoever was in his life pretty much cut him off. There were certain people he would talk to here and there but he lost all his true friendships,” they told the mag. He was also allegedly still struggling with the death of his good friend and Glee costar Cory Monteith, who passed away in 2013 after an accidental drug and alcohol overdose in a hotel room. “Mark took Cory’s death extremely hard and never got over it,” a source told the magazine, with another source adding that, “He was so heartbroken and hurt by Cory’s death and that he didn’t ask for help and he was vocal about those feelings.”
That’s so heartbreaking. As HollywoodLife.com previously told you, Mark was found dead of apparent suicide by hanging on January 29 in Sunland, CA. His body was discovered by police near the banks of the Los Angeles River. You can see pics and video from the crime scene HERE. Other members of the Glee family, including Matthew Morrison (Mr. Schue) and Jane Lynch (Sue Sylvester) commented on his death after the news broke, with Matthew posting a photo of himself, Mark, and Cory, and Jane telling TMZ that she thought his death was “sad and tragic.”
HollywoodLifers, if you or someone you know is in emotional distress or considering suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).