It's almost time to say goodbye to Finn Hudson forever, and "Glee" co-creator Ryan Murphy says that although the process of writing, shooting and editing the Cory Monteith tribute episode, "The Quarterback" (Thurs., Oct. 10 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox), was "incredibly difficult," the end result is "stunning."


At a private press screening of FX series "American Horror Story: Coven" (Season 3 premieres Wed., Oct. 9 at 10 p.m. ET on FX), Murphy talked about the pressures the "Glee" cast faced being thrust into fame so quickly, Monteith included, but said that the cast was all there to help say goodbye to him onscreen, even if they weren't necessarily written into the episode.


Murphy also teased that "what we'll see in the episode is what really happened" ...


"I locked [the episode] today -- it was incredibly difficult to work on," Murphy said. "It was very difficult to shoot. I mean, the interesting thing about that show is that those actors and the creators really, really loved Cory. The episode is called 'The Quarterback,' and you know Cory really was that, to that group of people and to me particularly. There was nobody on that crew that did not like Cory. It's been a very interesting show, in terms of relationships -- it's hard to do a young people's show.


"That group of kids particularly went through the limelight and became world famous at a very difficult age, and many of them really struggled with it. And Cory, obviously, very much struggled with it, but never on the surface, and I think that's why everybody loved him. He was the most kind, the most generous, never a bad word for anybody.


"So I think what we'll see in the episode is what really happened. Brad [Falchuk] and Ian [Brennan] and I wrote that episode and Brad directed it, and those performances that you'll see ... almost everything in that episode is from the first take of every performance. The actors and the crew had a really hard time shooting it. I've never seen a crew that you can't continue shooting because they've left the room sobbing. It was very hard.


"And I struggled even working on it, because what you're seeing is what they felt about not just Finn, but Cory, so I think it's amazing performances across the board, and everybody went into it with a lot of love. What I loved about it is, you know when you write something like that, there's no right way to do it, so we wrote it and we put people who were under contract to the show in it, and a lot of the actors contacted me and said, 'I just love him so much -- can I please be a part of it?' So we put those people in. Iqbal [Theba], for example, who plays the principal and is now the janitor, was not written into that episode, but personally called up Brad and I and said, 'For him, I want to be in it.'


"It was rough. It was very rough. It was very rough with Lea [Michele] ... but I'm very proud of it. I think the performances are quite stunning," Murphy said, adding, "People still are not over it -- it's still very, very difficult."


"Glee" airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.


Tell us: How would you like "Glee" to say goodbye to Cory Monteith and Finn Hudson?



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  • TV Critics Picks: 2013-2014 TV Season


    <strong>HuffPost TV gathered 19 TV critics to share their picks for the following topics: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/26/best-new-tv-comedy-2013-critics-video_n_3813852.html" target="_blank">Best New Comedy</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/27/best-new-tv-drama-2013-critics-video_n_3820528.html" target="_blank">Best New Drama</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/28/favorite-tv-stars-2013-critics-video_n_3825994.html" target="_blank">Favorite New Stars</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/29/returning-tv-shows-2013-critics-video_n_3833912.html" target="_blank">Returning Shows We Love</a> and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/30/worst-new-tv-show-2013-critics-video_n_3839731.html" target="_blank">Worst New Show</a> of the 2013-2014 TV season. <em>Watch the videos to see who picked what, then click through this gallery to find out when the shows premiere. </em></strong>




  • Worst New Show: "Super Fun Night"


    "Super Fun Night" premieres Wed., Oct. 2 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Worst New Show: "Dads"


    "Dads" premieres Tues., Sept. 17 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Worst New Show: "We Are Men"


    "We Are Men" premieres Mon., Sept. 30 at 8:30 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Worst New Show: "Sean Saves the World"


    "Sean Saves the World" premieres Thurs., Oct. 3 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.




  • Worst New Show: "Ironside"


    "Ironside" premieres Wed., Oct. 2 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.




  • Worst New Show: "Welcome to the Family"


    "Welcome to the Family" premieres Thurs., Oct. 3 at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC.




  • Worst New Show: "Reign"


    "Reign" premieres Thurs., Oct. 17 at 9 p.m. ET on The CW.




  • Worst New Show: "Back In the Game"


    "Back In the Game" premieres Wed., Sept. 25 at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Worst New Show: "Betrayal"


    "Betrayal" premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Game of Thrones"


    "Game of Thrones" Season 4 premieres Spring 2014 on HBO.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Scandal"


    "Scandal" Season 3 premieres Thurs., Oct. 3 at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Parks and Recreation"


    "Parks and Recreation" one-hour Season 5 premiere airs Thurs., Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "New Girl"


    "New Girl" Season 3 premieres Tues., Sept. 17 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "The Walking Dead"


    "The Walking Dead" Season 4 premieres Sun., Oct. 13 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Homeland"


    "Homeland" Season 3 premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. ET on Showtime.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Boardwalk Empire"


    "Boardwalk Empire" Season 4 premieres Sun., Sept. 8 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "The Mindy Project"


    "The Mindy Project" Season 2 premieres Tues., Sept. 17 at 9:30 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Sons of Anarchy"


    "Sons of Anarchy" Season 6 premieres Tues., Sept. 10 at 10 p.m. ET on FX.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Orphan Black"


    "Orphan Black" Season 2 premieres April 2014 on BBC America.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "The Good Wife"


    "The Good Wife" Season 5 premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Arrow"


    "Arrow" Season 2 premieres Wed., Oct. 9 at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "Glee"


    "Glee" Season 5 premieres Thurs., Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Favorite Returning Show: "American Horror Story: Coven"


    "American Horror Story: Coven" Season 3 premieres on FX.




  • Favorite Stars: Michael J. Fox & Betsy Brandt


    "The Michael J. Fox Show" premieres Thurs., Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.




  • Favorite Star: Chelsea Peretti


    "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" premieres Tues., Sept. 17 at 8:30 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Favorite Star: David Walton


    "About A Boy" premieres midseason 2014 on NBC.




  • Favorite Star: Stephen Merchant


    "Hello Ladies" premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 10:30 p.m. ET on HBO.




  • Favorite Star: Dermot Mulroney


    "Crisis" premieres midseason 2014 on NBC.




  • Favorite Star: Dylan McDermott


    "Hostages" premieres Mon., Sept. 23 at 10 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Favorite Star: Tom Mison


    "Sleepy Hollow" premieres Mon., Sept. 16 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Favorite Star: Lizzy Caplan


    "Masters of Sex" premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 10 p.m. ET on Showtime.




  • Favorite Stars: Sarah Michelle Gellar (left) & James Wolk (far right)


    "The Crazy Ones" premieres Thurs., Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Favorite Star: Clark Gregg


    "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." premieres Tues., Sept. 24 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Favorite Star: Anna Faris


    "Mom" premieres Mon., Sept. 23 at 9:30 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Favorite Star: Parker Young


    "Enlisted" premieres Fri., Nov. 8 at 9:30 p.m. on Fox.




  • Best New Drama: "Masters of Sex"


    "Masters of Sex" premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 10 p.m. ET on Showtime.




  • Best New Drama: "Reign"


    "Reign" premieres Thurs., Oct. 17 at 9 p.m. ET on The CW.




  • Best New Drama: "The Blacklist"


    "The Blacklist" premieres Mon., Sept. 23 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.




  • Best New Drama: "Hostages"


    "Hostages" premieres Mon., Sept. 23 at 10 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Best New Drama: "Sleepy Hollow"


    "Sleepy Hollow" premieres Mon., Sept. 16 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Best New Drama: "Almost Human"


    "Almost Human" premieres Mon., Nov. 4 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Best New Drama: "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."


    "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." premieres Tues., Sept. 24 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Best New Comedy: "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"


    "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" premieres Tues., Sept. 17 at 8:30 p.m. ET on Fox.




  • Best New Comedy: "Enlisted"


    "Enlisted" premieres Fri., Nov. 8 at 9:30 p.m. on Fox.




  • Best New Comedy: "Hello Ladies"


    "Hello Ladies" premieres Sun., Sept. 29 at 10:30 p.m. ET on HBO.




  • Best New Comedy: "Mom"


    "Mom" premieres Mon., Sept. 23 at 9:30 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Best New Comedy: "Trophy Wife"


    "Trophy Wife" premieres Tues., Sept. 24 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ABC.




  • Best New Comedy: "The Crazy Ones"


    "The Crazy Ones" premieres Thurs., Sept. 26 at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.




  • Best New Comedy: "About A Boy"


    "About A Boy" premieres midseason 2014 on NBC.