'Glee' Star Cory Monteith Reveals Troubled Past

Best known as hunk Finn Hudson on the Emmy-winning musical comedy Glee, Cory Monteith is opening up about his wild past. "I'm not Finn Hudson," he told Parade. "I burned a lot of bridges, I was out of control." Monteith dropped out of high school at the age of 16 and was forced by his family to enter rehab at age 19. “I did the stint but then went back to doing exactly what I left off doing."

But then he hit rock bottom. “I stole a significant amount of money from a family member," he confesses. "I knew I was going to get caught, but I was so desperate I didn't care. It was a cry for help. I was confronted and, I said, 'Yeah, it was me.' It was the first honorable, truthful thing that had come out of my mouth in years."

Monteith’s family gave him an ultimatum: either he could get clean or he would be reported to the authorities. That’s when he decided he was “done fighting myself.” Soon after, Monteith turned his attention to acting and was cast in the Fox series that would become a worldwide phenomenon. "I don't want kids to think it's okay to drop out of school and get high, and they'll be famous actors, too," he says. "But for those people who might give up: Get real about what you want and go after it. If I can, anyone can."