High School Musical 2

**High School Musical 2** is a 2007 American live-action film directed by Kenny Ortega. It is the second instalment in the High School Musical franchise and is a Disney Channel Original Movie.

It focuses on Troy Bolton, Gabriella Montez, and the Wildcats who find summer jobs at a country club, but tensions rise when Sharpay Evans recruits Troy for a talent show performance.

The film was released on August 17, 2007.

## Plot

The school year ends with everyone at East High looking forward to summer vacation. Troy Bolton is still dating Gabriella Montez, who decides to stay in Albuquerque with her mother. Troy eventually decides to look for a summer job to gain money for college.

Sharpay and Ryan Evans plan to spend the summer at their family's country club, Lava Springs, but Sharpay's summer plans also include pursuing Troy, whom she has arranged for to be hired at the club. However, Troy convinces the club's manager Thomas Fulton into hiring Gabriella, Chad, Taylor, and the entire Wildcats basketball team. Sharpay is enraged upon learning that Gabriella is working as one of the lifeguards but is unable to get her fired, so she orders Fulton to give them difficult tasks so they would want to quit. Fulton attempts to intimidate the group but Troy rebuilds their confidence and convinces them that they can persevere.

Troy continues to worry about funding for college. Sharpay senses his need and arranges for Troy to be hired as a caddy and promotes him to the University of Albuquerque's basketball team, hoping that this will convince him to sing with her at the talent show. Meanwhile, Kelsi writes a song for Troy and Gabriella and they agree to sing with their friends in the show, not knowing that Sharpay is vying for his attention and does not want the Wildcats to participate in the show. In the extended version, Sharpay and Ryan trap Troy as he prepares for a date with Gabriella by rehearsing their song, much to Troy's annoyance.

Ryan realizes he does not mean much to Sharpay anymore, as she is ready to blow her brother aside for the opportunity to perform with Troy. This leads to tensions between the siblings, and Ryan angrily informs Sharpay that he will no longer obey her orders. Taylor and Gabriella invite Ryan to a staff baseball game, where he persuades the Wildcats to take part in the talent show.

Troy and Gabriella's relationship is strained when Troy sees Ryan with Gabriella, sparking jealousy. Chad expresses disappointment at Troy for abandoning his friends after being promoted by Sharpay; this also created animosity between Troy and the Wildcats. Owing to a "promise" from Troy, Sharpay rehearse another song for the talent show with him.

When Sharpay discovers that Ryan and the Wildcats are putting together their own performance in the show, she orders Fulton to ban all staff members from performing. Gabriella confronts Sharpay about her interference and quits from Lava Springs. Troy overhears their conversation and tries to persuade Gabriella to change her mind. Gabriella expresses her loss of trust with Troy, leaves Lava Springs, and returns her necklace, which he had given to her after school ended. At home, Troy explains to his father about the situation, and begins to regret his actions.

Troy returns to work the next day to find that his friends still refuse to talk to him, while Kelsi silently shows Troy the notice from Fulton, causing Troy to question his own motivations and learns that Sharpay has been manipulating him. Troy informs Sharpay that he will not sing with her, and reconciles with the Wildcats. They convince him to perform, which he does only under the condition that they are all allowed to perform as well.

At Sharpay's supposed instruction, Ryan gives Troy a new song to learn moments before the show. As Troy goes onstage, he asks Sharpay why she switched the song, and Sharpay is shocked to find that her brother tricked her. Troy performs the song and reunites with Gabriella as the Wildcats joins them onstage, while Sharpay presents Ryan with the award for the talent show. After the talent show, the Wildcats go to the golf course to enjoy the fireworks and everyone in Lava Springs celebrates the end of summer with a pool party the next day.

## Cast and Characters

* Zac Efron as Troy Bolton
* Vanessa Hudgens as Gabriella Montez
* Ashley Tisdale as Sharpay Evans
* Lucas Grabeel as Ryan Evans
* Corbin Bleu and Chad Danforth
* Monique Coleman as Taylor McKessie
* Mark L. Taylor as Thomas Fulton
* Bart Johnson as Coach Jack Bolton
* Jessica Tuck as Darby Evans
* Robert Curtis Brown as Vance Evans
* Alyson Reed as Ms. Darbus
* Chris Warren Jr. as Zeke Balor
* Ryne Sanborn as Jason Cross
* Olesya Rulin as Kelsi Nielsen
* Kaycee Stroh as Martha Cox
* Tanya Chisholm as Jackie
* Leslie Wing Pomeroy as Lucille Bolton
* Kelli Baker as Lea
* McCall Clark as Emma
* Miley Cyrus as Cameo

## Music

See Also: High School Musical 2 (Soundtrack)

## Release

The premiere of High School Musical 2 aired at 8 PM Eastern Time on August 17, 2007, and included a telecast hosted by Kenny Ortega and the movie's cast. On Saturday, August 18, Disney Channel aired "High School Musical 2: Wildcat Chat", in which the stars of the movie answered questions posed by fans. On August 19, Disney aired a sing-along version of the movie. On May 23, DirecTV announced that they would be hosting an exclusive high-definition airing of the movie a few days after the August 17 premiere on its network-only channel, The 101.

Disney Channel aired a weekly program called Road to High School Musical 2, beginning on June 8, 2007, and leading up to the premiere of High School Musical 2 in August. The show offered viewers a behind-the-scenes look into the production of the movie. The world premiere of the opening number "What Time Is It" was on Radio Disney May 25, 2007, and similarly "You Are The Music In Me" premiered on July 13, 2007.

On December 11, 2007, the movie was released on DVD and Blu-ray titled High School Musical 2: Extended Edition. On September 15, 2008, a 2-disc special edition of the movie was released titled High School Musical 2: Deluxe Dance Edition.

## Reception

The first broadcast of the film on August 17, 2007, broke records, receiving 17.2 million viewers. This number made it, at the time, the most-watched basic-cable telecast in history (the previous record was held by an edition of ESPN's Monday Night Football between the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys on October 23, 2006, which attracted 16 million viewers), the most-watched made-for-cable movie ever (the previous record was held by TNT's January 21, 2001, airing of Crossfire Trail, which brought in 12.5 million viewers), and the largest audience of any program on broadcast or cable in the 2007 summer television season, along with Friday nights for the past five years. Ratings for the second showing of the movie fell to 8.4 million, and the third showing fell to 7.4 million, totalling the premiere weekend to 33.04 million viewers. Following the movie's airing, a preview of the new Disney Channel show Phineas and Ferb aired, which starred Tisdale.

In Latin America, the premiere of High School Musical 2 was seen by 3.3 million viewers in the north region. The film was the most-watched in its schedule, among all cable channels, and produced the highest rating of the channel, surpassing all original films of Disney Channel. Among other records, the premiere in Argentina surpassed the debut of High School Musical the last year, in a 107 percent, while in Brazil the sequel reached 208 percent, and Mexico did so with 61 percent. In the United Kingdom, the movie became Disney Channel UK's most viewed program ever, totalling 1.2 million viewers in its first showing.

### Critical Response

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 83% based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8 out of 10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Surprisingly better than its predecessor, High School Musical 2 returns to enchant tweens with its snappy songs, wicked dance moves, and peppy spirit." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 72 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favourable reviews".

USA Today's Robert Bianco awarded the film three stars out of four, saying High School Musical 2 was "sweet, smart, bursting with talent and energy, and awash in innocence". While critics enjoyed the film, they noted that the timing of the movie's premiere seemed odd, premiering just when school was about to start up again, while the movie's plot involved the gang going on summer vacation. High School Musical 2 won the "So Hot Right Now" award at the Nickelodeon Australian Kids' Choice Awards 2007, in which High School Musical castmate Zac Efron hosted with The Veronicas.