Dianna Agron Remembers 'Unique' Friendship with Late 'Glee' Costar Naya Rivera: 'Lucky to Know Her'

Dianna Agron is remembering her friendship with her late Glee costar Naya Rivera.

During an appearance on the Allison Interviews podcast, Agron initially opened up about her father's battle with Multiple Sclerosis and how she's coped with losing loved ones too soon.

"Death has been prevalent in my life, because I've lost many people that I loved, and it always feels like it wasn't the right time," the As They Made Us actress, 35, said. "I, unfortunately, lost many people when I was very young, and my father is very ill and only sixty-six years old. I pride myself in being very present in the moment with my family and my friends, and knowing that your health and wellness are not guaranteed. That centers me a lot."

When the conversation eventually turned to Rivera, Agron shared what made the pair's bond "unique" in ways that differed from her other friendships.

"Naya was my first friend on set. We were quite isolated, because we weren't involved in the entire pilot," Agron recalled. "We had our very brief moments in the pilot, and everybody else was very involved in the singing, dancing and all the rehearsals. So she was my point person and we kind of instilled each other with confidence in those moments. She was just very unique and special in the way she carried herself with such confidence and certainty. If she believed in something or in you as a person, she would always uplift those ideas."

Rivera went missing in July 2020 during a boat outing with her then-4-year-old son, Josey, at Lake Piru in Ventura County, California. Authorities found her body five days later, coincidentally on the seventh anniversary of fellow Glee star Cory Monteith's 2013 death from an accidental overdose. (Mark Salling, a former Glee star whom Rivera previously dated, took his own life in January 2018 at 35.)

Rivera's cause of death was ruled an accidental drowning. She was 33.

"[Naya] was very, very strong in a way that I think I have adapted to moments in my own life that have been quite difficult and the adversity you can overcome if you experience it at a young age that makes you more resilient. She had that strength in spades," Agron continued. "Any strength that I had, she had ten times more of it. It was really inspiring and nurturing to be around. She was also wickedly funny and had the best comedic timing."

Agron said it's still "so strange to think" that Rivera "is not here" anymore.

"She had years and years of love and gifts to give people," Agron added. "And I was so lucky to know her."

At the time of Rivera's death, Agron joined her former Glee castmates in paying tribute to Rivera on social media. Agron said she "cannot make sense of this tremendous loss" but she "will hold onto [Naya] and these memories for the rest of time, alongside our Glee family."

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"Naya and I fell into stride with such ease, she was my first friend and ally on our show. In the pilot, our characters came and went with such swiftness. Our enthusiasm brimmed with all of the unknown," she wrote on Instagram, sharing a photo of the pair pressing their noses together. "We tried to grasp what the other cast members must be feeling as we were working in such separate manners."

"We dared to dream. What if this show worked? Wouldn't that be something? Something was brimming, it was palpable. And thank god it worked," she continued. "Naya's magnetic talent was going to be unleashed, we just didn't know it yet."

Agron said that being able to work with Rivera "was a gift."

"There was a great deal to absorb — her work ethic, her fearlessness, her talent — supreme. Naya had a laugh that would envelop you and hold you captive. She was mesmerizing. That twinkle in her eye, her luminous smile. Naya lead with truth, humor, wit. I loved her for all of these reasons," she wrote.

"I loved her sense of curiosity and wanderlust. I was lucky enough to be her travel partner for some of my most favorite adventures," she added. "As I write this, I'm grinning with swelling memories of a spontaneous 36-hour excursion — one might even say diversion — to Paris. With Naya, everything was possible and would often simply unfold before us, almost magically.⁣⁣"
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