Who needs The Glee Project when you already have American Idol? According to TVLine, American Idol season 11 runner-up Jessica Sanchez is in talks to land a recurring role on Glee‘s upcoming fourth season.

The 16-year-old shining star finished second to Phillip Phillips in the most recent season of Idol, and if the deal goes through, she would join Glee in the middle of season 4 after she’s finished touring with Idol. There are no details on what character she might play, but given her age and the fact that she’s a Rachel Berry-style diva, my guess would be she’d be a new McKinley High student.

The most surprising thing isn’t that Glee would go after Sanchez (though I found her robotic and stiff), it’s that the show has never used American Idol as a casting pool before. The lack of synergy between Idol and Glee has always seemed unusual since both FOX shows have the same appeal. Fans spend all spring getting attached to these people, and while not all of them have acting chops, surely some of them do.

But this makes sense, especially since Glee has already made a habit of bringing in So You Think You Can Dance contestants. Many have been featured as extras and background dancers for rival show choirs, and most notably Courtney Galiano had an actual speaking role at the start of season 3 as The Mack, one of pink-haired Quinn’s bad girl pals.

So it makes sense that Glee would cast from Idol, especially since Ryan Murphy has made it clear that only ONE person from Oxygen’s The Glee Project will get a role on Glee. With the huge holes left in New Directions by graduation and Rachel’s trek to NYADA, the show needs a whole lot of fresh, young talent.

Are you excited about the prospect of seeing Jessica Sanchez on Glee, or do you wish they’d cast Skylar Laine or Colton Dixon instead?

Source: TVline
(Image courtesy of FOX)

John Kubicek

Senior Writer, BuddyTV

John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire DiariesSupernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.