I absolutely adore the HSM franchise! It’s officially been 20 years since the first High School Musical movie landed on Disney Channel.

So let’s talk about some interesting knowledge linked to these epic movies that still hold a special place in the hearts of millennials everywhere.

Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron played on-screen lovers in the movies and actually dated for five years in real life while filming.

They broke up in 2010, but personally, as a kiddo watching them in the movies, they honestly made me believe true love really existed.

Interestingly enough, the director of the movies (Kenny Ortega) was concerned about Vanessa and Zac dating in real life because they had a fight with each other on set and it made him hypervigilant and concerned about what could possibly go wrong if the relationship fell apart before the franchise was over.

Vanessa told The Hollywood Reporter, “I remember one time we did have a fight and it was while we were at rehearsals. I remember Kenny Ortega coming around the corner with the most concerned look on his face like, oh no, is our movie going to fall apart right now?”

Obviously, they kept their relationship going strong until after the third movie premiered.