Although the long-rumoured High School Musical 4 [1] has yet to come to fruition, we have news of the next best thing: a High School Musical [2] TV show. Disney is rebooting the beloved series [3] — well, technically — for their brand new streaming service, and this time around things are getting meta.
For starters, the show's name is High School Musical [4]: The Musical, and will be shot docu-style as the story plays out over the course of 10 episodes. And, if you haven't guessed it already, the students at East High who decide to put on a musical for their Winter theatre production don't pick Grease or Guys and Dolls; they're putting on the High School Musical [5]. Confused yet? According to The Hollywood Reporter, the series will follow the students as they "realise that as much drama happens off-stage as on stage." What's more, every episode will feature a brand new rendition of a song from the first film, along with an original song.
High School Musical: The Musical is being executive produced by Tim Federle and Oliver Goldstick, the latter of whom worked on Freeform's Pretty Little Liars [6] and therefore knows his way around teenage drama. The cast has yet to be decided, but casting director Julie Ashton is on the hunt for eight series regular roles. Think you have what it takes to star in the new show? Check out the descriptions for the lead three characters, below.
- Ricky: Described as "a snarky sweetheart" and "a B-minus student," Ricky will be the star of (presumably) both shows, and is also dating fellow student Nini. Their unexpected break-up is what gives him the idea to star opposite her in the school play in an effort to win her back.
- Nini: It's finally Nini's time to go from chorus girl to star, and she also has a brand new boyfriend from Summer camp on her arm. She's described as "an iron butterfly," and was voted "Most likely to have a Hamilton lyric as her senior quote."
- E.J.: Completing the love triangle between Nini and Ricky is E.J., who is "the type of ambitious entrepre-nerd who brings homemade props to auditions." He's competitive to a fault, and isn't going to let anything (or anyone) get in his way of co-starring with Nini in the musical.
There's still no official release date for the show, but since Disney's streaming service is set to launch sometime in early 2019, you can bet a premiere date will be around the same time.