Ashley Tisdale spills the tea on Sharpay Evans' iconic status

Ashley Tisdale, the talented actress who brought Sharpay Evans to life in the hit Disney franchise High School Musical, has opened up about what she thinks made her character so iconic. 

In a recent interview with People magazine, Tisdale shared her insights on playing the musical theater queen bee and how her interpretation of the character contributed to her enduring popularity.

Tisdale revealed that she genuinely believed Sharpay was the popular girl in school, and she played the role with that mindset. 

"When I played the character of Sharpay — I think it was probably what made her so funny — was that I truly thought [Sharpay] was the popular girl in school. I thought Sharpay was popular, and I played it like she was popular," she said. Director Kenny Ortega enhanced this interpretation, making Tisdale feel like she was indeed popular. However, as Tisdale noted, "What's so funny is that she's not the popular girl. She's the drama queen."

Tisdale is thrilled to see Sharpay's character continue to thrive on social media and in meme culture. "Sharpay is — I swear she's mother to everybody — because it's like she just keeps coming back on these memes and people keep talking and doing the songs," she said. 

The actress is proud to have been a part of multiple franchises that have reached cult status, including High School Musical and Phineas and Ferb.

Tisdale reflected on her good fortune in landing roles in these iconic projects. "I mean, it's so cool … It's really awesome to be a part of these projects that have really been so prevalent in pop culture and to play these characters," she said. 

"It's just, you're like, ‘Dang, man.’ I can't believe out of everything that I auditioned for [...] I got this animation [series] that has lasted this long. Or I was always trying to get a Disney movie, and never got the movie. And then, I got High School Musical."