Miley Cyrus has officially announced she is returning for a Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special, set to premiere on March 24, 2026. This date marks exactly 20 years since the very first episode aired on Disney Channel back in 2006.
Rather than a scripted reboot or new episodes, the special will be an unscripted celebration of the show’s legacy. Filmed in front of a live audience, it will feature an in-depth conversation between Miley and Alex Cooper, host of the Call Her Daddy podcast, as they look back on how Hannah Montana came to be and why it still means so much to fans today.
20 years of Hannah Montana: Miley Cyrus reunites with her roots for a landmark Disney special
When Miley Cyrus first appeared on Hannah Montana in 2006, few could have predicted just how big the show and its young star would become. Cast as Miley Stewart, a normal teenager living a secret double life as pop sensation Hannah Montana, Cyrus became the face of a generation growing up on the Disney Channel.
The series became an instant hit, and her songs like Best of Both Worlds turned Cyrus into a chart-topping artist, while sold-out tours and merchandise made Hannah Montana a global phenomenon. In an official statement announcing the Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special, Miley Cyrus stated:
‘“Hannah Montana’ will always be a part of who I am. What started as a TV show became a shared experience that shaped my life and the lives of so many fans, and I’ll always be thankful for that connection. The fact that it still means so much to people all these years later is something I’m very proud of. This ‘Hannahversary’ is my way of celebrating and thanking the fans who’ve stood by me for 20 years.”
When the series concluded in 2011, Miley had leveraged the platform Disney provided to create a devoted global fanbase. And this initial backing became the foundation upon which she gradually built her public image. This helped her to evolve with confidence into the solo artist which she is known as today.
After leaving Disney behind, Miley Cyrus created her identity in pop music. Her 2013 album Bangerz marked a major turn in her singing career, producing chart-topping hits like Wrecking Ball and We Can’t Stop, both of which dominated global charts.
She continued to provide major hits in the following years with songs such as Malibu to the rock-infused Midnight Sky. Her biggest win came in 2023 with Flowers, a global self-love anthem that broke streaming records and earned her two Grammy Awards.
Because of her successful music career and widespread popularity in both the music and film industries, Miley Cyrus also appeared in an episode of Netflix’s Black Mirror. In Season 5, Episode 3, titled “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too,” she performed all of the featured songs herself.
In that episode, she played pop star Ashley O, a character whose glamorous public image hides a darker reality. Cyrus recorded and performed the episode’s standout tracks, including On a Roll, which cleverly reworked Nine Inch Nails’ Head Like a Hole.
Edited by Suchita Patnaha
