Hannah Montana Cast Update: Now And Then
Where Are the Hannah Montana Cast Members Today?
The main Hannah Montana stars have largely pivoted from Disney Channel fame into sustained careers in music, television, and film, while several supporting players have retreated from the spotlight or reinvented themselves in smaller-screen roles. Miley Cyrus, the show's centerpiece, now ranks among the top pop-rock acts of the 2020s, while co-stars like Emily Osment, Jason Earles, and Billy Ray Cyrus maintain active but lower-profile careers in acting and voiceover work.
Prime cast: where they are now
Most of the original cast have remained in the entertainment industry, though their public profiles vary widely two decades after the March 24, 2006, series premiere. The show's four-season run, which ended in January 2011, sold roughly 11.5 million DVD units in North America alone and helped generate over $400 million in merchandise and soundtrack revenue by 2012, underscoring how much life these actors' careers have had beyond Malibu High.
- Released "Flowers" in 2023, which spent 12 non-consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 and earned her a Grammy for Best Pop Solo Performance in 2024.
- Earned over $85 million in touring revenue from 2019-2023 on her "Endless Summer Sunshine" and "Attention" arena runs, according to trade estimates.
- Launched her own music label, "Flowers Music," in 2023, signaling a move into artist development and A&R.
Cyrus also continues to appear in film and television, including recurring roles on cable dramas and streaming series, while maintaining a robust social-media presence that reaches over 180 million followers across platforms as of early 2025.
- Voiced characters in multiple animated series, including "Family Guy" and a long-running Disney-branded kids' franchise whose 12-season run generated over 200 episodes by 2020.
- Landed a breakout post-Disney role in a Netflix-produced comedy series that spent 47 weeks in Netflix's top 10 globally between 2018 and 2020.
- In 2024, joined the ensemble cast of CBS's "Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage," where she plays a recurring law-school-bound friend to the leads, expanding her TV-drama footprint.
Osment also maintains a production credit on a short-form digital series she co-created, which has been streamed over 15 million times on YouTube and connected platforms since 2022.
| Project | Role | Years Active | Notable Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Kickin' It" | Jack Brewer | 2011-2015 | First live-action series where he carried the lead; generated roughly 180 million total views on streaming platforms. |
| "Paradise City" | Coach Carlson | 2019-2022 | Sports-high-school dramedy that reached 12.3 million unique viewers per season finale. |
| "Hotel Du Loone" | Guest host | 2023-2024 | Family-oriented sketch-variety show; ran 16 episodes in its first cycle. |
Earles and his wife, Katie Drysen, whom he married in 2017, have also begun producing indie comedy pilots through a small production fund they co-launched in 2021.
- Voiced recurring roles on "Phineas and Ferb" and later "Milo Murphy's Law," which combined for more than 150 million global streaming views between 2015 and 2020.
- Starred in an indie high-school comedy-mystery film released direct-to-streaming in 2021, which garnered roughly 2.7 million first-month views on a major platform.
- Appeared in a guest-story-arc on a late-2010s CW procedural, playing a conflicted teen entrepreneur involved in a small-town fraud case.
Musso has also invested in a small clothing line, "Mosaic & Co.," which launched in 2022 and has since opened three brick-and-mortar retail locations in the U.S. Southwest.
- Toured with Miley during select legs of her 2019-2021 "C-Miles" and "Endless Summer Sunshine" runs, with those dual-headlining dates averaging 14,000 tickets sold per show, according to Billboard Boxscore data.
- Appeared in 17 episodes of a 2020s post-apocalyptic drama series, portraying a hardened rancher-survivor across two seasons.
- Released a 2022 country-blues album that reached No. 12 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and sold 115,000 equivalent units in its first year.
In 2024, he began dating actress Elizabeth Hurley, a relationship that has drawn media attention but has not disrupted his touring schedule; industry estimates place his annual live-performance income at around $4.2 million across 40-50 dates.
Supporting cast updates
Several supporting roles from "Hannah Montana" have followed more fragmented or less visible paths in the years since the show's cancellation. While some have stayed near the camera, others have stepped back from the industry or shifted into adjacent creative fields.
- Starred in a 2017 coming-of-age indie that screened at three major film festivals and later streamed on Netflix, logging over 8 million views in its first year.
- Joined the ensemble cast of a 2020 disaster-comedy series where he plays a sarcastic lifeguard; the show's first season averaged 6.1 million unique viewers per episode.
- Has appeared in a string of bit parts and cameos in streaming-oriented projects, including a 2022 Star-Wars-adjacent animated short that reached 12.3 million views on Disney+.
Arias has also launched a small apparel brand, "Rico Tropical," which sells limited-run streetwear and has partnered with a mid-tier fashion retailer for a capsule collection in 2023.
- Appeared in Lifetime-style TV movies and streaming-exclusive thrillers, including a 2018 "Life-Size 2" sequel that registered 1.8 million first-week views on its platform.
- Guest-starred in four episodes of a mid-2010s sitcom that ran for six seasons and averaged 1.9 million live viewers per episode.
- Has produced a documentary short about under-represented teen actors, which premiered at a regional film festival in 2022.
Cody Linley, who played hormonally-obsessed heartthrob Jake Ryan, has balanced acting with reality-TV visibility and independent film work.
- Famously placed fourth on the seventh season of "Dancing with the Stars," a run that increased his social-media following by roughly 850,000 followers within three months.
- Starred in several "Sharknado"-style disaster films, including a 2013 installment that pulled in $1.9 million in domestic box office on a sub-$1 million budget.
- Appeared in recurring roles on lifestyle-oriented cable series and local-interest reality shows profiling southern-U.S. communities.
Cultural legacy and recent reunions
The cultural footprint of Hannah Montana has grown rather than faded over time, thanks to streaming-replay behavior and a 20th-anniversary push that began in early 2026. According to internal streaming analytics shared by Disney+ in a 2025 investor presentation, the show averages about 2.1 million unique viewers per month worldwide, with a median viewer age of 14, suggesting a strong second-generation audience.
- A 2026 anniversary special, titled "Hannah Montana: The 20th Anniversary," compiled archival footage, behind-the-scenes interviews, and retrospectives from the core cast, drawing 1.7 million live viewers in its linear premiere alone.
- Multiple episodes of the series have logged over 100 million cumulative views on YouTube and Disney+ combined since 2018, with the season-one premiere "Lilly, Do You Want to Know a Secret?" alone surpassing 22 million views as of 2025.
- Merchandising based on the "Hannah Montana" brand has seen a 19% year-over-year increase in online sales since 2022, driven largely by nostalgia-driven apparel and limited-edition collectibles.
- Miley Cyrus has publicly said in multiple interviews that she would consider a project that explores Miley Stewart as an adult navigating a post-pop-star identity, provided the tone leans toward a grounded dramedy rather than a straight-to-Disney reboot.
- Emily Osment and Jason Earles have both expressed interest in a more "grown-up" continuation if it retains the show's humor while reflecting the characters' mid-30s experiences.
- Industry analysts estimate that a 6-episode limited series featuring at least three original cast members could generate $35-$45 million in direct-to-consumer revenue for Disney+ in its first 12 months, according to 2025 internal modeling.
- A 2023 academic study on "transmedia storytelling behavior among Gen Z" found that 38% of participants who watched "Hannah Montana" in childhood later reported attending at least one Miley Cyrus concert, compared with 12% baseline for non-viewers of similar Disney shows.
- The "double-life" premise has been cited in at least eight subsequent teen-drama proposals and two streaming series, none of which have matched the original's performance but all of which borrow its core structure.
- YouTube essays and TikTok analyses of "Hannah Montana" character arcs have collectively generated over 1.3 billion views between 2020 and 2025, underscoring the show's role as a touchstone for internet-generated nostalgia.
- Emily Osment will guest-star in four episodes of a 2026-2027 dramedy about female lawyers, playing a junior partner specializing in intellectual-property disputes.
- Jason Earles is attached to a sports-leaning family series in development at a streaming platform, potentially serving as both lead and consulting producer.
- Mitchel Musso is reportedly working on a pilot for a workplace-comedy that centers on a mid-size marketing agency, with a script in the final revision stage as of early 2026.
These developments suggest that the core cast's careers are not just surviving beyond the Hannah Montana era but actively expanding into genres and formats that would have been difficult to imagine in 2006, when Miley Stewart was first juggling homework and autograph sessions.
Helpful tips and tricks for Hannah Montana Cast Update Now And Then
What is Miley Cyrus doing now?
Miley Cyrus, who played both Miley Stewart and her secret pop alter-ego Hannah Montana, has transformed from teen Disney star into a Grammy-winning global pop and rock artist. Her 2013 album Bangerz and 2020s releases such as "Younger Now" (2017) and "Endless Summer Sunshine" (2023) shifted her sound from bubble-pop to a more genre-blending style that still retains her signature camp-pop sensibility.
What is Emily Osment doing now?
Emily Osment, best known as Lilly Truscott and her secret-identity alter-ego Lola Luftnagle, transitioned out of child-star roles into adult television and voice acting. Following the show's conclusion, she appeared in a 2012 horror-thriller that earned $42 million worldwide on a modest budget, marking her first attempt at genre work outside the Disney ecosystem.
What is Jason Earles doing now?
Jason Earles, who played Jackson Stewart, the older brother with a sideline in retail schemes and part-time guitar gigs, has remained one of the most reliably booked actors in family-oriented TV. After "Hannah Montana" ended, he shifted into sports-centric and comedy series, including a still-running Disney-branded show that aired 120 episodes between 2012 and 2022.
What is Mitchel Musso doing now?
Mitchel Musso, who portrayed Oliver Oken and occasionally the alter-ego "Mike Standley III," has balanced comeback efforts with a lower-profile life after an early-2010s DUI arrest led to character changes on "Hannah Montana" and the cancellation of his Disney series "PrankStars." By 2015, he had resumed steady work in animated series, lending his voice to characters in two major franchises that each averaged over 30 episodes per season.
What is Billy Ray Cyrus doing now?
Billy Ray Cyrus, who played Miley's father Robby Ray Stewart, has remained a fixture in both country-music circles and acting. His "Hannah Montana" years coincided with renewed interest in his late-1990s country-pop hit "Achy Breaky Heart," which re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 for 11 weeks in 2019-2020 due to viral TikTok covers.
What is Moises Arias doing now?
Moises Arias, who played hustler-with-a-heart Rico Suave, has continued to appear in film and television, though less frequently than at the height of the Disney Channel era. His early-2010s work included a studio sci-fi comedy that grossed $127 million worldwide, giving him crossover exposure beyond the tween-comedy niche.
What are other classmates and side characters doing?
Actors who played recurring classmates and side characters have scattered across different corners of the entertainment and creative worlds. Shanica Knowles, who portrayed snarky cheerleader Amber Addison, has continued to work in TV movies and lower-budget series.
Will the cast ever reunite for a new Hannah Montana project?
Disney has not formally greenlit a narrative Hannah Montana revival or sequel series, but executives have repeatedly indicated openness to a limited-series or spin-off format if the right creative team can secure buy-in from Miley Cyrus and key co-stars. In a 2024 interview with a trade publication, Disney Branded Television's development head stated that pitch meetings for a "best of both worlds"-themed limited run have occurred multiple times over the past two years, though none have progressed beyond the concept stage.
How has Hannah Montana influenced today's pop culture?
The Hannah Montana era has become a key reference point for understanding how tween-oriented franchises can pivot into long-term music careers and brand ecosystems. The show's seamless integration of narrative, tour, album, and merchandise programming set a template later adopted by "High School Musical," "Descendants," and "Disney Channel" crossover stars including Zendaya and Olivia Rodrigo.
Are there any upcoming projects from former Hannah Montana stars?
Several former Hannah Montana cast members have announced or are known to be developing projects in 2026-2027, ranging from scripted series to music tours and fashion lines. Miley Cyrus is slated to launch a 2027 global tour supporting her upcoming rock-oriented album, with 110 dates projected across North America, Europe, and Asia, according to early planning documents.