Metal Bird Tangled Up in Bleu

Thu., Oct. 18, 2007 5:23 PM PDT by Natalie Finn

There's still more High School ahead, but Corbin Bleu has put himself on the fast track to graduation.

The Disney Channel star has signed on to produce and star in the indie sports-action flick Metal Bird as an aspiring motocross racer who juggles dreams of Amateur National Championship glory with the reality of being relied upon to support his entire family.

Veteran TV director Jeff Woolnaugh is attached to direct the script by Jeffrey Nicholson and Joshua Leibner.

Filming kicks off in Vancouver in November, after which Bleu will most likely head back to campus to shoot High School Musical 3, the first big-screen installment in the super-successful Disney franchise.

The 18-year-old Brooklyn native plays musically inclined basketball player Chad, best friend to Zac Efron's Troy.

Bleu told tvguide.com last week that he and the rest of the cast were still in negotiations for the second sequel, which he assumes will focus on the gang's, gulp, senior year at East High, but that he would "definitely love to be a part of it."

However, the actor, who also released his debut album Another Side in May, is definitely looking forward to higher education, as well.

"I want to do everything. I would, truthfully, love to do another album," Bleu told Voice of America last month in London, where he was on tour in support of Another Side. "I would love to go do some features, and play very different characters, a whole different array of them. I would love to work [on] Broadway, and hopefully direct and produce, go on some more tours. I love everything."

But he'll have to play second fiddle to Efron at least one more time, assuming Disney can re-snag America's Next Heartthrob for HSM 3.

The 20-year-old came of age this summer in Hairspray, is in talks to star in a remake of Footloose and will star in the comedy Seventeen, playing the teenage version of a 36-year-old man who wakes up one morning to find himself reliving his senior year.

Also reportedly up in the air is Vanessa Hudgens, but not because she might be too busy to reprise her role as Gabriella.

The 18-year-old actress has been lying low since dated naked pictures of her surfaced on the Internet this summer, prompting a public apology from her and a warning masquerading as a show of support from the Disney Channel.

"Vanessa has apologized for what was obviously a lapse in judgment," spokeswoman Patti McTeague said last month. "We hope she's learned a valuable lesson."

As of this week, both the cable network and Hudgens' rep have denied an OK! magazine report that she is out of the picture as far as HSM 3 is concerned.

"We are still in negotiations with all the High School Musical stars," a network spokesperson told E! News Wednesday.

When asked about the scandal swirling around his costar, Bleu told tvguide.com that what happened to Hudgens could serve as a wakeup call to youngsters everywhere.

"I think that one of the most important things to remember is that, as people, whether you're under the microscope or not, you should try to practice good morals and try to practice being a good person," Bleu said. "As long as you are doing that as a person, no matter what, you shouldn't have anything to worry about."

It sounds as if someone's squeaky-clean image is going to remain intact awhile longer.