Now it can be told: Last year, when Miley Cyrus started teasing “something special” for the 20th anniversary celebration of Hannah Montana, nothing had actually been planned.
“I learned this terrible habit — but I actually think it was good advice — from Dolly [Parton],” she tells Variety. “She told me that if you want something to happen, promote it before it exists. Then no one can say no. So I just started promoting a Hannah Montana 20th-anniversary special that literally did not exist.”
After telling Disney that it “would be huge,” Disney exec Charlie Andrews tells Variety, Miley “willed [the upcoming special] into existence.” In fact, they only started planning it in December. Charlie says, “The thing she was adamant about is that this is for the fans. That has gone into literally every decision she has made.”
So much so that Miley tapped Hannah Montana superfan Alex Cooper, host of the Call Her Daddy podcast, to help her create the special. “She understands Hannah in a way that I couldn’t,” Miley says. “I never got to experience Hannah being crazy in the pit with other kids.” To that end, she even listened when Alex said no to some of her ideas.
“She would go, ‘As a Hannah fan, no one wants that,’” Miley explains.
Alex also booked a cameo from Selena Gomez, who surprised Miley on set, Variety reports. “I love Selena, but I didn’t know how much our friendship meant to the fans,” Miley says.
Miley says the special, which streams on Disney+ and Hulu on March 24, is her way of “merging Hannah and Miley together.” And, she says, making the fans “feel seen.”
As she notes, “My entire life is because of that loyalty.”
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