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All six of the High School Musical stars have officially signed on for High School Musical 3: Senior Year, Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Productions announced Monday.

Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman and Lucas Grabeel will star in the third and final installment, a feature film. The first two movies aired to a record number of viewers on The Disney Channel.

Director Kenny Ortega tells PEOPLE he’s excited about working one last time with the cast, a group of virtually unknown actors before the first HSM movie’s January 2006 debut.

“I am the luckiest guy in the world and I know it,” Ortega says. “This will be our last time together and I love working with these kids so much. It’s going to be great.”

Tisdale, who will reprise her role as school diva Sharpay, says she looks forward to returning to East High set in Utah one last time.

“I’m excited,” Tisdale tells PEOPLE. “But it’s going to be sad. It seems like it will be graduation and I’ll be crying while we’re filming.”

According to the studio, HSM 3: Senior Year finds high school seniors Troy [Efron] and Gabriella [Hudgens] facing the prospect of being separated from one another as they head off in different directions to college. Joined by the rest of the Wildcat crew, they stage an elaborate spring musical reflecting their experiences, hopes and fears about their future.

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Here are some great snippets from the HSM hottie’s revealing interview:

How are you feeling about the [nude picture] scandal? I’m much better now. But truthfully I don’t like talking about it. It was something that was meant to be private, and even though it isn’t anymore, I’d still like to keep it as private as I can. It was very traumatic, and I am extremely upset it happened. I hope all my fans can learn from my mistake and make smart decisions. But I wouldn’t have been able to get through it if it wasn’t for my family, friends, and fans, who supported me all along the way.

Who told you the photos had been leaked? I found out from my manager. We heard some story was going to break in the tabloids, and I was like, What?!? A few days later, the picture came out while I was on vacation in Australia. Thank God, I wasn’t home–it would have sucked if I was at home. So I got to be away from L.A. for about a millisecond. But when I came back, it got kind of crazy.

How did you explain the situation to your mom? I was just open with her, and she was just so cute. She was like, “Well, everyone can be naked if they want to.” [Laughs] My parents are very supportive of me. And they know I’m a teenager, and yes, kids do stupid things sometimes. It’s very unfortunate because with the Internet these days, you don’t have a personal life. Nothing is private: Everyone knows everything, and they can find out everything about you. You’re not as safe as you think you are, and you have to be aware of the people you’re around.

It’s great that Zac stood by you through all this. To you, what’s the best thing about him? He always makes me happy. He literally knows exactly what to do to make me laugh.

Do you ever think about the future with Zac? No. It’s fun having a boyfriend. He’s a friend and a cute friend who you like. It’s nice. But only time will tell. I’m still young, and I have my girlfriends and I have my family. I think that it’s definitely important to have balance. I think girls can be sucked into the relationship and give too much. They like to be so into their boyfriends, you know? And you can’t do that, because you get too infatuated–and then you lose contact with your friends. It happens to a lot of girls.

Funny, her boyfriend is in an upcoming movie titled … Seventeen.

What better way to ring in the New Year than with a romantic diner date? That’s what Zac Efron & Vanessa Hudgens opted for- as they headed out to grab a bite to eat on Tuesday in Toluca Lake.

The HSM hotties dined at one of their favorite spots, Paty’s Diner, both smiling and laughing as they made their way past the paparazzi on site.

I heart them! 

Of each other. BFF’s Ashnessa was spotted out on yet another shopping adventure- this time heading to the Lisa Kline boutique in Beverly Hills on Saturday. The HSM ladies were helped by security as they made their way to the store’s entrance, being covered with blankets at one point to shield themselves from photographers on site.

Next stop- McD’s! Enjoy the pics below of the ladies lunching at the golden arches. See? Skinny girls DO eat! But what’s annoying is where & what they can eat.

I was beginning to wonder where they had disappeared to … I’ve missed my mini-Brangelina!

Paparazzi caught the pair getting intimate at their own little booth at Hollywood’s hottest hole-in-the-wall, Lola’s, on Friday night. The dancing duo sipped a selection of signature martinis in between constant kisses and cuddles.  Who says underaged drinking is illegal?

Strangely enough, their naughty little night out was interrupted when pal Luke Perry joined them. Odd addition to the two, but I’ll take it- I miss dylan McKay!