Vanessa Hudgens Talks 'Bad Boys for Life' and That Viral 'HSM' Karaoke Moment (Exclusive)

Vanessa Hudgens had an incredible experience working with Martin Lawrence and Will Smith on the highly anticipated Bad Boys for Life.

ET's Matt Cohen spoke to the 30-year-old actress at the Napa Valley Film Festival on Wednesday, where she was honored with the Visionary Award. Hudgens talked about her exciting new role in the third film in the Bad Boys franchise, and what it was like working with Lawrence and Smith.

"I play Kelly," she says of her character in the popular buddy cop franchise. "She's a new part of the ammo team, which is the new squad that gets brought on to work with Will and Martin and they're just amazing. Like, Martin is such a sweetheart. He's always just so kind and warm and welcoming and like, tender. ... So sweet."

"And then Will is just like a burst of energy," she continues. "Like, he's full of life. He's full of love. They were like, sending gifts to my trailer on the weekly and I was like, this is not normal. This is just too sweet."

Hudgens has definitely come a long way since her High School Musical days, which was her big break in Hollywood back in 2006. She recently overjoyed fans when she shared a clip on Instagram of her singing "Breaking Free" -- which her High School Musical character, Gabriella Montez, sings with Zac Efron's Troy Bolton in the 2006 movie -- at a karaoke night. The actress told ET the background behind the now viral moment.

"I was having the time of my life," Hudgens says. "Yes, I was. It was just, I did this independent film and it was a tiny little bubble that we created and we were all like family and that was my last night that I was gonna be with everyone, so I put on a little vintage dress that I had bought in town and proceeded to sing karaoke the entire night because it was my last night. I had sang a little bit. I sang Evanescence. And everyone was screaming, 'Wake me up!' You'll see it at some point."

"But the karaoke, it was just yeah, it was a moment," she continues. "A girl came up to me and she was like, 'Vanessa?' I was like, 'Yeah?' She's like, 'You know my go-to karaoke song?' Like, what? She said 'Breaking Free.' And I was like, we should sing it together. So, it happened."

Hudgens brought her mom along to the Napa Valley Film Festival, and she tells ET about what it means for her to receive the Visionary Award.

"I mean, that's an absolute honor," she says. "I just I love what I do and I get to do it all the time and I feel like it's just a really exciting moment of time for me as well because I've never been so busy in my life."

For more on Hudgens' amazing karaoke moment, watch the video below:

Vanessa Hudgens Sings a 'High School Musical' Song at Karaoke

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Vanessa Hudgens Sings a 'High School Musical' Song at Karaoke

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