Everything the ‘High School Musical: The Musical: The Series’ Cast and Creator Have Said About Olivia Rodrigo’s Potential Exit

usmagazine.com:

Everyone wants to know. As Olivia Rodrigo‘s musical career continues to blow up, fans have questioned what that means for her future on High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.The California native has played Nini Salazar-Roberts since the series debuted on Disney+ in 2019.

After the first season premiered, Rodrigo rose to stardom when her single “Driver’s License” went viral in January 2021. Four months later, her debut album, Sour, dropped to resounding success.At the time, the actress opened up about how her music was inspired by her dating life. “I totally understand people’s curiosity with the specifics of who the song’s about and what it’s about, but to me, that’s really the least important part of the song,” Rodrigo, who previously sparked romance rumors with her HSMTMTS costar Joshua Bassett, told Billboard in January 2022. “It’s resonating with people because of how emotional it is, and I think everything else is not important.”As Rodrigo’s career continued to blow up, viewers wondered if that meant the singer was leaving HSMTMTS.

After being billed as a series regular for the first two seasons, Rodrigo became a recurring cast member for season 3.On screen, Nini started to move away from her interest in high school theater as she attempted to build a professional music career in Los Angeles. “It feels like these last few years have been leading up to something big,” the character said in the trailer for season 3 before deciding not to attend summer camp with her friends.The show’s creator, Tim Federle, previously admitted that Rodrigo’s music career would impact her role as Nini. “It’s hard to imagine High School Musical without Olivia, but Olivia is also experiencing a level of success and fame and