HOLLYWOOD -- The Disney Channel movie "High School Musical" premiered in 2006 and became a pop-culture phenomenon. Jump ahead a dozen years and "High School Musical: The Musical: The Series" came on the scene, combining all the elements into one big event.
Now, it's the final bow for the students at East High with a tip of the cap from some original cast members. In a twist signature to the series, plans are disrupted when Disney announces that the long-awaited "High School Musical 4: The Reunion" movie will shoot on location at their high school. And several favorite characters from the original series are back.
"It will be really nostalgic for the OG fans, but there's also new characters coming in that will keep it fresh and new," said Sofia Wylie.
'It's so meta it hurts. But in a good way," laughed Joshua Bassett.
'I feel like we tied the series together in a really well done manner. And I enjoyed saying goodbye to the characters with the people I said hello with," said Dara Renee.
"The fourth season is a real love letter to the originals," said Julia Lester. "There's so much of the original cast that comes back and make cameos and just breaking every law of the metaverse. And it's fabulous."
"When we shot season one I thought, wow that's great but we won't get a season two," said Bassett. "The fact we're able to do four, the first show on Disney+ to get four seasons, is insane."
The final year premieres with all episodes at once starting Wednesday, Aug. 9 on Disney +.
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