{"id":541326,"date":"2026-03-24T00:27:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T00:27:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/541326\/"},"modified":"2026-03-24T00:27:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T00:27:13","slug":"miley-cyrus-is-returning-to-her-hannah-montana-roots-shes-the-latest-disney-star-to-come-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/541326\/","title":{"rendered":"Miley Cyrus is returning to her ‘Hannah Montana’ roots. She’s the latest Disney star to come home."},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a moment in the Hannah Montana series finale where Miley Cyrus steps into her alter-ego\u2019s glittery, coveted closet<\/a> one final time. Cyrus \u2014 as her onscreen character Miley Stewart, who\u2019s finally chosen a normal life over superstardom \u2014 tearfully walks through the space, remembering specific performances as Hannah Montana and what she wore during them: The sequined teal shrug and green tank top for \u201cJust Like You<\/a>\u201d; the purple, pinstripe coat for \u201cNobody\u2019s Perfect<\/a>\u201d; the lace-up leather jacket for \u201cWe Got the Party.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n

As an apparition of Hannah Montana appears on the steps of the closet, Miley joins her, and the two sit together for a moment. Miley looks over to Hannah and mouths \u201cthank you,\u201d before Hannah disappears, marking the end of her pop star existence.<\/p>\n

Dedicated millennial fans weren\u2019t sure if Cyrus would ever put the wig back on and assume her beloved alter ego after the show ended in 2011. Two decades after its premiere, however, Cyrus is dusting off Hannah\u2019s boots and array of stylish skinny scarves for the Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special<\/a>, and this time around, she\u2019s doing it on her own terms. Rather than cosplay the fictional pop star, Cyrus, as she told Variety<\/a>, is \u201cmerging Hannah and Miley together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I created a Miley Cyrus persona to protect myself so I could have the Miley behind closed doors,\u201d she told the outlet. \u201cBut as I\u2019ve gotten older, I\u2019ve been able to integrate what I love about all of them into one being.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Cyrus wasn\u2019t always keen on being associated with the wig-wearing singer. She wanted to move beyond the confines of teeny-bopper stardom and explore life beyond being a Disney darling, which is exactly what she did during her Bangerz era. She swapped her highlighted Hannah wig and kid-friendly lyrics for a bleached-blonde pixie cut, a perpetually stuck-out tongue and recreational drug use.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was really hard for me in 2013. I lost everything during that time in my personal life because of the choices I was making professionally,\u201d she said in 2025, during an episode of Monica Lewinsky\u2019s podcast, \u201cReclaiming<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Miley<\/p>\n

Miley Cyrus performing in the U.K. in 2014.<\/p>\n

(Neil Lupin via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Cyrus had, by this point, effectively eviscerated her carefully crafted, once-hypercontrolled image, with her 2013 VMAs performance during which she twerked on Robin Thicke, serving as the cherry on top of her Disney star demise. Her relationship with Liam Hemsworth, whom she met while filming The Last Song, even disintegrated because of it.<\/p>\n

But her rebellion wasn\u2019t rooted in disrespecting her Hannah Montana legacy. It was more so a means of figuring out who she was apart from it all \u2014 a discernment that Cyrus even longed for as her alter ego<\/a>: \u201cI\u2019m a lucky girl\/Whose dreams came true\/But underneath it all, I\u2019m just like you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t trying to kill Hannah off. I was just progressing,\u201d Cyrus told Variety. \u201cBeing recognizable as a teen going through different phases and stages was sometimes awkward, but that\u2019s what helped me relate to the kids watching at home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Miley<\/p>\n

Miley Cyrus performs during her Miley Cyrus\/Hannah Montana: Best of Both Worlds tour in 2007.<\/p>\n

(Kevin Mazur\/WireImage via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The \u201cOne in a Million\u201d singer\u2019s celebratory return to her Hannah Montana roots comes at a time when Hilary Duff, another former Disney star, is also proudly reclaiming her Lizzie McGuire fame. Duff, who was recently announced as Northeastern University\u2019s 2026 commencement speaker<\/a> amid her pop music comeback<\/a>, had a similarly complicated relationship with her onscreen alter ego. Distinguishing herself from Lizzie, especially as an impressionable teenage girl coming of age in the spotlight, was difficult.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere wasn\u2019t a Hilary and Lizzie stop and end. I wish I could tell you that I was such a brilliant actress that at 12 or 13 years old, I came to work and put the Lizzie hat on. But I definitely did not,\u201d she told CBC<\/a> in early March, adding that she didn\u2019t mind being referred to as Lizzie McGuire out in public. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t until a couple years later that that started to really get under my skin. \u2018Cause I had outgrown that person, and she\u2019s stuck forever at that age.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because being \u201csuper rebellious\u201d wasn\u2019t her personality, Duff said she relied on music as a means of distancing herself from the Lizzie McGuire of it all. Leaning into songwriting proved successful for Duff, who had a slew of hits in the aughts \u2014 from her rainy-day anthem \u201cCome Clean\u201d to her virally choreographed, dance-pop hit \u201cWith Love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Hilary<\/p>\n

Hilary Duff, left, and Miley Cyrus in 2007.<\/p>\n

(Jon Kopaloff\/FilmMagic via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was my way of trying to find my identity outside of Lizzie McGuire, and [it] worked pretty well,\u201d she told the outlet. \u201cThen I move into my late 20s and I\u2019m a mother, and I\u2019m still Lizzie McGuire. [It] would just give a little knot in my stomach. Like, \u2018Am I ever going to do anything that\u2019s going to impact people the same?\u2019 Like, \u2018Is it me or was it her? Do they love her or do they love me?\u2019 It was all very hard to comb through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Where Cyrus had prioritized shock value, Duff pivoted away from Disney more quietly. It was during her late teens and early 20s that she entered her party-girl era, at which point she was scrutinized for her body image and for her age-gap romance with rocker Joel Madden<\/a> of Good Charlotte. She released her album Dignity during this time, before stepping away from music for eight years. Breathe In. Breathe Out. came out in 2015, before Duff went on an even longer hiatus.<\/p>\n

The Younger star prioritized her personal life and acting career in the years that followed, before eventually announcing \u2014 and then releasing \u2014 her first album in over 10 years, Luck\u2026 or Something<\/a> in February.<\/p>\n

\"Hilary<\/p>\n

Hilary Duff performs in 2026.<\/p>\n

(Manny Carabel\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Duff\u2019s new musical era feels like a harmonious blend of the past and the present. She\u2019s ushering in a new chapter while also paying homage to her Disney star beginnings. During her Small Rooms, Big Nerves tour in January, Duff performed her Lizzie McGuire Movie hit, \u201cWhat Dreams Are Made Of,\u201d and playfully recreated her iconic, \u201cYou\u2019re watching Disney Channel!\u201d<\/a> promo with a drumstick instead of a wand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am so overwhelmingly grateful for that experience and to have me and this person. I feel like we have each other, in this weird way. And I\u2019m super appreciative for all of that,\u201d Duff told CBS Mornings<\/a> about Lizzie McGuire. \u201cBut it was really challenging to get to a point of peace with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

What Cyrus and Duff share is their ability to move forward with their lives and careers, while still acknowledging their Disney roots in ways that feel right to them. There\u2019s something to be said about how both of these women, with their massive millennial followings, have cultivated balanced, fulfilling lives that allow for both growth and nostalgia. It\u2019s the best of both worlds.<\/p>\n

\"Miley<\/p>\n

Miley Cyrus and Maxx Morando.<\/p>\n

(Jeff Kravitz via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cI get so much of every single thing I want. My relationship is private, my business is successful and I get to have the small things people take for granted, like waking up in my own bed and feeding my dogs,\u201d Cyrus told Variety. \u201cBut then I also get to be Hannah again and have people sobbing because they just saw \u2018This Is the Life\u2019 live. I love that I\u2019ve curated my life that way.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special premieres on Disney+ on Tuesday, at which point, troves of millennial women will flock to their TVs and relive the magic of their youth. What\u2019s even more moving about this \u201cHannahversary\u201d is the fact that Cyrus herself is thrilled to be back. Coming home isn\u2019t an obligation for her \u2014 it\u2019s an honor.<\/p>\n