"High School Musical" Turns 20 This Year And I Am Not Emotionally Prepared, So Here Are 21 Behind-The-Scenes Facts That'll Make You View The Movies Completely Differently

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OK, so. January 20, 2006. A little Disney Channel movie called High School Musical premiered, and, in the best possible way, approximately ruined everyone's life. Twenty years have now passed. TWENTY. YEARS. The kids watching it at sleepovers have mortgages. The cast has been through multiple careers, breakups, and comebacks.

And yet, somehow, "Breaking Free" still hits the same way. In honor of this milestone anniversary that none of us were ready for, here are 21 behind-the-scenes facts about the HSM franchise that will either delight you, devastate you, or make you feel the inexorable passage of time even more acutely than you already did. You're welcome.

1. The premiere literally broke records. When High School Musical debuted on January 20, 2006, it set a single-night audience record for the Disney Channel. Just like that, a $4.2 million made-for-TV movie nobody was sure about became the most-watched thing the network had ever aired. No big deal.

2. Zac Efron barely sang a single note in the first film. Most of Troy Bolton's vocal performances were provided by Drew Seeley, another actor who had also tested for the role of Troy. Seeley sang "Get'cha Head in the Game" and the reprise of "What I've Been Looking For," while Efron only sang the first few lines of "Start of Something New," the opening line of "Breaking Free," and the balcony scene. Everything else? Not him. He did his own singing from HSM2 onward once the songs were written for his actual range, but still. Twenty years later, this fact can still make people spiral.

3. Lucas Grabeel and Ashley Tisdale genuinely could not stand each other at first. Here's the chaos origin story of Sharpay and Ryan Evans: Lucas initially thought the script was — and these are his words — "the worst" he'd ever read. He reluctantly auditioned for the role of Troy before being redirected to Ryan. Then, during his callback, Ashley walked up and started giving him unsolicited notes on his performance. He later recalled "seething" over how much he disliked her. Truly incredible that these two went on to have some of the most convincing sibling chemistry in DCOM history. Art.

4. The budget for the first film was $4.2 million. Disney had no idea if it would work. To put that into perspective: $4.2 million is roughly what some movies spend on catering. Disney Channel greenlit this film with extremely low expectations, a super short shooting schedule, and a cast of largely unknown teenagers. The sequel got $7 million. HSM3 got $11 million.

5. The franchise made Disney roughly $1 billion in its first two years. Yes. One. Billion. Dollars. In operating profit. In 2006 and 2007 alone. From a $4.2 million gamble. The first film's soundtrack became the first-ever TV movie soundtrack to hit number one on the charts, selling 3.7 million copies and finishing as the top-selling album of 2006, over any other album released that year. I'm still processing this.

6. The real East High School is still a pilgrimage destination. East High School in Salt Lake City — where the film was shot — still draws fans from around the world two decades later. Around the 20th anniversary, the school saw a surge in visitors taking tours of the hallways, gym, and other iconic locations from the film. Students even mounted a stage production of HSM to celebrate.

7. The whole film was shot in just 24 days. And they even had to pause filming whenever actual East High students were in class. Between the real school schedule, the extremely tight shooting timeline, and the limited rehearsal time, it's kind of a miracle the movie exists at all — let alone that it became a cultural institution. Also: the auditorium scenes? Not even filmed at East High. The school's real auditorium was being renovated, so they used a different school entirely.

8. "High School Musical" was just the working title, specifically, "Untitled High School Musical Project." During production, the plan was always to come up with something better before release. They just...never did. The working title became the final title. Which, in hindsight, is perfect, because there is truly no other name it could have had.

9. All those basketball shots in "Get'cha Head in the Game" are completely real. No CGI. No trickery. Efron confirmed it himself — they made those shots, pulled the whole scene off in just a few takes with very limited rehearsal time. Efron trained for three hours a day before filming began just to make Troy's basketball skills convincing. That dedication? That's the real "Get'cha Head in the Game" energy.

10. HSM2 became the most-watched basic cable broadcast of all time. The original film drew 7.7 million viewers. The sequel drew 18.6 million — breaking the network's previous viewership record by more than 11 million — and became the most-watched basic cable broadcast ever at that point. A Disney Channel movie. About high schoolers. Deciding whether to do the school musical. Truly historic.

11. Zac and Vanessa's real-life romance nearly derailed HSM3. By the time the third film went into production, Efron and Hudgens had been together for about three years, and, according to screenwriter Peter Barsocchini, things were getting tense. He recalled Vanessa once asking if she could use his office to speak with Zac privately. "Then I just hear yelling," he said. He described it as a "real blessing" that they held it together long enough to get through all three movies. They broke up in 2010.

12. HSM3 was originally going to be a Halloween movie. Haunted High School Musical was a real concept that was seriously considered before being dropped. Efron addressed it at the time, telling MTV: "Yeah, I don't think the haunted thing lasted very long." The actual third film, High School Musical: Senior Year, became the only installment to get a theatrical release, grossing over $250 million globally. A haunted version would have been something, though.

13. Selena Gomez turned down a role in HSM3. She was approached to play Tiara Gold, Sharpay's new rival, and simply declined. Her reason? "Because I didn't want to do it." The role ultimately went to British actress Jemma McKenzie-Brown, a casting choice the creators made specifically to capitalize on the franchise's massive popularity in the UK.

14. Taylor Lautner was also in the mix for HSM3. Production on the third film began in early 2008, right around the same time a then-unknown Taylor Lautner attended the open casting call that would land him the role of Jacob Black in Twilight. He presumably lost the HSM part (which went to Matt Prokop) right before his entire life changed forever. Just another casual "what if" to sit with.

15. The drama teacher in the films became a real-life mentor. Alyson Reed, who played the wildly theatrical Ms. Darbus, didn't just play a mentor onscreen. Off set, she became Monique Coleman's real acting teacher. Coleman later said Reed was "the person I felt the most comfortable with" during filming and credited her with helping her regain her confidence as a performer.

16. Efron had absolutely no idea the films would have such a legacy 20 years later. Reflecting on the anniversary, he said: "We were having fun, learning as we went, and honestly just enjoying every moment together. I never could've imagined it would still mean so much to people 20 years later, or that a whole new generation would connect with it." And yet here we are. Crying to the soundtrack on a Tuesday.

17. The "snow" in the New Year's Eve scene in High School Musical was potato flakes. The romantic outdoor scene where Troy and Gabriella meet for the first time, with snow gently falling around them? Potato flakes. All of it. The most iconic meet-cute in Disney Channel history was made possible by a dehydrated potato product. Somehow, this makes it more beautiful.

18. The film launched more future stars than you probably realized. Beyond the main cast, early guest appearances in the HSM franchise featured a remarkable roster of future A-listers: Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez (before she turned down HSM3), Olivia Rodrigo, Joshua Bassett, and others who would go on to define the next decade of pop culture. It was basically a farm system for Disney stardom.

19. Joshua Bassett's HSMTMTS casting was a full-circle moment in the most unexpected way. The star of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series can trace his entire performing career back to playing a very small role in a community theater production of High School Musical when he was 8 years old. He played J.V. Jock No. 2. He went on to do over 30 stage productions before landing the Disney+ series. From J.V. Jock No. 2 to lead. That's the HSM spirit right there.

20. Ashley Tisdale never expected any of this to last. The woman who gave us Sharpay Evans — the greatest villain in Disney Channel history — told PEOPLE magazine around the anniversary: "Whenever you put something out into the world, of course you hope people enjoy it. But I couldn't have imagined the longevity HSM has had." None of us could, Ash. None of us could.

21. Lastly, there was a planned duet between Coach Bolton and Ms. Darbus that was never filmed. The rival adults — Troy's dad and the drama teacher at eternal war with each other — were supposed to get their own musical moment together. It was planned. It was written. And then it was quietly dropped and never filmed. This is, frankly, an injustice that deserves its own anniversary coverage. We want it. We needed it. We deserved it. Someone, please make this right.

Twenty years. We were not prepared. We are still not prepared. Put on the soundtrack and feel your feelings — you've earned it.

Did we miss any HSM facts? Share them in the comments or the anonymous form below.

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"High School Musical" Turns 20 This Year And I Am Not Emotionally Prepared, So Here Are 21 Behind-The-Scenes Facts That'll Make You View The Movies Completely Differently

1. The premiere literally broke records. When High School Musical debuted on January 20, 2006, it set a single-night audience record for the Disney Channel. Just like that, a $4.2 million made-for-TV movie nobody was sure about became the most-watched thing the network had ever aired. No big deal.

Twenty years. We were not prepared. We are still not prepared. Put on the soundtrack and feel your feelings — you've earned it.

Did we miss any HSM facts? Share them in the comments or the anonymous form below.

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