| Dave Karofsky | |
|---|---|
| Glee character | |
 Max Alder as Dave Karofsky in Glee | |
| First appearance | "Mash-Up" (2009) |
| Last appearance | "Dreams Come True" (2015) |
| Created by | Ryan Murphy Brad Falchuk Ian Brennan |
| Portrayed by | Max Adler |
| In-universe information | |
| Occupation | unknown (currently) High school student (graduated) |
| Family | Paul Karofsky (father) Debra Karofsky (mother) |
| Significant other | Blaine Anderson (ex-boyfriend) |
| Religion | Atheist |
David Karofsky is a recurring fictional character from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actor Max Adler, and has appeared in Glee since its first season episode "Mash-Up", first broadcast on October 21, 2009. Initially known only by his surname, Karofsky was introduced as a bully and a member of the McKinley High football team who slushies football captain Finn (Cory Monteith), and who teams with fellow athlete and bully Azimio (James Earl) to torment various fellow students, usually members of the school glee club, New Directions. Later in the season, he is identified as a member of the football team, and is a football player in the second season. Karofsky is revealed to be gay early in that season. He is closeted and remains so at the end of the season, though he has stopped bullying and has won the election for Junior Prom King. He transfers to another school for his senior year, but is outed there and attempts suicide after being bullied by his classmates, though he is saved by his father.
Karofsky was initially used as an ordinary jock bully, but Adler's acting impressed show co-creator Ryan Murphy; he expanded Karofsky's role in the show's second season by having him especially target gay glee club member Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer), only to turn out to be gay himself, though closeted. That revelation sparked a wave of reaction from people who thought it was important for Glee to show "the confusion and the torture one person can put themselves through being closeted".[1] Reviewers have been impressed with Adler's portrayal of Karofsky, including Michael Slezak of TVLine, who in the second season characterized it as "surprisingly nuanced" and with a "terrific amount of depth", and Billboard's Rae Votta, who wrote in the third season, "As always, Kurt and Karofsky's scenes shine as the strongest in whichever episode they're featured."[2][3]