Ware opened up about her decision to publicly confront the star in a new interview with Variety, elaborating on her claim that Michele had once threatened to "sh*t in her wig", explaining that it happened during an intimate cast screening during a set lunch break.
"She had an issue because I had laughed (when watching a scene) and that's when the 'I'm going to sh*t in your wig' comment happened," Ware said, adding that Michele had said it loudly enough for everyone to hear.
"Some chuckled and some gasped. It was mortifying. The whole point was for her to embarrass me. People heard her, but no one was going to stand up to her."
Ware also described how the tension between the two actresses was instantaneous.
"I knew from day one when I attempted to introduce myself. There was nothing gradual about it. As soon as she decided that she didn't like me, it was very evident," Ware said.
"It was after I did my first performance, that's when it started – the silent treatment, the stare-downs, the looks, the comments under her breath, the weird passive aggressiveness. It all built up."
Another time, the actress recalled, Michele had threatened to have her fired after feeling "disrespected" by her.
"When you're shooting a scene, sometimes the camera is on you and sometimes it's not, but you still have to be in the scene," Ware said. "The camera wasn't on us, so it's not like we had to give a full throttle performance, but apparently, I was goofing around when the camera wasn't on me, and she took that as me being disrespectful to her."
Ware said no one else – including the director – had seemed bothered, but Michele was furious.
"She waited until the scene was over and she stopped in the middle of the stage and did a 'come here' gesture, like how a mother does to their child," she said, adding that she politely refused Michele's summonses.
"I said 'no,' and that's when she decided to threaten my job, and said she would call (Glee creator) Ryan Murphy in to come and fire me."
Despite her poor treatment, Ware didn't make a formal complaint.
"Lea's actions were nothing new, so I guess since it was such a common thing, my case didn't seem like that big of a deal," she said.
"I remember the first day I actually spoke up and unfortunately no one did anything. They just shrugged it off, like, 'That's her.' No one was stopping these things, which is an issue because the environment was helping perpetuate this abuse."
Last week, Michele issued a lengthy three-page statement on Instagram, claiming that while she doesn't "remember" the specific behaviour she'd been accused of, she had "clearly acted in ways which hurt other people".
"Whether it was my privileged position and perspective that caused me to be perceived as insensitive or inappropriate at times, or whether it was just my immaturity and me being unnecessarily difficult, I apologise for my behaviour," Michele wrote.
The star, who played Rachel Berry on all six seasons of Glee, is currently expecting her first baby with husband Zandy Reich, and added that she "wanted to be a real role model" for their child.
"We can all grow and change and I have definitely used these past several months to reflect on my own shortcomings."
Her apology came after Ware, who played Jane Hayward on Glee for its sixth season in 2015, responded to a tweet written by Michele amid the riots in the US after George Floyd's death at the hands of police.
Michele wrote: "George Floyd did not deserve this. This was not an isolated incident and it must end. #BlackLivesMatter."
In a shocking response to the tweet, Ware publicly confronted Michele, alleging she made her time on the show a "living hell" with her "traumatic microaggressions".
Far from placating those who have spoken against her recently, Michele's apology sparked a whole new wave of accusations from others she had worked with in the past, including claims she called Glee extras "cockroaches" and had people "fired on a whim".
