From Disney star to Oscar contender: The unexpected redemption of Zac Efron

“What happened to Zac Efron’s face?” Over the past two months, that question has been repeated frequently in the international press. As was previously the case with stars such as Demi Moore, Renée Zellweger and Meg Ryan, the 36-year-old California native, who rose to popularity for his starring role in High School Musical, is facing public scrutiny and speculation about whether he’s had cosmetic work done. In his case, his “unrecognizable” appearance is attributed to somewhat swollen cheekbones and a visibly different jawline, although the actor has explained for years that his physical change is due to a serious domestic accident that forced him to undergo a complete facial reconstruction. The debate about his face was so widespread that the man who was once described as “Disney’s boy wonder” admitted that even his mother had called him to ask if he had cosmetic touch-ups done without her knowledge. That speculation is now resurfacing with the release of Efron’s celebrated latest film, The Iron Claw, based on the true story of the Von Erichs, a family of wrestlers scarred by tragedy. The film has put the performer in the Oscar conversation for the first time, after years of ingloriously wandering around the industry. Will he finally win the ultimate prize?

The first sign that 2024 may become the year of Zac Efron’s rebirth dates back to December 11, when he unveiled his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony served as recognition of the 18 years that have passed since he brought Troy Bolton to life in High School Musical and as a reminder of his status in the industry, which will serve the honoree well, said actor Jeremy Allen-White. “It’s like Zac Efron doesn’t even know he’s a big movie star. So, just so he’s never forgotten again, we’re all here today to remind him by putting a star in the ground with his name on it,” said the star of The Bear series and Efron’s co-star in The Iron Claw.

On social media, this indie melodrama has already sparked a passionate campaign in support of Zac Efron with hundreds of comments clamoring for a nomination. There are the past examples of Brendan Fraser, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jennifer Lopez, Matthew McConaughey... The public’s vindication and legitimization of a familiar Hollywood face who has never been appreciated by critics before is a powerful tradition each awards season, and this year Efron represents the perfect vessel for such yearnings. “It’s crazy. I don’t even want to think about it. I just got a star, so I need to slow down a little bit. I’m content with what I have,” he responded when questioned about the Oscar buzz he was generating.

Members of the Academy would do well to pay attention to the actor’s profile, since, despite his youth, his career ticks every box of the stereotypical redemption that Hollywood loves so much. After establishing himself as the millennial generation’s teen heartthrob, as an adult Efron was unable to find a niche in the film industry and has produced a series of resounding failures with critics and audiences alike, such as Dirty Grandpa and an adaptation of Baywatch. In turn, his career was weighed down by an addiction to alcohol and drugs that led him to enter a rehabilitation clinic in 2013; he referred to those substances as the “social lubricant” he needed to withstand the media pressure that had surrounded him at the start of his career. Shortly thereafter, Efron made headlines for his fight with a homeless man in Los Angeles.

Zac Efron was no longer Troy Bolton. He wasn’t the king of the prom, or the captain of the basketball team, or the one calling the shots in the high school musical. His future in the entertainment industry hung in the balance. “I’m a human being and I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I’ve learned from every one of them,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. Perhaps because of the scrutiny he was under, or because he was trying to expand his Peter Pan-like charm past the age of 30, Efron decided to transform his body in the gym and show off a sculpted physique that he eventually came to regret. “It wasn’t a realistic image,” he said on the Ellen DeGeneres show, “I don’t want anyone to think that’s the healthiest image you can project. It’s not glamorous... settle for being happy in your size.”

Facing his inability to make it to Hollywood’s next level, Efron’s decision to move to the idyllic Australian shores of Byron Bay—the same town where Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky live—at the beginning of this century seemed like a definitive capitulation on his part. He sold his mansion in Los Angeles for over five million dollars, fell in love with Vanessa Valladares, a waitress at a local restaurant, and moved away from acting to star in a Netflix docuseries about the environment and sustainability, Down to Earth with Zac Efron. But his romantic relationship lasted barely a year, and the streaming platform canceled the series this summer, just after it released the second season, once again leaving the actor with the need to reinvent himself. Luckily for him, and for the fans who have been waiting for nearly two decades for him to finally get his chance to shine, the starring role in The Iron Claw was just months away. Because in Hollywood there is no one better than Zac Efron to step into the ring to play an antihero marked by precocious success, low blows and a physique as hypertrophied as the intensity of the spotlight shining on him. We’ll see if the Academy recognizes this.

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