High School Musical star Monique Coleman forced to defend 'work wife' joke about Corbin Bleu

Monique Coleman and Corbin Bleu aren't together, you guys!

But you'd be forgiven for thinking they were, after a 'work wife' joke made by the High School Musical duo this week sparked backlash amongst fans.

The confusion kickstarted on Wednesday (3 Jun), when Coleman shared a sweet snap alongside Bleu, with whom she starred in the Disney blockbuster franchise when the pair were teenagers.

While Coleman played scholastic decathlon team captain Taylor McKessie, Bleu took on the role of basketball bro Chad Danforth, supporting lead actors Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens, who famously played Troy Bolton and Gabriella Montez.

Ever since the third and final film wrapped in 2008, fans of the cheesy flick have been desperate to see the HSM cast reunite.

Their wishes were partially granted last night when Coleman and Bleu shared a cosy pic together, captioned: "20 years of loving this beautiful human.

"Thx for sharing your husband with me @sashclements and capturing these sweet photos."

As a reminder, their on-screen characters did strike up something of a forbidden romance in the film franchise, being that they hailed from different ranks on the high school hierarchy.

What may have been an innocent remark between two former child stars about their working relationship has seemingly been misinterpreted by some of their Instagram followers, however.

Coleman joked about being Bleu's 'work wife' (Instagram/@_moniquecoleman)

In fact, many were left convinced that the pair were 'soft-launching' a romantic relationship, and misunderstood the remark about Sasha Clements, Bleu's real-life wife, as something of a dig.

"If someone posted this about my husband, I’d be SICK," one follower commented.

Another added: "Nah, this whole post is weird. Idgaf how close we are or how far we go back..."

Given the extent of the backlash she has received for the post, Coleman has since shared a statement defending her controversial choice of caption.

Sharing a subsequent video, the South Carolina star claimed she was 'literally dying' after 'reading these comments'.

Coleman and Bleu starred in the High School Musical films (Disney)

Coleman continued: "I don't feel the need to, like, defend our friendship, but also, I'm really sad for humanity right now because the way that people are coming for me for being disrespectful to my sister is just like beside me.

"I can understand if, like, Corbin and I had had a romantic relationship in the past, which, I don't know how many, like, ways I can say that has just never been a thing."

She went on to emphasise of Bleu: "When we met, he was 15. I was an adult. That is illegal. So, like, never in my life have I seen him that way."

The actress also claimed the post was aimed at poking fun at her role as 'the third wheel'.

Coleman was forced to defend the post (Instagram/@_moniquecoleman)

In the caption, Coleman also went on to reiterate: "What I meant: I feel incredibly lucky to have had one of my closest friends by my side for 20 years, and equally lucky that his wonderful wife has always embraced our friendship and become a dear friend herself.

"There’s no scandal here. No hidden meaning. Just deep love, friendship, inside jokes, and three people who have shared life, laughter, and support for a very long time. In any case, the elder millennial in me can’t handle the speculation, so I’ve deleted the hashtags but kept the sentiment."