HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Disney is bringing back its hit franchise "High School Musical" for a fourth time, with plans to feature a new cast of characters, the company announced on Tuesday.
Disney said in a statement that "High School Musical 4" will focus on a cross-town school rivalry. It will introduce a new cast of characters after the fictional "graduation" of the franchise's original stars — Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale — in "High School Musical 3: Senior Year."
Production on the new movie will begin later this year and it will debut on the Disney Channel in 2010. That will mark a return to the franchise's original cable home, following the third installment's theatrical release in 2008.
"High School Musical" debuted on the Disney Channel in 2006 with an audience of 7.7 million. The second installment was released a year later, with viewership doubling to 17.2 million.
While last year's "High School Musical 3" marked a franchise first by moving to theaters, it still pulled in more than $40 million on its opening weekend.
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