On Zac Efron: “Zac is a major star. And I think he has the hardest row to hoe, with all the media attention, and I’m very proud of the way he is handling all that. Even while we were shooting the first High School Musical movie, after the second night, I said seriously, ‘hang on, you’re going to be the next Bobby Sherman.’ You could just smell it way back then.”

Why the vintage teen idol Bobby Sherman reference? Alyson said, “Because he’s so pretty, people think that he maybe doesn’t have to work that hard. But he does work, and wants to become good at his craft. He’s very interested in becoming a good actor. And he’s just beginning that journey. I’m proud that he’s focused on that more than all the fame and stuff that comes along with performing. He really wants to be good, as opposed to being known for being a personality.”

On Lucas Grabeel: “Lucas is so scary talented. They are all talented and are all going to have huge careers, but out of all the kids, I think Lucas is going to be around for 50 years. He is so talented. An incredible voice, an incredible dancer. He plays instruments. I also say he’s going to be the next Stephen Spielberg. He already has two pilots being looked at right now, he has a feature he wrote and directed, and he has another one that is in development. He is an unbelievable self-starter. Many times I would see him off to the side, because he’s somewhat of a loner. But it’s what’s going on in his mind that is going to serve him well in the long term. He’s a very smart kid.”

I agree with her assessments on both... I love Zac but he could go either way in this business. It's fickle and hot guys are a dime a dozen. That said, he's got something extra. His dedication to the work, to growth and to learning on top of how much he's improved just since HSM1 makes me think he can make it.

She has a couple small things to say about the others too at the source.