What happened with Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens? Split explored as actress makes rare comment about Ex

Back in 2005, when High School Musical was everywhere, Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron were suddenly the couple everyone talked about. They had met on set, both just 17, and according to Elle (May 9, 2025), that’s when their relationship began. Fame followed fast, and so did the attention on their personal lives. The two were together for nearly five years, and while their 2010 breakup was described as mutual and amicable, fans have continued to wonder what really went wrong.

Vanessa Hudgens gave part of the answer much later. In 2022, on the Awards Chatter podcast, she admitted that all the attention Efron received wore her down.

"I went through a phase when I was really mean because I was so fed up, girls were running after [Zac], and I was giving them death stares. Then I realised that’s not what that’s about," explained Hudgens.

It wasn’t only the spotlight. In a separate interview with Shape, she pointed out how distance made things harder:

"Long-distance relationships are hard no matter what. When you don't have face-to-face time, it's just different. Having an iPhone helped, but it just wasn't the same."

Now, almost 15 years later, Vanessa Hudgens made another rare comment about her time with Zac Efron, and just like that, people are talking about them all over again.

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Vanessa Hudgens reflects on Zac Efron's connection during High School Musical audition:

Vanessa Hudgens recently opened up about the early days of High School Musical and her first impressions of Zac Efron. Speaking on Bart Johnson’s Get Your Head In The Game podcast, the actress, who is now expecting her second child with husband Cole Tucker, recalled how the pair initially crossed paths during the audition process.

Hudgens explained that she performed either Jessica Simpson’s “Angels” or “Reflection” from Mulan at her first tryout, before being paired with Efron at a group casting event.

“There was one other girl there for Gabriella, one other guy there for Troy,” she said of the final callback.

“We swapped, mixed and matched and yeah, that was it,” she explained.

Coming from a musical theater background, Hudgens noted,

“that was and still is where my heart remains. So, I was very excited.”

But she admitted her excitement was not only about the project.

“Of course I was a child and paired with this boy and I was like, ‘Oh my god, he’s so cute.’ The chemistry was so real,” she shared.

That chemistry even showed up on screen. Hudgens revealed that her sweet looks toward Efron in the opening karaoke sequence of the 2006 Disney Channel hit were authentic.

“Yeah, it really does [help],” she said of their real-life spark.

“Especially when you’re young and it’s all sweet and innocent,” she explained.

Reflecting further, Vanessa Hudgens laughed at her own youthful image:

“It’s so funny looking back, I was so innocent but I was also playing so innocent, so it was like the hat on the hat. Like, wow, she’s really pure. That totally was who I was, but the little rebellious teen side of me was like, ‘No, this isn’t me!’”

Hudgens and Efron went on to date in real life, beginning during the first film in 2005, before eventually splitting in 2010.

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Vanessa Hudgens on heartbreak and career lessons from Austin Butler split:

In January 2020, fans were caught off guard when news broke that Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler had ended their nearly nine-year relationship. The pair began dating in 2011 and quickly became a favorite among followers, with their long-term romance often described as one of Hollywood’s most admired young partnerships, according to Buzzfeed News.

Reports at the time linked the breakup to Butler’s move to Australia to begin filming Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic. Sources suggested distance, rather than conflict, played a central role.

“They’re just shooting on two different continents and it’s a matter of distance, there is no bad blood at all, and they have a lot of respect for each other,” a source told E! News.

Ironically, Hudgens had been the first to point out Butler’s resemblance to the rock legend. Speaking on LIVE with Kelly and Mark in 2019, she recalled:

“We were driving along and we were listening to Christmas music, and then an Elvis Presley Christmas song came on. He had just dyed his hair dark — he’s a natural blonde — and I was looking at him and he was singing along, and I was like, ‘Babe, you need to play Elvis. I don’t know how, but I’m serious. You need to play him.’”

Butler’s performance ultimately secured him his first Academy Award nomination, though Vanessa Hudgens was no longer by his side. On the She Pivots podcast, the High School Musical alum reflected on her past heartbreaks, noting that the experience had been transformative.

“I feel like so much of my character was built from my breakups, my last breakup had really catapulted me into a very, very special place,” she said.

Hudgens’ reflections shared a message that even a breakup can lead to growth, for both love and life.