Keke Palmer has spoken out about the age-old rumor that her former Scream Queens costar, Lea Michele, cannot read.

There has been speculation for years that Glee star Lea, 38, is illiterate.

But now Hustlers actress Keke, 31, has put the rumors to rest once and for all by trashing them during a recent interview.

Speaking on The Toast podcast earlier this week, Keke admitted that while she had never heard of the conspiracy theory, she knew that Lea could indeed read.

“Damn, that’s crazy,” she said in response to the rumors. ‘Why do people do things like this?’

Hosts Jackie and Claudia Oshry then asked Keke if she’d ever seen Lea “read a book on set.”

After a brief pause, Keke revealed that she had not, although she added that it was unlikely anyone had seen her reading either.

She said, “I’ve never seen her read, but I know she can do it. I mean, damn, I know she can read, y’all.

Keke Palmer has spoken out about the age-old rumor that Lea Michele can’t read

There has been speculation for years that Glee star Lea, 38, is illiterate.

“She must… You all know the girl can read!”

Keke and Lea co-starred in the satirical dark comedy slasher television series Scream Queens, which aired on Fox from September 22, 2015 to December 20, 2016.

Created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan, the series also featured Emma Roberts, Skyler Samuels, Glen Powell, Diego Boneta, Abigail Breslin and Billie Lourd.

Set in New Orleans, Louisiana, Scream Queens followed sorority Kappa Kappa Tau (KKT), who are targeted by a serial killer who uses the university’s Red Devil mascot as a disguise.

The rumor that Lea can’t read first started circulating in 2018 after two self-proclaimed superfans posted a Facebook Live video with “proof.”

Robert Ackerman and Jaye Hunt claimed the brunette beauty only had to learn ‘like four words’ for one of her previous roles in the musical Ragtime.

When the starlet made the transition to TV, the ‘superfans’ claimed Glee and Scream Queens producer Ryan Murphy took care of her.

“Ryan Murphy knows the secret, and she only works with him because he reads her lines and she remembers them,” Jaye said in his Facebook video.

Keke and Lea starred alongside each other in the television series Scream Queens

And it was only a matter of time before users on X, formerly Twitter, came to believe the theory.

Lea has previously spoken out against bullshit rumors she can’t read, brandishing the rumored sexist.

In 2022, she told The New York Times, “I went to Glee every day; I knew my lines every day.

‘And then there’s a rumor online that I can’t read or write? It’s sad. Really and truly. I often think that if I were a man, many of these things wouldn’t be the case.’

She has since ridiculed the speculation.

In 2023, when news broke that her idol Barbra Streisand was releasing a memoir, she rushed to TikTok to joke that she had “265 days to learn to READ!!!!”