| Brittany Pierce | |
|---|---|
| Glee character | |
 Heather Morris as Brittany Pierce in Glee | |
| First appearance | "Showmance" (2009) |
| Last appearance | "Dreams Come True" (2015) |
| Created by | Ryan Murphy Brad Falchuk Ian Brennan |
| Portrayed by | Heather Morris |
| In-universe information | |
| Occupation | College Student (MIT) High School Student (WMHS) |
| Family | Pierce Pierce (step-father) Whitney Pierce (mother) Stephen Hawking (biological father) |
| Spouse | Santana Lopez |
| Significant other | Artie Abrams Sam Evans |
Brittany Susan Pierce is a fictional character from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actress Heather Morris, and first appeared in the show's second episode, "Showmance". Brittany was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Ian Brennan. In Glee, Brittany is a ditzy cheerleader, or "Cheerio", for the fictional William McKinley High School, and a member of the school's glee club led by Will Schuester. Morris was originally hired to teach Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" dance to the Glee cast. At that time, the series was looking for a third cheerleader, and Morris landed the role. Morris was upgraded to a series regular in the series' second season, in which Brittany is given a larger storyline, solos and dance routines to perform.
Morris plays Brittany as unconventional, often scatterbrained, but also entirely well-meaning and goodhearted. She has said that Brittany "love[s] everybody, no matter who they are";[citation needed] she is frequently smiling and being nice to people. Brittany's character traits include her finding recipes confusing, mistaking her nipples for pepperoni, thinking her cat, Lord Tubbington, is reading her diary, and not knowing her right hand from her left. These facts are often presented in one-liners delivered by Morris, many of which she has ad-libbed. The character's perceived lack of intelligence, well-intentioned cluelessness, and entirely forthright manner of speaking mean, as Morris puts it, that "Brittany is used by the series' writers to say things no other character would".[citation needed] The character has also received positive reviews related to her romantic storyline with her closeted best friend Santana (Naya Rivera). While Brittany is bisexual, and is unashamed of that, Santana had trouble accepting her sexuality.[1] However, Brittany always supported Santana and urged her to be true to herself.
The character has been received favorably with television critics. Snarker called Brittany and Santana her "new favourite Glee pairing", and commented: "While Heather Morris (Brittany) and Naya Rivera (Santana) have had minimal screen time, they’ve made it count. Heather in particular has brought the laughs as the Cheerio least likely to get a Mensa invitation."[2] Brittany has attracted comparison to Amanda Seyfried's character from the 2004 hit teen comedy Mean Girls.[citation needed] Morris also received acclaim for her dancing and her portrayal as Brittany.
- ^ Brad Falchuk (writer, director), Ryan Murphy (writer), Ian Brennan (writer) (September 27, 2011). "I Am Unicorn". Glee. Season 3. Episode 2. Fox.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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