"The Sue Sylvester Shuffle" is the eleventh episode of the second season of the American musical television series Glee, and the thirty-third episode overall. It was written by Ian Brennan, directed by Brad Falchuk, and was broadcast immediately following Super Bowl XLV on February 6, 2011. In the episode, an effort to dispel student rivalry forces the McKinley High football team and glee club to unite. When cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) withdraws her squad from the halftime show of a championship football game, the disparate groups must come together to perform a routine and win the game.
Reportedly the most expensive post-Super Bowl episode ever produced, "The Sue Sylvester Shuffle" cost $3–5 million. It featured over 500 extras, including an array of stunt artists. News anchor Katie Couric guest-starred as herself, provoking controversy by making a jibe about television personality Dina Lohan. The episode featured cover versions of five songs, including a dance performance of "California Gurls" by Katy Perry and a mash-up of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" with "Heads Will Roll" by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Series creator Ryan Murphy had considered using the episode as a musical tribute to Jackson. The performances were met with mixed reception from critics. With the exception of "California Gurls", each of the numbers were released as singles, available for download. The "Thriller / Heads Will Roll" mash-up was the highest charting in all regions, peaking at number seventeen in Australia.
In the US, the episode was watched by 26.8 million viewers, making it the most watched episode of Glee and was also the highest-rated scripted TV broadcast in three years. It received a mixed response from critics, who differed over its accessibility to the Super Bowl audience. Several criticized the repetitive theme of football versus glee club rivalry, finding "The Sue Sylvester Shuffle" below typical Glee standards.
Plot
Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch), the coach of the cheerleading squad, grows disillusioned with the sport, and in an effort to recapture her love for it, and for a publicity stunt, plans to fire Brittany from a cannon during the team's next competitive routine. The cheerios report Sue to Mr. Schuster and Principal Figgins. Meanwhile, football coach Shannon Beiste (Dot-Marie Jones) has the school football players join the glee club, New Directions, in order to dispel rivalry between the students. In revenge for opposition to her cannon plan, Sue has the cheerleading Regionals competition moved to the same night as a football championship game, so her cheerleaders will be unavailable for the halftime show, and forces the affected squad members to resign from the glee club. New Directions' director Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) announces that the club members, including the football players, will perform the halftime routine, planning a mash-up of Michael Jackson's "Thriller" with "Heads Will Roll" by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. He notices and encourages the talent of Dave Karofsky (Max Adler), a bully who has previously acted violently towards the glee club members and had a crush on Kurt. When the football players are attacked by members of the school hockey team, Karofsky convinces a number of the football players to quit the glee club, resulting in Beiste barring those players from the championship game.
To ensure that the game goes ahead, glee club members Rachel (Lea Michele), Mercedes (Amber Riley), Tina (Jenna Ushkowitz) and Lauren (Ashley Fink) join the football team. The game begins badly for the McKinley side, and when Tina is injured during a play, captain Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith) takes control of the situation. He has club member Puck (Mark Salling) convince the former football players to return, and convinces cheerleaders Santana (Naya Rivera), Brittany (Heather Morris) and his ex-girlfriend Quinn (Dianna Agron) to quit the cheer squad and perform at the halftime show. Only Karofsky refuses to participate, but when he sees the positive reaction the crowd has to the routine, he joins in himself. Beiste welcomes the football players back, and they go on to win the game by intimidating the opposing side, dressed as zombies from the halftime routine.