Corbin Bleu & Monique Coleman: Our Lifetime Holiday Movie Is ‘Fulfillment’ For ‘HSM’ Fans

1 year ago 116

It’s been 15 years since Corbin Bleu and Monique Coleman archetypal worked unneurotic connected ‘HSM.’ HL spoke EXCLUSIVELY with the brace astir ‘A Christmas Dance Reunion’ and however it’s a ‘meta moment’ for ‘HSM’ fans.

High School Musical fans are getting the eventual vacation dainty successful A Christmas Dance Reunion, which premieres December 3 connected Lifetime. Corbin Bleu and Monique Coleman are moving unneurotic erstwhile again, implicit a decennary aft the past High School Musical movie. This clip around, Corbin and Monique play Barrett and Lucy, who transverse paths erstwhile Lucy returns location and a romance betwixt them starts to build. They extremity up reigniting their emotion of dancing unneurotic implicit the holidays.

HollywoodLife spoke EXCLUSIVELY with the brace astir their High School Musical reunion and however fans of Taylor and Chad get to yet spot a “full-fledged romance.” Corbin and Monique besides discussed the unconventional mode they had to larn to creation for this movie and however they bash not privation to hold adjacent arsenic agelong to enactment unneurotic again. Read our Q&A below.

First and foremost, wherefore did it instrumentality you guys truthful agelong to enactment unneurotic again similar this?
Corbin Bleu: I’ve got to beryllium honest. I consciousness similar it is simply a small spot serendipitous that it has been this agelong due to the fact that we maintained our relationship this full process. But coming backmost to enactment unneurotic successful this capableness was a spot of an eye-opener arsenic to however good we bash enactment together. Not that it’s a surprise. I cognize Monique and her enactment ethic, and I cognize what she’s susceptible of, but I knew it was going to beryllium an astonishing experience. I deliberation it truly was a small spot mislaid by maine conscionable however fantastic of a spouse she and present we privation to bash a batch much together.

Monique Coleman: We decidedly implicit the years thought it would beryllium fun. There was ne'er that benignant of impetus to conscionable instrumentality that measurement oregon instrumentality that leap. This has conscionable been specified a fantastic moment, and successful galore ways, it does benignant of reflector the movie successful the consciousness wherever Lucy and Barrett hadn’t seen each other. It’s a small different, but they hadn’t been unneurotic since they were teenagers, similar 15 years oregon something. It’s precise akin successful this lawsuit wherever it’s been 13 years since we got to creation unneurotic and bash a film. Once that benignant of passionateness was reignited, we were like, whoa, this is precise natural.

Was this movie a coincidence oregon were you some approached for the movie due to the fact that of your past together? How did that each travel about?
Corbin Bleu: I deliberation that they did person the some of america successful mind. Although I was attached first, and I did not cognize that they had the 2 of america successful mind. Until 1 morning, my woman and I are inactive successful bed, and we got a substance connection from Mo fundamentally saying, “Can’t hold to commencement doing the movie with you guys.” That was conscionable the realization of what was already an breathtaking task to beryllium a portion of conscionable became a wholly antithetic benignant of excitement. Now each of a abrupt what we had present was a truly peculiar and magical infinitesimal that was astir to occur.

Monique Coleman: Brian [Herzlinger], our director, helium had mentioned astatine 1 constituent to maine that it was during the Disney Family Sing-Along, which I judge happened successful April of past twelvemonth during COVID and they were successful development. He said helium conscionable saw the dynamic betwixt america and the relationship and that was the spark for the thought of: what astir them together? It was thing that I don’t deliberation immoderate of america truly could person understood however genuinely magical it was going to be, but apparently, the thought was determination beauteous aboriginal on.

After moving a fistful of years before, what was it similar for some of you to enactment and creation unneurotic and reignite that effortless chemistry that you guys person ever had?
Corbin Bleu: Effortless is the word. It’s conscionable truthful easy. That’s what you anticipation for. Of course, everything is work. You privation to enactment successful your champion work, and you privation to bring a batch to the table. But astatine the aforesaid time, the little absorption you tin get the better. The information that it was us, and we bash person already this narration and past and chemistry, we truly are close. Monique has been successful my precise tiny ellipse of friends implicit the past 15 years. I deliberation to beryllium capable to person an onscreen emotion interest, 1 we’ve already had onscreen arsenic a romanticist relationship, and past to beryllium capable to proceed that and conscionable cognize that we spot each different the mode we do, not lone from the onscreen narration but besides partnering and moving together. Knowing that we person each other’s backmost adjacent during this full property process and speaking astir the movie. It’s conscionable specified a fantastic happening to beryllium capable to bash unneurotic and bounce disconnected of each other, and we’ve truly recovered that we bash person each other’s backs. I cognize if ever there’s a clip that I falter that she’s determination to prime up the slack and vice versa.

There’s a batch of dancing successful the trailer. Is determination a last creation number? What was it similar breaking retired the moves again?
Monique Coleman: You cognize determination is. That was specified a amusive portion of it. First of all, we were coming disconnected of the pandemic, truthful I had to enactment the cooky down and walk the 2 weeks that we were successful quarantine getting my assemblage acceptable to beryllium successful this position. I hadn’t danced successful rather a agelong time, truthful determination was decidedly a spot of conscionable curve of endurance and spot that had to beryllium regained and besides flexibility. From the archetypal time successful quarantine on, I truly conscionable had to commencement getting into a spot of a routine. And past Christian Vincent, who is our choreographer, precise rapidly started sending america videos of dancing and started moving with america successful zoom rehearsal sessions. I’ve ne'er had an acquisition similar that wherever we were having to larn to creation and larn spouse dances implicit the machine due to the fact that we weren’t capable to beryllium with each other. That was a precise unsocial acquisition starring up to it. And past erstwhile we got successful that archetypal rehearsal, I conscionable was wholly geeking retired astatine the information that we were doing this again. I deliberation Corbin tin talk to what it was similar really filming the dances due to the fact that that was besides a precise unsocial experience.

Corbin Bleu: First of all, it’s a precise hard concept, successful general, to enactment creation connected movie due to the fact that you are dealing with thing that’s permanent, and you privation to seizure that moment. It’s not adjacent conscionable the country erstwhile you’re dealing with choreography. There are truthful galore moving parts. In our peculiar scenario, we did person respective hurdles being that we person to spouse dance, and we’re not unneurotic for the archetypal ample chunk of it due to the fact that we’re having to bash it implicit zoom. I deliberation we had 2 oregon 3 days of existent in-person rehearsals and past the shooting process. I comparison it to High School Musical wherever we had 1 to 2 days per creation number. In A Christmas Dance Reunion, we had 2 days successful total. So we changeable the full second fractional but that full last chunk of dances successful 1 day, and past the remainder of them were changeable successful different day. So to propulsion each that off, and for it to crook retired the mode it did is truly a testament to the radical involved. I’m not conscionable talking astir Monique and me, but each of our different dancers that were involved, Christian Vincent, our choreographer, Brian, our director, and everyone progressive bringing that together. Again, you tin speech astir the way of slightest resistance. In that scenario, determination could beryllium a batch of resistance, and I deliberation it’s the radical that we had that truly allowed america to work.

Fans cognize you some arsenic Taylor and Chad. What bash you emotion astir Lucy and Barrett’s burgeoning emotion communicative successful the film?
Corbin Bleu: I deliberation there’s going to beryllium a consciousness of fulfillment for radical to spot Monique and maine again onscreen. Even though we are antithetic characters, and we’re not playing Taylor and Chad, I consciousness similar those who person followed Taylor and Chad didn’t get to spot that narration travel to afloat blossom. This is simply a small spot of a meta infinitesimal wherever they get to spot a full-fledged romance betwixt the 2 of us. But arsenic acold arsenic Lucy and Barrett, I deliberation it’s specified a fantastic practice of clip gone by and however you tin rekindle a narration oregon romance and a passionateness for dance.

Monique Coleman: I consciousness similar Lucy and Barrett successful immoderate ways are a small spot person to beingness for Corbin and maine than Chad and Taylor. I deliberation that’s benignant of what it’s ever been. That was not intentional successful the writing. They didn’t cognize what I had gone disconnected and done, but successful a way, it was these 2 radical who grew up unneurotic and past 1 of them kept going, and the different 1 benignant of detoured. The Barrett quality brought Lucy backmost to who she’s ever been, and successful a way, that’s what this movie does with us. Corbin does person an unthinkable Broadway vocation and signifier vocation and has continued to creation and thrive successful that. I americium not a lawyer, but I americium an activist, and I person spent a batch of clip moving successful philanthropy. I had a accumulation company, and I did precise superior things. These 2 characters present get to travel backmost unneurotic astatine a spot that they love, to bash thing that they emotion together, and that feels a batch much existent to who we person really go implicit the years. I deliberation that’s going to beryllium truly neat due to the fact that radical volition get to, arsenic Corbin said, determination volition beryllium the restitution of seeing america onscreen together. Initially, I deliberation that volition evidently bring the nostalgia of Chad and Taylor, but past they get to witnesser a wholly caller communicative of Lucy and Barrett done that. They get to spot peaks and seeds of who we really are and who we’ve truly go implicit these years. It’s a fantastic benignant of layered experience.

With Lifetime, we’ve seen sequels hap with their vacation movies. Are things near unfastened for a imaginable sequel?
Corbin Bleu: I cognize we would emotion for that to happen. Obviously, a sequel for this with Lifetime would beryllium awesome. And past also, Mo and I successful general, cognize that we privation to proceed moving onscreen unneurotic again.