So much for High School Musical's squeaky-clean image.
Vanessa Hudgens has admitted that a racy photo of her that's currently making the Internet rounds is indeed a picture of her and was not doctored to make the teenage actress merely look undressed.
"This was a photo which was taken privately," said Hudgens' rep Jill Fritzo. "It is a personal matter and it is unfortunate that this has become public."
There are no further details concerning when or in what context Hudgens, who will be 19 in December, posed for the pic, but she apparently did not intend to give her fans the type of behind-the-scenes action that can't already be found in the extras section of the High School Musical DVD.
The Disney Channel star is currently dating her HSM love interest Zac Efron, 19.
Although dressing in the emperor's new clothes is a surefire way for a celebrity to make tabloid headlines (the images were first reported by the National Enquirer), it's unlikely Hudgens' exhibitionist tendencies (however private) will bring down the HSM empire anytime soon. The first installment of the basic-cable hit has been viewed by more than 200 million worldwide, and High School Musical 2 premiered to a record 17.2 million-strong audience last month. The soundtrack has been the nation's top-selling album since its release last month.
Fritzo tells E! News that Internet speculation that Hudgens would not be welcomed back for the next High School Musical production "is not true." While the Disney Channel did not directly comment on the burgeoning scandal, a rep with the network also denied Hudgens would be replaced for the third installment.
The cast, which also includes Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman, Ashley Tisdale and Lucas Grabeel, is already in talks to star in the tentatively titled Haunted High School Musical, which, unlike the first two films, is expected to be released theatrically.