High School Musical was a small screen phenomenon when it debuted on Disney Channel back in 2006, and it quickly became the channel's most successful original movie to date. High School Musical was followed up by High School Musical 2 in 2007 on Disney Channel and then High School Musical 3: Senior Year on the big screen in 2008. The franchise is responsible for elevating young Zac Efron into stardom, and he wouldn't be a household name nowadays if not for singing and dancing as Troy Bolton on the Disney Channel. Efron recently celebrated his birthday, and his on-screen HSM dad shared a very special (and pretty hilarious) message:
Bart Johnson shared the post on his Instagram account, and it's pretty fun to read. I'm guessing he's not the only one surprised by the fact that Zac Efron is already 30-years-old. It seems like only yesterday he was trying to balance his loves of basketball and musical theater to peppy montages! As Coach Bolton, Bart Johnson disapproved of all the singing and dancing when there was basketball to be played, and Johnson amusingly made sure to mention Miss Darbus in his post.
As High School Musical fans will remember, Coach Bolton and Miss Darbus were the nemeses of the East High faculty. Bolton wanted nothing more than for his basketball stars to get their heads in the game, but Miss Darbus wasn't happy to give them special treatment. Both probably would have been fine with sticking to the status quo if not for Troy and Gabriella breaking free. Coach Bolton and Miss Darbus did come to terms with each other, but some wounds clearly never heal.
I definitely got a laugh out of the "Bolton Curse" that Bart Johnson mentioned in his post. Apparently Zac Efron and Bart Johnson are both dealing with the complications of being big showbiz heartthrobs. Good for Johnson for powering through and suffering in silence until this point! The only way this photo and message could be any better is if Efron responded with a selfie showing off a t-shirt with Bart Johnson's face.
We probably shouldn't hold our breath on that one, although stranger things have happened. Who could have guessed that the kid from that made-for-TV musical would reach the showbiz heights Efron has over the years? Other members of the cast aren't doing too badly either. Vanessa Hudgens even revisited her TV musical days last year with a memorable performance as Rizzo in Grease Live!
If you now feel the need for a trip down musical memory lane, High School Musical and High School Musical 2 are both available streaming on Netflix. Our 2017 Netflix guide can help you figure out what else you can stream, and our fall TV guide can point you in some fun directions on cable and broadcast.
