Finn Christopher Hudson is a fictional character from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character was portrayed by Cory Monteith and first appeared on television when Glee premiered its pilot episode on Fox on May 19, 2009. Finn was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Ian Brennan. Glee follows the trials of the New Directions glee club at the fictional William McKinley High School in the town of Lima, Ohio. Finn is the quarterback of his high school football team the McKinley Titans. As a popular jock at the top of the school's social hierarchy, he is seen going along with his peers who bully the less popular students. When he is forced to join the school's very unpopular glee club, he discovers that he loves it and chooses to continue in the club despite the risk of alienation by his friends for remaining a member.

His storylines often see him struggle with his decision to stay in the club, which is at the bottom of the social ladder, while he maintains his popular reputation and the respect of the other jocks. The character has dealt with his attraction to both the stunning head cheerleader Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron) and ambitious, self centred glee club star singer Rachel Berry (Lea Michele), the series' female lead.

Following Monteith's death on July 13, 2013, it was announced that Finn's own death would occur in the third episode of the fifth season, titled "The Quarterback".

Monteith felt that Finn has had to grow up a lot during his time on the show. The actor said, "Finn started off as the stereotypical dumb jock but as the show has gone on, Finn's not dumb anymore, really, he's just a little naïve." Early reviews of Finn from television critics were mixed; Emily St. James of The A.V. Club said that he and Michele were "both agreeable and a little desperate for an outlet" in the pilot episode. Commenting on the fifth episode of the first season, Eric Goldman of IGN wrote, "We got to see a bit of a darker side to Finn [...] it's good to see this, because up until now, Finn's been a bit too straight-laced to totally invest in." In the second season's eighth episode, "Furt", Entertainment Weekly's Tim Stack said, "It's been a while since we’ve gotten some Finn focus, and I think I just missed Cory Monteith. But I also forgot what a good, natural actor he can be." Monteith as Finn won the 2011 Teen Choice Award for Choice TV: Actor Comedy, and was nominated in the same category in 2010.

Although he was not a singer before being cast as Finn, Monteith sang lead or joint lead on many songs on the show, most of which have charted in the US and abroad. "Jessie's Girl", which Finn performed as a solo, was certified gold in Australia, one of only three singles to do so from the show's releases in that country; he was joint lead on "Don't Stop Believin'" in the pilot episode, the show's first single sung by the glee club, which was certified gold and platinum in Australia and the US.

Finn Hudson is portrayed by Cory Monteith. He has also been portrayed as a child by Jerry Phillips in "Pilot" and as a preschooler by Jake Vaughn in the episode "The Substitute". When Glee was being cast, Monteith's Vancouver agent, Elena Kirschner, submitted a video of him drumming with some pencils and Tupperware containers. Series creator (Ryan Murphy) took notice of the video, but pointed out that he had to be singing, as auditioning actors for Glee with no theatrical experience were required to prove they could sing and dance as well as act. Monteith submitted a second, musical tape, in which he sang "a cheesy, '80s music-video-style version" of REO Speedwagon's "Can't Fight This Feeling". He then attended a mass audition in Los Angeles; his vocal skills were considered weak, but he later performed very well with one of Glee's casting directors, who said that his audition captured the most elusive quality of Finn's, his "naive, but not stupid sweetness". Monteith said of his casting process, "I was like a lot of kids, looking for something to be interested in. Something to be passionate about. All you need is permission. Not only for Glee, but for anything in life."

In December 2010, Murphy announced that some members of the cast of Glee would be replaced after the end of the third season in spring 2012, to coincide with their graduation. Murphy said: "Every year we're going to populate a new group. There's nothing more depressing than a high schooler with a bald spot." He added, "I think you have to be true to the fact that here is a group of people who come and go in these teachers' lives." Although Murphy said in July 2011 that Monteith would be one of the actors leaving at the end of the third season, Falchuk later stated that while Monteith, along with Lea Michele and Chris Colfer, would graduate at the end of the third season, "because they're graduating doesn't mean they're leaving the show." Falchuk insisted that "it was never our plan or our intention to let them go.... They are not done with the show after this season."

Finn originated as a character who "walks a fine line between following his dreams and balancing what other people expect of him." Monteith's former acting coach said: "You've got to be incredibly smart to understand how dim Finn can be", though Monteith appreciated the fact that Finn is more than "just a dumb jock". He has admitted that he is sometimes frustrated by Finn's "convenient dumb-guy writing", and commented, "I think every actor wants to be stretched. But it's also important to realize that whatever we're doing works. I realize that this happens to an actor about once every ten lifetimes. To be on a show that's this good, it's rarefied air." Finn has matured during his run on the series—in January 2011, Monteith noted that he had "grown up a little bit" and become "a little wiser". He later expanded, "Finn's not dumb anymore, really, he's just naive. The opposite of me. I love Finn's optimism. He's very idealistic; he wants a good girl to love him, and he chases after what he wants in life—that I can relate to." The actor hoped that in time his character would be able to grow and mature more. He said in an interview with MTV, "I think the harder it is for him, the better, you know? I think Finn has a lot of growing up to do and I think that Finn has a lot of struggle left for him. I think dealing with a lot of his dad stuff, the passing of his father and dealing with the unrequited love all of a sudden from Rachel, I think the more trouble he goes through, the more interesting it is for me as an actor."