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From Zac Efron to Olivia Rodrigo, Looking Back at Careers the High School Musical Franch

The first “High School Musical” film was released 15 years ago, introducing kids everywhere to the world of the East High Wildcats and bolstering the importance of following one’s passions instead of the status quo.

The response was unprecedented for a Disney Channel Original Movie, with its triple-platinum soundtrack becoming the first ever from a television movie to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart. It was the No. 2 movie on cable in 2006, right behind “Cheetah Girls 2,” won two Emmy awards and produced six gold-certified singles. “High School Musical” established a franchise — with two more uber-successful films to follow — and shot its stars to fame in the process, among them Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and Corbin Bleu.

“The ‘High School Musical’ franchise created an indelible mark on the music and television worlds, not to mention in the larger cultural zeitgeist (Can anyone hear the words, ‘We’re All In This Together’ ever again without thinking about that finale song?),” said Gary Marsh, president and chief creative officer of Disney Branded Television. “The role that our extraordinary cast played in creating this cultural phenomenon is undeniable; without them, there would be no ‘High School Musical.’ The entire cast was catapulted into stardom – almost Beatlemania status — with fans spanning the globe! We’re often asked, ‘Why this project and this cast?’ The answer, I believe, is because the audience easily saw Gabriella and Troy as stand-ins for themselves – Gabriella finding the courage to step outside of her comfort zone to shine onstage and Troy defying stereotypes by following his newfound passion for the arts.”

In late 2019, the first season of the spin-off mockumentary series, “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” premiered on Disney Plus. It has also proved to have just as much star-making power as the original, particularly with its breakout lead, Olivia Rodrigo.

Below, catch up with the careers of the franchise’s breakout stars, from then to now.

  • Zac Efron

    After “High School Musical,” Zac Efron — who played Troy Bolton, the hunky basketball star turned musical theater geek — became Hollywood’s new favorite leading man.

    Immediately following the first “HSM” movie, Efron landed a role as the suave Link Larkin in the 2007 film adaptation of “Hairspray,” in which he stole the heart of Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) and proved his singing chops. (Actor Drew Seeley provided the vocals for Troy Bolton in the first “High School Musical,” but it’s all Efron in the two follow-ups.)

    In 2009, one year after the release of the third and final “HSM” film, Efron starred in the commercially successful comedy “17 Again” and Richard Linklater’s period drama “Me and Orson Welles,” which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Efron continued to build up an acting resume ranging from rom-coms to indie dramas, including “Charlie St. Cloud” (2010), “New Year’s Eve” (2011), “The Lucky One” (2012), “Neighbors” (2014) and its sequel “Neighbors 2” (2016), “The Disaster Artist” (2017) and “The Greatest Showman” (2017).

    Most recently, Efron portrayed serial killer Ted Bundy in “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” (2019) for Netflix, and also served as an executive producer on the movie.

    Though he has a few film projects on the way — a remake of Stephen King’s “Firestarter” and the survival thriller “Gold” — Efron has put a larger focus on his passion for the environment and sustainability, which he showcased in his 2020 Netflix travel docuseries, “Down to Earth With Zac Efron.”

  • Vanessa Hudgens

    Following her first turn as the school’s “freaky genius girl” Gabriella Montez in “High School Musical,” Hudgens signed a recording contract with Hollywood Records, Disney Music Group’s label, and released her gold-certified debut album, “V.”

    In 2008, before “High School Musical 3,” Hudgens released her second album, “Identified,” which did not see much commercial success but introduced the bop “Sneakernight.” Hudgens then decided to focus more on acting, playing Mimi in the Hollywood Bowl’s 2010 production of “Rent” directed by Neil Patrick Harris, and leading Zack Snyder’s “Sucker Punch” in 2011. Hudgens continued to show off her acting chops in James Franco’s raunchy 2013 film “Spring Breakers” and “The Frozen Ground,” in which she appeared alongside John Cusack and Nicolas Cage.

    In 2015, Hudgens returned to the stage, portraying the titular role in “Gigi” on Broadway. She played Rizzo in 2016’s “Grease: Live,” and she starred alongside herself in Netflix’s “The Princess Switch” series.

    In January 2019, Hudgens returned to “Rent” in Fox’s “Rent: Live,” this time playing the role of Maureen, and, in 2020, she held a small role in “Bad Boys for Life.”

    Coming up, Hudgens will once again put her musical skills to the test as the lead of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s film “adaptation of Jonathan Larson’s musical “Tick, Tick… Boom!”

  • Ashley Tisdale

    Known for playing the spoiled, obnoxious Sharpay Evans in “High School Musical,” Ashley Tisdale got her start on another Disney show, “The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.” But “HSM” catapulted her to new heights, resulting in a record deal with Warner Bros. Records (now called Warner Records), where she released two albums, “Headstrong” (2007) and “Guilty Pleasure” (2009).

    After exiting her record deal, Tisdale decided to focus more on acting and a newfound love for producing. Her production company, Blondie Girl Productions, was established in 2008 and signed a multi-year deal with Relativity Media, under which Tisdale executive produced and starred in the ABC Family film “Picture This” (2008).

    Tisdale returned to television in 2010, playing the head cheerleader in the CW’s “Hellcats,” and later reprised the role of Sharpay in the “HSM” spin-off “Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure,” which she also executive produced. In 2014, Tisdale held a lead role in ABC Family’s “Young & Hungry,” which she also produced. Most recently, Tisdale has served as a panelist on ABC’s “The Masked Singer” spin-off “The Masked Dancer.”

    Though Tisdale has often teased a third album, she is currently focused on something else: motherhood. Her daughter, with husband Christopher French, was born in March.

  • Corbin Bleu

    In “HSM,” Corbin Bleu portrayed the basketball-carrying, graphic tee-wearing Chad Danforth, who was Troy’s right-hand man. In the films, it took Chad a long time to come around to the fact that his best bro had a passion for theater, so much so that he sang a song called “I Don’t Dance” — but in real life, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

    After starring in the Disney Channel movie “Jump In!” and appearing on shows like “Hannah Montana” and “Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide.” Bleu made his Broadway debut in 2010 as Usnavi in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “In the Heights.” In 2011, Bleu played the role of Seaweed in “Hairspray” at the Hollywood Bowl and finished as the runner-up on “Dancing With the Stars” in 2013.

    Bleu returned to Broadway in 2016 as the leading role in “Holiday Inn,” in which he showed off his tap dancing skills, later winning the Chita Rivera Award for best male performance. In 2019, he played Bill Calhoun/Lucentio in the Broadway revival of “Kiss Me, Kate” for which Bleu was nominated for a Drama Desk award for outstanding featured actor in a musical.

    In addition to his work in theater, Bleu has also appeared on shows like “The Good Wife,” “Psych,” “Drop Dead Diva,” “The Fosters,” “The Middle,” “Supergirl” and “Dynasty.”

  • Olivia Rodrigo

    Olivia Rodrigo is the franchise’s latest breakout star.

    Rodrigo, who plays talented songwriter Nini on “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” had her first hit with “All I Want,” a piano ballad that she penned for the series. The song debuted at No. 90 on the Billboard Hot 100, and has since become gold-certified with over 570 million global streams.

    “They were like, ‘Here, you’re 16 years old and have no writing credits. Why don’t you write this song for us?’ And it actually did really well,” said Rodrigo, who is one of Variety’s Young Hollywood cover stars.

    After releasing her record-smashing debut single “Drivers License” in January and No. 1 album “Sour” in May, Rodrigo has become one of pop’s biggest forces, while still starring on the show’s second season.

    “I think our entire generation sort of grew up on ‘High School Musical,'” Rodrigo said. “The generation before us grew up on ‘High School Musical,’ and I also think the generation after us will grow up on ‘High School Musical,’ because that’s just how it is. That concept is just so powerful.”

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