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It’s the moment High School Musical fans have been waiting nearly two decades. Director Kenny Ortega has finally cleared up the long-standing rumor about Zac Efron’s vocals in the original 2006 film.
While it’s been widely known that singer and actor Drew Seeley lent his voice to many of Troy Bolton’s songs in the first movie, questions have always lingered about just how much Efron actually sang. Now, Ortega is setting the record straight: Zac did sing in the film, just not entirely on his own.
“He sang in the first show,” Ortega told Entertainment Tonight in an interview aired July 29. “The songs were written before Zac got the role. So, although he could sing and he had a lovely voice, it wasn’t the voice that the songs were written for. So, he sang everything and then we dubbed parts of it so that it had greater vocal strength.”
@entertainmenttonight 'High School Musical' director Kenny Ortega is shutting down the long-standing rumor that Zac Efron did NOT sing in the beloved Disney Channel film. 😮 #highschoolmusical #zacefron #vanessahudgens #Disney #KennyOrtega ♬ original sound - Entertainment Tonight
According to Ortega, Seeley’s voice was used to enhance the performance and match the tone producers had originally envisioned. But Efron was never just lip-syncing, his vocals were very much part of the mix. And by the time High School Musical 2 and 3 came around, the songs were tailored specifically for Efron’s range.
“The second and third movie, everything was written for him,” Ortega added. “And that’s important that people know that Zac Efron did sing.”
Since then, Efron has proven his vocal talents in major musical films like Hairspray and The Greatest Showman, where his performances received high praise from fans and critics alike.
As for Seeley, he shared his own perspective on the iconic role during a recent interview with E! News, revealing that while he did fill in vocally, he and Efron had little interaction.
“I’ve met Zac a few times at parties and whatnot,” Seeley said. “But I spent, by far, the least amount of time with Zac compared to any other cast member in High School Musical because I was really only brought in when he was unavailable or not around.”
Seeley even joined the original cast – Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, and Corbin Bleu – for the 2006 tour, but holds no resentment about losing the lead role.
“I was a good five, six years older than Vanessa,” he said. “So in my mind, that had something to do with it. I probably didn't look right with the lineup fo everybody else. And also, Zac is a very talented actor and was great in the role. So I think they did it right.”
Naturally, fans who’ve spent years dissecting vocal differences in “Start of Something New” and “Breaking Free” are thrilled to finally have answers. For the self-proclaimed "Troy Bolton truthers" who insisted they could hear Zac’s softer tone in certain moments, this is sweet, sweet validation.
On social media, longtime fans are celebrating the revelation. “I KNEW IT! You can totally hear Zac in parts of the first movie,” one user wrote. “Justice for Troy Bolton’s real vocals!” another added.
Photo Credit: @kennyortegablog on Instagram.
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