Are ‘High School Musical’s Troy & Gabriella Still Together? Kenny Ortega Says…
What To Know
- In a new interview, Kenny Ortega and actress Monique Coleman reflected on the twentieth anniversary of High School Musical.
- Ortega gave his take on whether Troy and Gabriella are still together.
- The duo tease a potential fourth installment of the beloved Disney Channel franchise.
While High School Musical marked the “Start of Something New” for one of the most iconic Disney Channel couples, fans have long wondered if high school sweethearts Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) and Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens) were made to last after graduation.
Now that the 20th anniversary of the beloved franchise is here, director and choreographer Kenny Ortega and star Monique Coleman, who played Gabriella’s best friend Taylor McKessie in the movies, have finally given us our answer. To celebrate two decades of the East High Wildcats, Ortega and Coleman spilled on where the Wildcats would be 20 years later.
When it comes to Troy and Gabriella’s lasting love, Ortega told our sister site TV Insider, “In terms of where these characters go next? Where do any of us go next?” While he couldn’t give viewers a firm answer on whether the “freaky genius girl” and the “freaky callback boy” would be today, he urged fans to “wish them luck.”
The duo also gave their verdict on whether we’ll ever see a High School Musical 4. According to Ortega, fans are eager to see another sequel come out of the Disney Channel franchise. He said, “People always say, What about a four? What about a four?” While he made it clear that he would say “sure” to the project, he explained, “In the event that that’s never going to happen, or it won’t happen, all I can say is that High School Musical 1, 2, and 3 are timeless.”
In the director’s opinion, the beloved franchise is “forever.” As we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the franchise, it’s clear that new fans discover East High every day. “Young people and families are finding these movies, and they’re watching them, and they’re still impacting young viewers,” he noted.
High School Musical‘s Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens / Everett Collection
Of course, the door isn’t completely closed for the franchise’s long-awaited fourth sequel. Ortega teased, “We don’t know if there’s going to be a [High School Musical 4]. I think many of us, or some of us, anyway, would jump right in. But I don’t know.” Now that the Jonas Brothers are returning to Camp Rock for another sequel, anything is possible.
High School Musical‘s Monique Coleman Monique Coleman and Corbin Bleu / Everett Collection
When it comes to Coleman’s character, Taylor’s post-high-school love life is also uncertain. During the original trilogy, Taylor dated Chad Danforth, played by Corbin Bleu. Today, Coleman is convinced that Taylor would be a community leader. She joked, “I feel like, as Taylor McKessie, I feel like Taylor might be a community leader. I think she would be doing things very similar to what I am doing.”
Today, Coleman is the founder and CEO of GimmeMo’, a multi-platform initiative designed to create positive, youth-focused content and spark meaningful dialogue around the issues young people face. Since her time in High School Musical, Coleman was also appointed the first-ever United Nations Youth Champion for the International Year of Youth.
“We knew [Taylor] was going to go on to big things; she was going to be a very important woman. She was going to raise the bar on womanhood, and what a woman can mean in this world,” he said, gesturing to Coleman beside him. “And you have, Monique Coleman.”
High School Musical, Streaming Now, Disney+
