Young Love
Wildcats Forever! 8 ‘High School Musical’ Universe Couples, Ranked
Disney’s best franchise’s best movie’s anniversary is finally here, so we’re wishing a very happy High School Musical 2 Day to all who celebrate. August 17, 2007, was truly a momentous day in history.
From screen to stage to screen again, the High School Musical universe is truly the gift that keeps on giving. With numerous couples featured in the film and the spinoff series High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, there has always been a heated debate about which HSM couple takes the cake as the best in the franchise.
Looking back at all the love stories featured in the three films and the four seasons of the TV show, it’s clear why. Below, you can find Swooon’s official ranking of the best couples at East High and beyond!
Do you agree with this ranking? Comment below with your favorite — and least favorite — couples from High School Musical and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.
8. Sharpay & Zeke
I think we can all agree that Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) was deeply misunderstood. Sure, no one should be that obsessed with playing the lead in the “Winter Musicale,” but if I were a theater kid who worked my butt off for years to play the lead (trust me, I was) and some rando who barely auditioned got it instead, I would be pissed.
The closest Sharpay gets to a love interest is Zeke (Chris Warren), a basketballer who bakes her crème brûlée and recognizes her talent. While we know from Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure that Zeke was just a high school fling (if you could even call him that) and their relationship was half-baked, to say the least, I would be remiss not to mention how he almost bopped his way to the top of her list.
7. Ashlyn & Maddox
If someone told me they wanted to “do mouth-to-mouth — as a friend,” I would have some questions, too. When it comes to “Sexy Eleanor Roosevelt,” aka Ashlyn (Julia Lester), fans were thrilled to see a better love interest on the horizon. I will never forgive Big Red (Larry Saperstein) for cheating on our girl.
Even so, Ashlyn’s relationship with Maddox (Saylor Bell) didn’t have enough time to fully grow before the series ended, putting them in the lower half of this ranking. That being said, “Call It What You Want” sounds like a great spinoff title to me…
6. Taylor & Chad
Much like Ashlyn and Maddox, Chad (Corbin Bleu) and Taylor (Monique Coleman) did not get enough screen time for fans to really latch on to their love story, even though they were a couple in all three High School Musical movies.
Even so, Chad practically invented the promposal, quieting their entire cafeteria to ask Taylor to go to prom with him. For anyone who had the board game High School Musical Mystery Date, like me, you’ll remember that that gesture put Chad at the top of everyone’s list as HSM‘s most eligible bachelor.
5. Gina & Ricky
I’ll be the first to say that Gina (Sofia Wylie) deserved better than playing second fiddle to Nini (Olivia Rodrigo) by becoming the main love interest for Ricky (Joshua Bassett) after Nini moved away. For every seriously adorable moment this couple had, I couldn’t help but think that they would not have existed if Nini had stayed at East High.
That being said, I have to admit that Gina’s Season 4 love confession, “If you’re reading this, I love you too, Ricky,” hidden in the hat she knit for him during Season 1, was almost enough to bump them up regardless of his prior connection. Almost. While that confession had “always been there,” just like her, it wasn’t enough to make me believe their relationship was more than a beautiful Band-Aid for Ricky’s wounded story arc.
4. Chad & Ryan
If you’ve read Swooon‘s list of Disney couples that should have been endgame, you already know how I feel about Chad and Ryan’s almost love story, which heavily implied that the most queer-coded DCOM character had done the dirty with his duet partner. Don’t believe me? Spot the difference in the photos above.
If Chad (Bleu) and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) had been an official couple, for even a moment, you already know that they would be sitting pretty at the top of this ranking. But, alas, the allegedly platonic “I Don’t Dance Duo” comes in at fourth instead.
3. Carlos & Seb
From their first kiss at the end of Season 1 to their Season 4 romantic reunion, Seb (Joe Serafini) and Carlos (Frankie Rodriguez) went through many highs and lows, including Seb’s kiss with Big Red. (Again, why did that need to happen?) However, when it comes to the High School Musical universe, Carlos and Seb represent the most accurate high school couple by far because, let’s face it, high schoolers are incredibly messy.
Plus, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series‘ infamous “drivers license” romance wasn’t the only relationship to come from the show. Rodriguez and Serafini have been a real-life couple since 2019!
2. Ricky & Nini
Maybe it’s the hopeless romantic in me, but I still tear up when I watch Ricky (Bassett) rattle off an entire monologue about how he’s loved Nini (Rodrigo) ever since she wrote “a silly little song about clouds.” Not to mention when the show revealed that Nini goes by Nini because Ricky couldn’t say Nina when they were kids. Their relationship was and always will be kismet from the start.
Ultimately, what made Ricky and Nini’s connection so special was the real emotion behind the acting. At this point, everyone knows at least a little of what went down between Rodrigo and Bassett, an emotional relationship that catapulted Rodrigo to songwriter stardom, which led her to leave the show. Even so, I will forever argue that while Ricky and Nini were just another Troy and Gabriella, Bassett and Rodrigo were born to play Ricky and Nini.
1. Troy & Gabriella
While I would have loved to put a shocking couple in our first-place spot, you can’t fix what isn’t broken. Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens taught an entire generation what a healthy relationship looks like through their roles of freaky callback boy, Troy, and freaky math girl, Gabriella. From their adorable meet-cute singing “Start of Something New” to their senior year sneaking, leading to “Can I Have This Dance,” there’s no beating the OGs.
Plus, the High School Musical universe just goes to show that history repeats itself, or at least, you have to have a showmance to play Troy and Gabriella, because Efron and Hudgens officially dated for five years. Both on and off the screen, this couple’s chemistry was unlike anything else on Disney Channel. For that reason, they will always be #1.
