Why Is Victoria Justice Not In Zoey 102?

Victoria Justice was a Nickelodeon darling for many years, headlining her own series with "Victorious." But before that, she had a supporting role on another top-rated teen drama that ended too soon — "Zoey 101." Justice joined the series in its second season as Lola, who becomes one of Zoey's (Jamie Lynn Spears) good friends. With a sequel film, "Zoey 102," coming out later in 2023, some fans may be disappointed to learn that Justice won't be featured among her old Pacific Coast Academy alumni.

Fortunately, it sounds as though there's no bad blood behind the reason for the exclusion. In fact, OK Magazine reported that Justice appeared at a party in June for a party celebrating the release of "Zoey 102." The actress explained the reason for her absence in the film, "I would have loved to be there, but there were scheduling conflicts. I was signed on to do a movie, and the dates conflicted. It was a whole thing. I love that cast so much and being on Zoey 101 was the start of my career in a lot of ways."

Justice isn't the only cast member who isn't returning for the movie. Academy Award nominee Austin Butler appeared in Season 4 of "Zoey 101," but he's likely busy these days filming things like "Dune: Part Two." Justice has been similarly busy with numerous acting projects in the pipeline as well as a highly anticipated album that may just finally come out.

Victoria Justice mentioned she was doing a movie at the same time they would've needed to film "Zoey 102." While she didn't state which one it was, she's still acting a lot these days. Most recently, she played the role of Annie in 2023's "The Tutor," a psychological thriller about a man who accepts a tutoring job only to discover his student has disturbing obsessions. She also has several projects in the works, including "California King" and "Sic."

But the actress has more on her mind than just acting. To celebrate her 30th birthday earlier in 2023, Justice released a new single, "Last Man Standing," and she confirmed that she's indeed working on her debut solo album. While she's performed on soundtrack albums for "Victorious," she's yet to release her own album despite several singles coming out over the years. She told Variety she's finally getting all the pieces together, "I definitely am releasing an album — that's happening."

And if all that wasn't enough, Justice has also partnered with Yellow Tail to bring a sweeter Moscato to the market. She told OK Magazine, "I've been a fan of the brand for a while, and I feel like they're so affordable and the quality is so great. I've always been a Moscato fan for as long as I've been drinking wine." Amidst all of this, it sounds as though Justice would still be open to coming back for a "Zoey 101" or even a "Victorious" reunion down the line. She mentioned how there's nothing in the works as far as "Victorious" at the moment, but in this era of reboots and revivals, you never know what might happen.