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Was Vanessa Hudgens The Reason Zac Efron Skipped ‘High School Musical’ Reunion?

By Ernie Howell
Published on: 15:17 PST, Jan 23, 2016

Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron will not be reuniting for the 10-year anniversary special of High School Musical and it seems like both Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron are happy about this.

The reunion special for High School Musical aired on January 20, 2016, and according to Hollywood Life, Vanessa Hudgens wasn’t about to appear on the reunion if former boyfriend and co-star Zac Efron was there. Luckily for her, Zac Efron decided that he didn’t want to be a part of the show.

What ultimately changed Zac Efron’s decision about being a part of the reunion is unknown. As recently as 2014, he had nothing but positive things to say about his experience with High School Musical. In an interview with E! Online, Zac Efron reminisced about his memories with his cast mates.

“I continue to see all the guys from High School. Every time we do…there’s just this look between us. It’s so cool because we never forget a single moment of that experience.”

Instead, Vanessa Hudgens reminisced with other High School Musical stars Monique Coleman, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, and Corbin Blue. Throughout the reunion, clips of the 10-year-old show were shown and while Vanessa Hudgens may not be a fan of her real life ex-boyfriend, she still has feelings for the character that Zac Efron played on the show. Vanessa Hudgens shared with the group that one of her favorite scenes was when Troy Bolton, whom Zac Efron played, and her character, Gabriella Montez, burst into song on a roof top.

Footage was also played of when Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron first auditioned for High School Musical, showing that they had chemistry before filming ever started.

High School Musical first aired on the Disney Channel in 2006 and spawned two sequels. It was a huge phenomenon with over 7.7 million viewers watching its premiere. The plot loosely follows that of Romeo and Juliet, with each character singing to advance the plot. The accompanying soundtrack was also a hit, selling over 3 million copies in 2006 alone.

High School Musical certainly launched the careers of both Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron who were relatively unknown before the TV film. In the 10-years since High School Musical first aired, Vanessa Hudgens has released two albums: V (2006) and Identified (2008). She then took a break from singing to focus on her acting career. After a string of movies in which her acting was praised but the movies themselves failed to perform at the box office, Vanessa Hudgens had a role in Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (2012) alongside Dwayne Johnson. That movie netted over $300 million worldwide.

The year 2012 also had Vanessa Hudgens starring in Spring Breakers, a low-key film that attracted a lot of buzz and critical praise. Vanessa Hudgens can next be seen as Rizzo in the live TV production of the musical Grease. It will air on Fox, on January 31, 2016.

As for Zac Efron, he has been steadily working, making two to three movies a year since High School Musical. His latest film, Dirty Grandpa, was released on January 22, and also stars Robert DeNiro. Zac Efron was recently on The Ellen Degeneres Show to promote the film, and according to Seventeen, was asked what is was like to work with the movie legend. It was apparently intimidating, and Zac Efron was quick to acknowledge the disparity in their acting roles.

“Every single time we show up to work there’s sort of that awkward moment where we have to acknowledge that you’re the greatest of all time and I’m, you know, what could you possibly have seen that I’ve been a part of? High School Musical?”

While both Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron got their start on High School Musical, they may have different ideas of what they owe to the movie.

[Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]

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