The best thing about famous people is that what many of them lack in likeability, they make up for in bizarre gossip. From the theory that Nicolas Cage was actually a vampire to Avril Lavigne being replaced by a lookalike, there is something about being in the limelight that makes people go hog wild with the speculation. 

There are as many celebrity rumors out there as there are members of the A list, but not all of them reach the legendary status of becoming a meme. Unfortunately for Lea Michele, her particular fabricated vice has tickled the internet more than most. The actress has been dogged by the idea that she can’t read since a pop culture podcast made a case for it in 2017. After it was announced she would be taking the lead role in the Broadway production of Funny Girl earlier this year, the unfortunate rumor came back with a fury.

The joke has gone on for so long that she recently felt compelled to release a statement that dispelled the theory, although this just seemed to add fuel to the fire after it was pointed out that the comments she made didn’t really say anything that confirmed she could read. Is it a little mean to make a joke out of somebody supposedly struggling with the burden of illiteracy? Probably. At least we can be safe in the knowledge that if the rumor is true, Lea won’t be reading all the memes about it.