Much to viewers’ excitement, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series is finally returning to Disney+ for its long-awaited third season. With fan-favorites such as Olivia Rodrigo, Sofia Wylie, Joshua Bassett, and Matt Cornett reprising their roles, there should be plenty of music, romance, and drama to look forward to.
However, new characters and relationships have the potential to shake things up like never before. The Wildcats have left East High behind for the summer to embark on a new adventure. They attend Camp Shallow Lake and prepare to put on the musical, Frozen, with help from celebrity guest Corbin Bleu and camp director Dewey Wood (Jason Earles, Hannah Montana).
Screen Rant chats with creator Tim Federle about Olivia Rodrigo’s role in Season 3 and what’s in store for Gina’s relationships with E.J. and Ricky.
Screen Rant: I wanted to start off by asking about Nini’s role this season. Olivia has always been a really big part of the show, but the season two finale left things a little bit open-ended. So, what is her role going to look like?
Tim Federle: I think she’s got a really meaningful role in Season 3 that speaks to Nini’s real life journey, but also sort of leaves room for the incredibly talented cast around her to sort of step into these new and, in some cases, bigger roles that I think they really deserve as well. So you’re gonna get music from Nini, you’re gonna get drama, you’re gonna get some surprises from her life. But, ultimately, I hope the audience really embraces this season as the fun summer season with new faces and old favorites as well.
Screen Rant: Well, it’s awesome that we are going to be able to see both. I know a lot of people love Olivia Rodrigo’s character and it’s super cool that she will still be included. Now, another thing that I know fans are super excited about this season is the relationships—the summer romances.
Tim Federle: Oh, yes.
Screen Rant: We have, of course, Gina and E.J. It looks like they are becoming an official couple. And we can’t forget about Ricky and Gina—one of my personal favorite storylines—so, I do have to ask, what’s in store for these relationships?
Tim Federle: Ups and downs and sideways and duets and kisses. And not necessarily for both, but maybe for both. It’s—you know, we’re now like, kind of a long-running TV show and so you’re always mixing and matching and finding different chemistry opportunities. But also, I think this sort of summer under the stars fun…everyone goes into it thinking it’s just two weeks, what could possibly go wrong?
And when you’re a young person, two weeks can mean everything. And it’s just a summer break between school years, but everything has the possibility of changing. Not just for these characters, but for all of these characters. Kourtney and Ashlyn and Carlos—they all have the possibility of changing this summer. And I hope the audience is willing to go on that journey because it’s really fun.
Screen Rant: It definitely sounds exciting. Especially the fact that this is taking place during the summer, which is really switching up the setting of this season. Is this kind of a little bit of a homage to High School Musical 2? We do see them singing “What Time Is It?” in the trailer. How much of that movie is going to be incorporated into this season?
Tim Federle: Yeah, that’s not the only wink, definitely, to that movie. It’s definitely an homage to the second movie. And I think in homage to all of those sort of Wet Hot American Summer summer camp classics that are just so fun and a little bit naughty and a little bit sort of like there’s no parents around, which is such a fun time to be young and alive.
And so I think the whole season sort of has that vibe. And I think, you know, doing a new musical like Frozen and having these new cast members like Jet and Maddox—these new characters who really arrive and sort of change everything with our core Wildcats is hopefully giving the audience an opportunity to also just expand their interest in our rapidly expanding world.
Screen Rant: I know you can’t say much, but is there any storyline in particular that you’re looking forward to fans seeing play out this season?
Tim Federle: I mean, I love the whole season. There are songs that I’m so excited about. Dara Reneé sings a song as Kourtney that I think is so stunning. Adrian Lyles is like a real Star is Born vocalist who’s got a song midway through the season that I think is gonna break the internet.
Julia Lester, as Ashlyn, has an arc this season that I think is so relatable and so right now. And so, you know, and ultimately, Corbin Bleu, who is the OG, comes back and shakes everything up. And he’s such a diva this season. Though he’s, like, so nice in real life. And so—I can’t pick my favorites. I love them all.
HSMTMTS Season 3 Synopsis
The Wildcats head to Camp Shallow Lake, a California sleepaway camp, where they and their fellow campers are primed for an unforgettable summer ripe with romance, curfew-less nights and a taste of the great outdoors. With a high-stakes production of “Frozen” on the horizon AND a drama-filled “docu-series” of the production, the Wildcats will attempt to show who is “best in snow” without leaving anyone out in the cold.
Check out our other interviews for High School Musical: The Musical: The Series:
- Joshua Bassett & Matt Cornett
- Frankie Rodriguez & Julia Lester
- Sofia Wylie & Dara Reneé
- Saylor Bell & Adrian Lyles
- Corbin Bleu & Jason Earles
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series Season 3 premieres July 27 on Disney+.
