Keke Palmer Weighs in on Viral Internet Conspiracy ThatScream QueensCostar Lea Michele Can't Read: 'She's Got To'

Mar. 15, 2025

Keke Palmer (left) and Lea Michele.Photo:Cindy Ord/Getty (2)

Cindy Ord/Getty (2)

Keke Palmeris sharing her two cents onLea Micheleand her literacy.During the Nov. 19 episode ofThe Toastpodcast, the actress, 31, addressed a viral internet conspiracy involving her formerScream Queenscostar and her alleged inability to read.“I know that she can read, y’all,” Palmer said. “I ain’t never seen her reading but I know that she can read. She’s got to.”While she claimed she’s never seen Michele, 38, read a book on set, she laughed, “Damn, that’s crazy why do people do this stuff. I mean don’t nobody see me reading a book on set. Y’all know that girl can read.”From left: Lea Michele, Billie Lourd, Abigail Breslin, Emma Roberts and Niecy Nash in ‘Scream Queens’.FOX Image Collection/Getty“Honestly, y’all if she can’t read, so what? S—, some people can’t read. [If] she can’t read, momma can’t read,” Palmer said, adding that she was “here” for those who were illiterate.Michele, who took on the role of Hester Ulrich in theRyan Murphycomedy, has previously addressed online rumors that she can’t read or write. Over the years, several viral TikToks and social media threads have pushed a conspiracy theory that Michele had never learned to read, with peopleclaiming to show “evidence.““I went toGleeevery single day; I knew my lines every single day. And then there’s a rumor online that I can’t read or write? It’s sad. It really is,” she toldThe New York Timesin 2022. “I think often if I were a man, a lot of this wouldn’t be the case.“Lea Michele and Cory Monteith on ‘Glee’.FOXMichele alsopreviously joked about the rumorswhen they bubbled up back in March 2018. She set the record straight with a sense of humor, tweeting to a fan who said she must be “laughing her head off right now” about it: “Loved READING this tweet and wanted to WRITE you back? literally laughing out loud at all this? love you!!!“Palmer isn’t the first of Michele’s costars to weigh in on the conspiracy.During an appearance onWatch What Happens Live with Andy Cohenin January 2023,Emma Robertsopened up about seeing Michele in Broadway’sFunny Girland her biggest misconception is about her.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.When host Andy Cohen guessed that the misconception was “that she can’t read,” Roberts responded with a laugh: “I mean, we have not been in a book club together, but…. No.“Modern FamilyalumJulie Bowen, who appeared alongside her joked, “Why is reading so important, goddamnit? Let her not read if that’s what she wants.”

Keke Palmeris sharing her two cents onLea Micheleand her literacy.

During the Nov. 19 episode ofThe Toastpodcast, the actress, 31, addressed a viral internet conspiracy involving her formerScream Queenscostar and her alleged inability to read.

“I know that she can read, y’all,” Palmer said. “I ain’t never seen her reading but I know that she can read. She’s got to.”

While she claimed she’s never seen Michele, 38, read a book on set, she laughed, “Damn, that’s crazy why do people do this stuff. I mean don’t nobody see me reading a book on set. Y’all know that girl can read.”

From left: Lea Michele, Billie Lourd, Abigail Breslin, Emma Roberts and Niecy Nash in ‘Scream Queens’.FOX Image Collection/Getty

FOX Image Collection/Getty

“Honestly, y’all if she can’t read, so what? S—, some people can’t read. [If] she can’t read, momma can’t read,” Palmer said, adding that she was “here” for those who were illiterate.

Michele, who took on the role of Hester Ulrich in theRyan Murphycomedy, has previously addressed online rumors that she can’t read or write. Over the years, several viral TikToks and social media threads have pushed a conspiracy theory that Michele had never learned to read, with peopleclaiming to show “evidence.”

“I went toGleeevery single day; I knew my lines every single day. And then there’s a rumor online that I can’t read or write? It’s sad. It really is,” she toldThe New York Timesin 2022. “I think often if I were a man, a lot of this wouldn’t be the case.”

Lea Michele and Cory Monteith on ‘Glee’.FOX

FOX

Michele alsopreviously joked about the rumorswhen they bubbled up back in March 2018. She set the record straight with a sense of humor, tweeting to a fan who said she must be “laughing her head off right now” about it: “Loved READING this tweet and wanted to WRITE you back? literally laughing out loud at all this? love you!!!”

Palmer isn’t the first of Michele’s costars to weigh in on the conspiracy.

During an appearance onWatch What Happens Live with Andy Cohenin January 2023,Emma Robertsopened up about seeing Michele in Broadway’sFunny Girland her biggest misconception is about her.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

When host Andy Cohen guessed that the misconception was “that she can’t read,” Roberts responded with a laugh: “I mean, we have not been in a book club together, but…. No.”

Modern FamilyalumJulie Bowen, who appeared alongside her joked, “Why is reading so important, goddamnit? Let her not read if that’s what she wants.”

source: people.com