AJ Michalka says sister Aly was offered Hannah Montana role before Miley Cyrus

Apparently the role of Hannah Montana had as many actresses in the running as Scarlett O'Hara.

Days after casting director Lisa London revealed the two other young actresses who nearly snatched Miley Cyrus' iconic wig, another former Disney Channel star claimed that the title role in Hannah Montana was originally offered to someone very close to her.

Amanda Joy Michalka, one half of the pop duo Aly & AJ along with her sister Alyson, brewed some hot chamomile Monday and then decided to drop it all over Twitter, saying that Aly was the O.G. choice for Disney's favorite secret superstar.

"I adore Lisa London but I have some tea beyond the tea to spill," AJ tweeted Monday in response to a recent EW article about the show's casting history. She went on to say that Gary Marsh, the erstwhile president and chief creative officer of Disney Branded Television, "originally offered the role of 'Hannah Montana' to Aly and I was offered the role of 'Lilly Truscott (I know this so doesn't matter but thought I'd chime in).'"

Representatives for Aly Michalka, London, and Disney Channel didn't immediately respond to EW's request for comment Monday, but this isn't the first time the sisters have discussed the road not taken.

On the podcast Between Cut and Action last year, Aly said, "I at least know that I was the first [person offered the Hannah Montana role] because I was attached to a show that was already on the channel and was just ending. And then I think once I passed, they came back one more time and were like, 'Are you sure? Because we're going to the next person and offer it to another couple people.'"

She added, "That seems like a total lifetime ago, and I remember being so sure about saying no… I was just like, 'I don't want to do this. I don't want to do a show about singing. I don't want to do a show where I play two people. I don't want to do a show where I'm singing, I'm a solo artist, but in my real life I'm actually a duo with my sister. I think this is going to be insanely confusing for people.'"

At that point in her life, Aly said, "I was like 16-and-a-half and I was like, I was growing out of Disney… And so I think I had started just mentally shifting out of the channel."

In a TikTok last week, London had said that the role of Hannah came down to Cyrus, Gossip Girl's Taylor Momsen, and Zoey 101's Daniella Monet. She also debunked the popular rumor that Belinda, of Cheetah Girls 2 fame, was actually supposed to have had the best of both worlds.

"I discovered Miley Cyrus," London said. "I wanted to let everyone know that Belinda, who is lovely by the way, was never in the top three for the role of Hannah."

Prior to Hannah Montana launching in 2006, Aly was already a mainstay on the Disney Channel, starring in Phil of the Future as Phil's bestie-turned-girlfriend Keely Teslow.

After Phil, Aly continued releasing music with her sister as Aly & AJ, and acting in films and TV, appearing in Easy A, Two and a Half Men, and The Good Doctor. In 2015 she landed a series regular role on iZombie and in 2021 Aly & AJ released their fourth studio album.

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