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Lea Michele Steps Out With Boyfriend Almost A Year After Cory Monteith’s Death

By Niki Cruz
Published on: 04:06 PST, Jul 3, 2014

It looks like Lea Michele is finally in happier spirits. The Glee star, who had to publicly go through the sudden death of her boyfriend and co-star Cory Monteith, is moving on with dating coach and alleged former gigolo Matthew Paetz.

Lea Michele stepped out with Matthew the other day, and while all of the publications have advertised these photos as a casual outing, it looks like Michele and Paetz were more than prepared to be photographed that day.

These photos show Lea Michele and boyfriend Matthew Paetz enjoying each other’s company on a hike in Burbank and at a local park in Los Angeles. In both photo sets, the pair is all smiles and picture perfect. While she hasn’t publicly confirmed that she’s dating Paetz, this seems like a pretty official announcement.

This wouldn’t be the first time a couple has set up a photo-op to officially announce a relationship. Think back to 2005, when Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were “captured” on a beach with Maddox after keeping silent about all of those dating rumors.

For the Brangelina power couple, it was a natural environment that put out a statement through photographs about the nature of their relationship, which up until then was based on assumptions. The scene was a very controlled photo-op that provided a birdseye view into their lives.

Brad and Angelina’s first photos as a couple mirror these new photos that have emerged of Lea Michele and boyfriend Matthew Paetz. Back in 2005, it was a throwback to staged photo shoots that studios promoted their golden co-stars with, and the first of many in an industry driven by quick paparazzi shots and tabloid fodder. These days it seems like the route to go as it is more passive, but establishes a careful narrative.

For Lea, it seems like a perfect way to go as she will surely receive scrutiny from fans who were so passionate about her relationship with Monteith. In addition, their relationship was also played out on screen as their characters Finn and Rachel were the will-they-won’t-they couple for several seasons on Glee. After Monteith’s tragic death, moving on publicly without addressing it in some way may be a slippery slope.

This is something that Lea Michele was very much aware of and spoke about in interviews recently. Back in April, Michele expressed to Glamour UK that dating would be hard after the death of Monteith, but it was necessary.

“It’ll take time to readjust my mind and I’m really not wanting to do that right now. I feel like it’s so important to make sure that I’m 100 percent OK before I can get into a relationship. But people have to understand that I can’t be alone forever. Cory wouldn’t want that.”

Lea Michele and Paetz met on the set of her music video for her single “On My Way” from her album Louder. Reports were circulating that the couple was more than friends as early as May.

According to HollywoodLife, a source close to Michele said that Matthew reminds Lea of Cory Monteith.

“She has by no means found a replacement for Cory, but there are many similarities between the two. She likes the way he treats her — like a princess. Plus he’s a complete gentleman and down to earth. She also likes that Matt has a great sense of humor and makes her laugh.”

Laughter seems like it would be a key ingredient in a relationship for Lea. Even though she has gone on record to say that she only has happy memories of Monteith, she must need some laughter after such a dark year.

The only thing that seems peculiar about the new photos of the couple is that we’re closing in on a year since Cory Monteith’s death. The Glee actor was found lifeless in a Vancouver hotel room on July 13 from a mixed dose of alcohol and heroin. Just a few months prior to his passing, Monteith entered rehab, and Michele openly expressed her support and mentioned how proud she was of her beau.

Hopefully, these photos are just the beginning of brighter times for the Glee star.

[Images via Twitter]

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