Zack Snyder Transforming ‘High School Musical’ Star Vanessa Hudgens Into A ‘Sucker Punch’ Badass
Published by Larry Carroll on Monday, June 29, 2009 at 11:00 am.

Director Zack Snyder, the eye-popping filmmaker behind “300” and “Watchmen,” has hired none other than Vanessa Hudgens to star in his next action flick, “Sucker Punch.” But without any real action-hero experience, was it just a matter of assuming the singing/dancing “High School Musical” star can do anything that’s physically demanding if she’s already twirled around a dance floor with Troy Bolton?

“No, I didn’t even look at it that way at first,” Snyder explained, echoing Hudgens’ own excitement for the film about a group of institutionalized young girls using fantasy to escape. “She rehearsed, she did the audition for the scene. I wasn’t sure at first – [the casting people] were like ‘Oh, Vanessa’s coming’ and I was ‘Oh, okay – that sounds cool’ but I didn’t know what to think.”

“Then I saw the tape and I literally went ‘Wow, she’s good,’” Snyder recalled. “She’s really good. Then I talked to her about what she’d have to do.”

What Hudgens has to do is join co-stars Emily Browning, Jena Malone, Jamie Chung and Abbie Cornish in intense physical training. And then put her “HSM” past behind her as she kicks some ass, King Leonidas-style.

“You’re going to see her shooting machine guns, fighting, beating the sh-t out of people,” Snyder, who has Blu-ray releases coming for the action-packed “Watchmen” and “300” in the weeks to come, revealed. “It’s funny – we sat her down for her physical evaluation, and she was really athletic. She’s a dancer, so all the choreography is gonna be fun for her.”

“It’ll allow her to stretch herself and do whatever she wants, and not be too exposed by the movie – but also, on the other hand, do things that people have never seen her do,” he added, saying that since Hudgens isn’t the film’s main star, she’ll have enough freedom to experiment a bit. “She has a big part, but she’s not the center of the movie.”

It also didn’t hurt Hudgens that Snyder knew casting her would make him, like, the coolest dad ever. “My daughter is about to turn 16… I have another daughter who’s 14; Eli is 12 and Autumn is 12,” the filmmaker said with a grin. “They love ‘High School Musical.’ They try and be cool about [their dad hanging out with Vanessa]; they try and be like ‘Yeah, whatever.’ But the truth is: They’re really into it.” Shooting for “Sucker Punch” will start soon, with a 2011 release currently in Snyder’s sights.

Do you think Hudgens has what it takes to be an action hero? Or will she always first and foremost be Gabriella from “HSM”?

I added a photoshoot of Vanessa from the 2007 American Music Awards and I also updated a photoshoot by Ian White for Teen Magazine. Enjoy!

x14 MQ [Ian White] For Teen Magazine

x02 MQ [Don Flood] For People Magazine

Here’s an interview that Vanessa did with with Alloy in which she talks about her Bandslam character Sam! Thanks to Kimberly Gordon for the link!

Alloy Interview with Vanessa Hudgens

Vanessa Hudgens seems like the girl who has it all: not only is she a talented actress, but she also has amazing vocal chops, and Zac Efron as her arm candy! It would be so easy to hate her, but her sweet personality makes that literally impossible. We all know and love Vanessa as the perky and chipper Gabriella in High School Musical, but in Bandslam, we’ll see a whole new side of her. She plays the darker and more mysterious Sam. For deets on her fave weird food combo and her first kiss, keep reading!

Was it a transition going from Gabriella to Sam?
It was exciting. It was fun. I finally got to play with a different kind of character and do something kind of new and different.

Sam talks in monotone. Was it hard to talk without any emotions?
It kind of was because I’m such a giddy person and I laugh at almost everything, so I had to refrain from that. It was a lot of fun, you know? She’s a different kind of person, so it took a lot.

Who do you relate to the most out of all the characters you played so far?
I’m probably somewhere in the middle between Sam and Gabriella. I’m happy like Gabriella, but I’m somewhere in the middle.

Sam loves drinking Coke with Twizzlers. What’s your favorite weird food combo?
I like dipping French fries in a milkshake.

In the movie, Will’s idol is David Bowie. Who is yours?
Angelina Jolie. She’s inspiring and strong, and she has Brad Pitt as her man! She’s pretty incredible.

Sam and Will share an awkward first kiss. What was your first kiss like?
It was a dare. [My friends] dared me to make out with my boyfriend at the time, and I chickened out. I pecked him and it was just really awkward, and we ended up breaking up a week after that.

Did you go to high school or were you homeschooled?
I was homeschooled. Before I did High School Musical. I felt like I was missing out, but as soon as I did that movie, I got to live so much of it! I made really great friends, I had a prom, and I had graduation with people I love and didn’t have any of the drama that comes with the real high school.

HSM has some rabid fans! What was your craziest fan encounter?
Probably in Brazil. I was coming back to LA and I was with Zac, and there was a security team holding hands, circling us and I was like, “Oh gosh, this could be a disaster. We look ridiculous!” As soon as we walk in, I’m about to say, “It’s OK, you don’t have to do it,” when a bunch of fans come running out of nowhere and it became a mob scene. It was crazy.

Are you ever on the opposite end of the spectrum and get star struck?
I don’t necessarily get star struck. I just have great respect for people who I look up to. If anything, it’s exciting and thrilling to meet people who I have listened to or watched for years.

Your Funny or Die video with Zac is hilarious! How did all of that come about?
Thanks! Zac told me about it and he said that it was supposed to be a cool party, so I came along and our friends were there and it was a lot of fun.

We heard a rumor that there were talks of casting you as Leah Clearwater for New Moon. True or false?
It was completely false. I never even talked to anyone about that movie at all. It came out of nowhere. My sister is a big fan of the books, so she’s read almost all of them and I’m friends with Nikki [Reed] who’s in that movie. So she told me about it — and I was like, “It would be awesome to work with you!” But it’s not really happening right now.

Rock out with Bandslam in theatres August 14!

Credit VAO if used (: