Disney Channel Back At “School” With Fourth “HSM”

By RabbitEars

As one of my colleagues has said here regularly about One Tree Hill, “the slippery slope never ends” for certain franchises with proven staying power among the younger set. And nothing has been as big in recent years as Disney’s High School Musical series of films. The soundtrack to the first film was the No. 1 album of 2006, and the DVD of the movie was the No. 1 TV movie on DVD. Even more astounding to me, High School Musical 2 became — and remains — the No. 1 basic cable telecast of all time. The third installment was released to theaters, where it set records for highest-grossing debut of a musical and a live-action G-rated film. So even though the original cast said farewell after its senior year in the last movie, did you really think we saw the last of this franchise?

Disney announced today that High School Musical 4 is in the works, marking the franchise’s return to the small screen as an original movie airing on Disney Channel in 2010. The film pits East against West — as in the East High Wildcats and West High Knights — with a love triangle set against the backdrop of this school rivalry. Screenwriter Peter Barsocchini, who wrote the previous three films, is back on board for this one, and Bill Borden and Barry Rosenbush return as executive producers. Sorry I don’t have sexier news about the creative team yet, kids, but the new cast has not been announced yet. Given the huge popularity of the original stars, though, I’m surprised Disney isn’t just making Zac, Vanessa and company return to make High School Musical: Held Back Another Year.

___________________________________

Credit: Disney Channel