High School Musical fans hoping that the Disney revival might feature Troy and Gabriella's kids or Sharpay as the most fabulous head teacher ever might be slightly disappointed.
The House of Mouse is bringing the franchise back a decade after High School Musical 3: Senior Year, this time as a 10-episode series that will debut exclusively on Disney's streaming service.
Disney has started the casting process, and according to Entertainment Weekly, veteran Pretty Little Liars producer Oliver Goldstick and his writers will be creating totally new characters for the show.
However, the series has a seriously meta plot in that it's still set at East High School as the students stage a version of High School Musical featuring all of the songs from the original movies.
Each episode will be filmed documentary-style and feature a remixed rendition of one of those aforementioned classic High School Musical tracks.
Disney has also shared some details about the new characters as well. The teen angst will revolve around YouTuber Ricky, who's been voted 'Most Likely to Sleep Through His Alarm' and is constantly trying to come up with get-rich-quick ideas.
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Ricky joins the musical in hopes of impressing his ex-girlfriend Nini as she explores her natural talent for the first time. He'll have a rival for Nini's affections in E.J., the son of two high-powered lawyers.
Other new characters currently being cast include Nini's understudy Gina (described as an "entitled princess"), choreographer Vikram, Ricky's best mate Big Red, the school's new arrival Ashlyn and, apparently, Ms Darbus's replacement in the drama department, Miss Jenn.
A premiere date for High School Music: The Musical hasn't been announced yet, but we're going to need some time to process the loss of our dear sweet Ms Darbus.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
