The season 2 finale of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series definitely left us staring at our screens with our mouths dropped open. Some of us probably shouted “What?! That’s it?!” Season 2 left us with more questions than answers. It’s no secret that television shows love to finish off their seasons with shocking cliffhangers, but YEM’s here to speculate with you about where the show is going to go for season 3.

This article contains spoilers for season 2 of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series so if you’re not quite yet caught up, come back to the article after you finish the show!!!

Fans have been commenting on the official HSMTMTS Instagram page begging for a season 3 announcement. And we got one! Don’t believe me? Check out the official announcement on the HSMTMTS Instagram page.

With the amazing musical numbers, wonderful characters, and spicy drama, what’s not to love? We have a lot to be excited for. We’ll finally get to see if EJ (Matt Cornett) was Gina’s (Sofia Wylie) first kiss or if Mr. Mazzara (Mark St. Cyr) takes that teaching position at Caltech, but that’s only two of our unanswered questions we have. There’s so much more we need to know!

Here are some of YEM’s predictions for where the show’s going next:

1.  Nini will connect with Jamie about making music.

We got to meet Gina’s older brother Jamie (Jordan Fisher) at the end of season 2 when he shows up to the Beauty and the Beast musical. He also happens to be a super famous, super busy music producer. We also know that Nini (Olivia Rodrigo) has been trying to show the world her music through her new Insta account, so it must be fate that Jamie and Nini meet next season! In fact, at the end of the season finale, we see Nini leaving him a voicemail. If all goes well, we can assume that Nini and Jamie will connect next season, and that he’ll help her make her newfound dream of being a professional singer into a reality. It’s also no secret that Olivia Rodrigo’s career has taken off, so if she goes on the road, she may not make a big (if at all) appearance in the show.

2.  Ricky will have more of a storyline and visit his mom more.

Nini and Ricky (Joshua Bassett) broke up again this season. Even though they didn’t really see eye-to-eye throughout the season, they seemed to be more on the same page and wished each other good second acts during the season finale. In season 3, maybe Ricky will have more of a storyline, work on himself and his own personal development, and visit his mom more. Throughout season 2, it seemed that Ricky had formed a codependence on Nini. In season 3, maybe he’ll see a therapist to help him navigate his feelings and understand himself and the world more. At the end of season 2, we see Ricky calling Lily (Olivia Rose Keegan) so maybe he’ll even have a new love interest.

3.  Olivia Rose Keegan and Roman Banks will become series regulars.

East High’s rival North High was introduced this season with the drama clubs going head-to-head with their productions of Beauty and the Beast, and the dance-off to the “Mob Song” was honestly so good. Julia Lester belting out that high note at the very end was definitely one of the best parts. Hopefully Lily and Howie, (Roman Banks) who’s also Kourtney’s boyfriend, will become series regulars on the show.

4.  The season 3 musical will be Into the Woods (or an original production).

So what musical will be the musical for East High’s fall production? Maybe it will be Into the Woods like Julia Lester and others mentioned wanting to do Into the Woods. Check out that interview here. But we should also leave open the option of putting on a completely original production. Whatever the musical is, it’ll likely be just as exciting as the productions from seasons 1 and 2.

5.  Miss Jenn will pick one of the three guys who like her.

At the end of season 2, Ricky tells Miss. Jenn (Kate Reinders) that she’s free to date his dad (Alex Quijano) if she wants to. Then Mr. Mazzara confessed his feelings for Miss. Jenn after he told her about the job opportunity that he received from CalTech! But we also can’t forget about that song Zack Roy (Derek Hough) and Miss. Jenn performed together at North High. Ricky’s dad? Mr. Mazzara? Ex-hubby Zack Roy? Can we please talk about how Miss. Jenn has not one, not two, but three guys chasing after her? She’s got prospects, but who will Miss. Jen pick (by next season preferably)? 

6.  Season 3 will center around Gina, Kourtney, and Ashlyn.

Some of the best parts of season 2 was the friendship that blossomed between Gina, Kourtney, and Ashlyn. Now that Gina’s living with Ashlyn, they’ve grown from acquaintances to friends to pretty much sisters (to Ashlyn even hugging Gina in an incredible emotional response, right after Ashlyn’s rendition of Home, speaking directly to Gina in that moment). During the Beauty and the Beast audition, Ashlyn, Gina, and Kourtney sang a tercet (like a duet but with three people). With Ashlyn landing the lead, Kourtney working her new job and exploring a new relationship, and Gina being the strong and empowering woman she is, Season 3 better explore these characters more! It’s so exciting to see strong female leads more on television, especially in HSMTMTS – a show that’s so fun, exciting, and inspiring.

7.  Big Red will have a large tap number.

Big Red revealed his tap-dancing talent during his audition. Although he didn’t seem super confident, we were able to see him shine this season during his performance of “Gaston”. Because tap dancing is something that Big Red loves, let’s give him a larger tap number in season 3. After all, how epic was his dance routine at the end of season 1? It was totally missing in season 2!

8.  Gina and EJ will make long-distance work.

Will Gina still move to be with her mom? She talked about it for a lot of the season, but has she changed her mind recently, especially because of that season 2 ending?! Also, where will EJ go to college? His dad made some calls to get him into Duke, but EJ has been conflicted about this because he thought that he didn’t earn it. Assuming that he goes someplace far for college or that Gina moves, maybe the pair will make their long-distance relationship work in season 3. Wait, are these two even officially together? Portwell shippers need answers!!!

9.  Maybe a new queer character will be introduced.

There has been more LGBTQ+ representation in Disney and Pixar films and tv shows in recent years. Carlos (Frankie A. Rodriguez) and Sebastian (Joe Serafini) are two of Disney’s first openly gay characters, and they started dating at the end of HSMTMTS season 1. In season 3, it would be great to see more queer characters introduced onto the show. It’s encouraging to see Disney’s dedication to including more LGBTQ+ characters into their storylines and amplifying queer stories and voices. In HSMTMTS, Carlos did meet someone on his vacation, so maybe that character will be introduced.

10.  Also, can we please talk about the Dear Evan Hansen elephant in the room?

Not really a prediction, but stars Andrew Barth Feldman, Jordan Fisher, and Roman Banks all played Evan Hansen on Broadway. Let’s use them more come season 3 because all three of them have such amazing voices and definitely deserve more screen time and performances.

You can view the official season 3 announcement on HSMTMTS Instagram page here.