What Is Zac Efron's Problem With 'High School Musical'?
Video conference calls have become a far more integral part of our lives during this past month than even writers on The Jetsons could've imagined. One unexpected perk is that we've been getting a bunch of famous casts doing webcam reunions.
So imagine the joy of every 22-30 year old when they saw a High School Musical reunion happen this week during the Disney Family Singalong on ABC. Tons of Disney-adjacent stars sang a bunch of Disney hits from their self-isolated dwellings, wherever those happened to be, and the biggest was the ending number from High School Musical, "We're All In This Together" ... Then, this happened.
Due to "a bad wifi connection" or whatever at where he's self-isolating -- which is bullshit and we all know it -- Zac Efron only got online to introduce his old castmates and then didn't fucking sing. Are you kidding?
Now, in Efron's defense, his voice was mixed with Broadway mainstay Drew Seeley's for HSM. He's alluded to how he and Seeley have different vocal ranges, so it's possible that he's just avoiding startling the audience with a slightly higher voice. But Efron is a damn good singer. He fought to get his actual voice in High School Musical 2, so while his "Getcha Head In The Game" solo from the original was mixed, this track from the sequel was pure-Efron and is as solid as his rock hard abs (Seriously, maybe take these months of not filming movies to enjoy a single carb, Zac.).
He's also gone on to sing in Hairspray and The Greatest Showman. Those musicals put Efron next to actors, John Travolta and Hugh Jackman, who've built up action careers while also singing like angels. Efron's had more than one film critic call him a younger Jackman. So clearly Efron has A) had good examples to follow and B) isn't embarrassed by the singing and dancing. Then, why does he keep playing dumb with High School Musical? This isn't the first incident.
Ask any ex-theater kid, the choreography and lyrics are burned into your brain forever. At this point, he's either faking it to mess with us, or something happened on that movie he just doesn't want to revisit. Either way, we need Michael Crawford to escape from Chad's Mom's fridge, don a mask, and yell "SING FOR ME" at Troy until he remembers the words.
Step up, Zac. Even Vanessa Hudgens got in on the singing action, and she's like two weeks away from forming a death-cult.
Top Image: Walt Disney Pictures
