On March 24, the “Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special” premiered on Disney Plus. The special was hosted by superstar Miley Cyrus, who notably played Hannah Montana/Miley Stuart on the 2006 series. As heartwarming as the special was, it lacked a good portion of the original cast and bypassed the opportunity for many more exciting surprises.
Miley Cyrus opens the anniversary special by performing the iconic “Hannah Montana” theme song, “Best of Both Worlds.” This was the absolute perfect way to open this special. She performed a more modernized version of the song and delivered an outstanding performance.
There is no doubt that Miley Cyrus has amazing stage presence. Cyrus was later seen stepping foot into the original house set from the series. It was her first time being in that space since the shows finale in 2011. It was truly a treat to see the famous Stuart house looking the exact same.
Host of the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, Alex Cooper, joined Cyrus on the set for an exclusive interview about her experience on the series. Many fans were not thrilled to see Cooper there. However, it might have seemed random to have the podcaster there, Cooper is known for asking well-thought-out, in-depth questions, which is exactly what she did.
Cyrus certainly delivered with her answers, giving us juicy details about her and other former Disney stars. It was enjoyable to hear a little glimpse of what life was like for the stars we all wanted to be like.
A section in the special that really brought smiles to fans faces was Cyrus visiting her iconic Hannah Montana closet. Miley, and her mother, Tish Cyrus, revisited old Hannah Montana looks from different episodes of the show.
This was a really sweet moment for fans to witness because it was very exciting to recognize the specific outfits Hannah wore from the series. It was even more thrilling to see what Cyrus and her mother really thought of the outfits she had to wear.
One of the best parts of the special was when Cyrus performed her famous “Hannah Montana” songs, “This is the Life” and “The Climb.” She sang each song beautifully, however, it would have been nice if she hit the high note in “The Climb,” instead of taking the lower route.
The special contained many sweet little quirks that gave it that overall nostalgic feel, such as the famous “Hannah Montana” transition tunes between each scene.
Selena Gomez’s appearance was a pleasant addition to the event due to her renowned role as Mikayla. Chappell Roan’s addition was highly unnecessary.
Roan may be a very talented current artist, but she had no place being a part of the “Hannah Montana” special. Her presence there felt very random and confused a lot of fans. The 20th anniversary special definitely would have been much better with the addition of more relevant appearances. There were so many iconic people that were featured on the show that could have made an excellent addition.
For example, the Jonas Brothers were featured in an early episode of “Hannah Montana” and are strongly associated with Miley Cyrus. It would’ve been a nice idea to have them in a small part of the special.
Corbin Bleu being in even just a small part of the special would’ve been iconic since he was featured as Miley’s crush in the pilot episode and also featured on one of Hannah’s songs.
Lastly, it was very disappointing to see that Emily Osment and Mitchell Musso who played Miley’s best friends, Lily and Oliver, were not a part of the anniversary special. Both actors both posted tributes on their social media but were unfortunately not present at the 20th anniversary special premiere.
Despite not having that many exciting appearances, a real treat was definitely when Billy Ray Cyrus, the real-life and television father of Miley Cyrus, joined her on the original set. This moment was very special because many fans know that their relationship hasn’t always been steady.
The anniversary special overall was filled with reminiscence and tear-jerker memories. Miley Cyrus closed the event with a new original song titled “Younger You.” This was the perfect way to wrap up the special because of the beautiful message it carried.
It would have been nice to see a potential reunion amongst the cast members. Despite the lack of the original cast involved, the special was a beautiful tribute to the classic television series.
