"Glee's" Naya Rivera will return for the show's upcoming final season but not in the same capacity as in previous seasons.

According to TVLine, despite various rumors that Rivera would not return for Season 6, the actress will indeed be on the cast. Instead of being a regular, however, she will reportedly be a recurring guest star.

A source told the website that it was the Santana Lopez actress herself who requested her role be diminished.

Neither Rivera nor "Glee" have commented on the report.

Back in May, Ryan Murphy, "Glee" co-creator, said that Rivera would come back for Season 6 despite reports of her having a feud with co-star Lea Michele, who plays Rachel Berry.

"I don't think there is a story between Naya and Lea. I always marvel at the things that become headline news that most of the time are completely fabricated," he said in an interview with Extra. "Naya's coming back next year. Lea's coming back next year. Anybody ever in that cast has an open invitation to come back and finish the character they so beautifully started."

Rivera's transition to guest star is not uncommon for "Glee's" cast. For example, Amber Riley, who plays Mercedes Jones, and Jenna Ushkowitz, who plays Tina Cohen-Chang, have also made similar modifications to their contracts, TVLine reports.

In June, Murphy spoke about the show's final season, saying it will return to what made it a hit in the first place.

"We're working on the last season now, and it really feels like it's getting back to its roots, which I love," he told TVLine. "I'm sort of reinvigorated about it. It's getting back to what I was initially interested in with the show, which was arts in school. The last season is really about the importance of arts education in our high schools ... I think people will like it."

Fox has yet to announce Season 6's premiere date.
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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar

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