The film followed a group of high schoolers as they vied for leading roles in the high school musical.

It turns out, Efron has been working hard to distance himself from “High School Musical.”

“I was, like, 17.

Taylor in High School Musical

“And they were like, ‘Really?'”

He even dropped out of the remake of “Footloose.”

Efron probably isn’t going to stop making grown-up movies any time soon.

Zac Efron, then and now

Wow, we’re impressed.

“Glamourdubbed her “the new queen of the Christmas romantic comedy,” and we have to agree.

Hudgens explained to the publication that she had also turned to producing.

Vanessa Hudgens, then and now

Even to the kids, I’m still known for that.”

Sounds like Hudgens will keep cranking out the Christmas rom-coms, but we’ll always remember her as Gabriella.

In other words, Tisdale has remained super busy.

Ashely Tisdale, then and now

As Tisdale explained toForbes, becoming a mom changed her perspective.

“You go through a lot when you come home from the hospital.

It’s just an adjustment for everyone in the family,” she said.

Corbin Bleu, then and now

But motherhood didn’t slow her down.

It’s clear thatAshley Tisdale has had a stunning transformationover the years.

In 2017, heperformedin the Broadway version of the classic musical “Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn.”

Lucas Grabeel, then and now

As Bleu explained in a 2020 interview withTheater Pizzazz, he wasn’t always sure he wanted to act.

So that became a major life choice,” he said.

“I love inspiring kids by being someone who looks like them.”

Monique Coleman, then and now

He also played himself in a cameo in “High School Musical: The Musical The Series.”

In addition to these roles, Grabeel has made a name for himself for his extensive voice work.

She also produced and hosted her own documentary series called “Gimme MO.”

Olesya Rulin, then and now

In addition to her acting work, Rulin has also become an author and an environmentalist.

According to herInstagrampage, she even co-owns a Russian nature reserve.

Rulin also has her ownblog, where she discusses her life, career, and beauty routine.

KayCee Stroh, then and now

According to Stroh’sInstagrampage, she’s still working as a dancer today.

And with all her moves, she’s earned a dedicatedTikTokfollowing of over 1.9 million followers.

Stroh is also a mother to two girls.

Bart Johnson, then and now

Plus she played Janice in the Brad Pitt film “Ad Astra” (viaIMDb).

This actress has been busy!

As Reed explained in an interview withCBS Los Angeles, she had never expected to go into film acting.

Alyson Reed, then and now

“I was one of those people that only wanted to do theater,” she said.

“It made musical theater and the arts and arts education important again,” she explained.

Throughout the films, he proved himself to be a great cook and harbored a crush for Sharpay.

Chris Warren, then and now

As Warren toldPopCulture, the “High School Musical” movies were a hugely important experience.

Unlike Troy, he fit in perfectly with the school jocks.

Much like his character in the movie, Sanborn proved to be more of a jock than an actor.

Ryne Sanborn, then and now

Eventually, Sanborn became a sales manager, but he hasn’t given up his interest in filmmaking.

While Miyashima may not be a household name, he’s certainly had a busy acting career.

According toIMDb, Miyashima is still acting to this day.

Joey Miyashima, then and now

These days, Miyashima frequentlyretweetsarticles and quotes about American politics, Japanese-American relations, and basketball.

He is also a soccer and basketball coach at a high school in Sandy, Utah.

In 2020, he was awarded the Citizen Appreciation Award forCoach of the Year.

Apparently, his students sometimes recognize him for his acting work.