American actor Zac Efron rose to fame for his role in Disney’s High School Musical, but he has risen to mainstream media when he ventured into comedy and drama films. American actor Zachary David Alexander Efron has began acting professionally in the early 2000s and when got his fame when he starred as Troy Bolton opposite Vanessa Hudgens in the High School Musical trilogy. He was born on October 18, 1987 in San Luis Obispo, California and then later on moved to Arroyo Grande, California. He was born to an electrical engineer father, David, and administrative assistant mother, Starla. His childhood can be described as a normal one growing up in a middle-class family.
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Success As A Disney Actor
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Zac Efron’s career reached turning point when he was casts as Troy Bolton in the teen musical television film High School Musical in 2006. The show premiered on the Disney Channel on January 2006 became a huge hit among the viewers. It can be described as the modern day adaptation of the story of Romeo and Juliet. It became a major success for everyone part of the show including Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu, and Vanessa Hudgens. Since then Efron has gained recognition and fame among the teenage audience of the show. His singing skills were also shown off at the film and some of the soundtrack was among the best selling albums of the year in the US.
The following year, Efron took on the role of Lark Larkin in yet another musical film Hairspray in 2007. The film also made a major commercial as well as critical success when it was released in July 2007. He then returned to playing Troy Bolton in the sequel of HSM entitled High School Musical 2 which aired on August 2007. His stint as Troy Bolton came to an end on the films finale High School Musical 3: Senior Year in 2008. It is the first film in the franchise to receive a theatrical release. Just like the previous two movies, it resulted to a huge blockbuster box office and has received positive feedback from the critics.
The Ups And Downs In Hollywood
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He followed his success on the High School Musical franchise with taking a role on the commercially successful comedy 17 Again in 2009. The movie is a huge hit with only $40 million budget and resulting to a worldwide box office of $139.5 million. Between 2010 to 2012 he did movies but was not as widely successful as his previous films. On 2012, he starred in the film Paperboy which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival however the film was a major flop and did not even made $1 million on its opening.
He was able to redeem himself when he lent his voice to dab the lead character in the movie The Lorax which was a huge hit and even hitting $70 million on its opening day alone. However the following year, it was announced that Zac Efron will be stepping away from the limelight for a while to check into a rehab facility due to his addiction to drugs and alcohol. Zac Efron has opened up about his struggles to alcohol and drug addiction and he wants to get sober to change his life once and for all. He stated that it is a never ending struggle and he’s having difficulties controlling his drugs and alcohol intake. A year after his stint in the rehab, he completed a rehab program away from the media. He came out in 2014 and stated that he is in the best place he has ever been.
Thriving In The Hollywood Scene
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As soon as he came out of rehab, he had a comeback project starring alongside Miles Teller and Michael B. Jordan in the movie That Awkward Moment. With only a budget of $8 million, the $40.5 million box office result is a huge win. The movie has marked the beginning of getting Zac Efron to be typecast into the stereotypical dude bro characters. He then starred alongside Seth Rogen with Neighbors. This project continued to pivot his career upon acting in numerous other comedy films.
It seems like the newly found niche of Zac Efron has worked for him. The stereotypical dude bro character worked for him, leaving behind the teensy weensy matinee idol roles behind. In 2017, he starred with Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson in a highly anticipated film Baywatch. However despite having all star casts on the film, the movie only made $177 million with a budget of $69 million. The movie was ripped apart by critics and audiences. Luckily for Zac Efron, his next project is a big hit. He starred alongside Hugh Jackman on the film The Greatest Showman which is by far one of his most successful movies ever earning $434 million on the worldwide box office. With the success of his films after his rehab stint, he has cemented himself as a star in Hollywood and his net worth of $25 million is a proof of that.
READ NEXT: The 15 Highest-Grossing Zac Efron Movies
Sources: Business Insider, The Famous People, SCMP
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