The Lifetime Movie Zac Efron Appeared In Before His High School Musical Days
Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images By Sara Caskey/Oct. 3, 2022 3:25 pm EST
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. Zac Efron doesn’t actually play basketball, but he’s made a habit out of winning games on screen — the actor’s real-life height may surprise you. Not only does his “High School Musical” character Troy Bolton impress at New Year’s Eve karaoke, but he can also twirl a basketball on his index finger. In the 2009 high school comedy “17 Again” Efron plays Mike O’Donnell, carrying his teammates through a series of on-court successes while also navigating “Back to the Future” style conundrums — how’s that for multitasking?
Zac Efron rose to fame in 2006 dribbling and singing his heart out on the Disney Channel (via Men’s Health). “There will never be another experience like that for me,” said the actor in regards to his teenage years on the set of “High School Musical,” per Evening Standard, as originally reported by BBC Radio 1. In the 15-plus years since winning hearts as the Wildcat’s point guard, he’s taken on a few darker roles. In 2019, Efon played Ted Bundy in Netflix’s “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.” In 2017, he honored his musical roots and starred alongside Hugh Jackman in “The Greatest Showman.” However, fans might be unfamiliar with Efron’s pre-“High School Musical” foray into Lifetime movies.
Neurodivergent actors lack on-screen representation
Brendon Thorne/Getty Images
Zac Efron is not the first neurotypical actor to play a neurodivergent character — Hollywood has a storied history doing this (via Forbes). “Inclusion in these types of platforms matters so much,” explained actress Monique Donath (per ABC Every Day). Donath, who is the mother of a four-year-old on the autism spectrum, worries about the “misconceptions” and generalizations that often accompany stories of autism on screen. “What kind of world will [my son] grow up in?” she wondered.
Netflix’s recent “Heartbreak High” reboot has been commended for its portrayal of neurodivergence. Australian actress Chloe Hayden plays Quinni, one of the show’s lovable leads. Both Hayden and her character are autistic, making “Heartbreak High” one of the first shows to cast a neurodivergent actor to represent neurodivergence on screen as of 2022, as The Sydney Morning Herald reported. According to Chloe Hayden via Refinery29, “The thing is, media has such a hold on us as to what we believe is real life. So, people see autistic people represented in media played by non-autistic men and they go, ‘That’s what autism is.’” As Mitchell Adams wrote in The Sydney Morning Herald, “in a world where people like me are reduced to caricatures, seeing ourselves represented authentically is a game-changer.” He continued, “this is the moment autistic people like myself have been waiting decades for. Better yet, it is an accurate portrayal of someone on the spectrum by an actor who is on the spectrum themselves.”
The Lifetime Movie Zac Efron Appeared In Before His High School Musical Days
Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images
By Sara Caskey/Oct. 3, 2022 3:25 pm EST
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. Zac Efron doesn’t actually play basketball, but he’s made a habit out of winning games on screen — the actor’s real-life height may surprise you. Not only does his “High School Musical” character Troy Bolton impress at New Year’s Eve karaoke, but he can also twirl a basketball on his index finger. In the 2009 high school comedy “17 Again” Efron plays Mike O’Donnell, carrying his teammates through a series of on-court successes while also navigating “Back to the Future” style conundrums — how’s that for multitasking?
Zac Efron rose to fame in 2006 dribbling and singing his heart out on the Disney Channel (via Men’s Health). “There will never be another experience like that for me,” said the actor in regards to his teenage years on the set of “High School Musical,” per Evening Standard, as originally reported by BBC Radio 1. In the 15-plus years since winning hearts as the Wildcat’s point guard, he’s taken on a few darker roles. In 2019, Efon played Ted Bundy in Netflix’s “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.” In 2017, he honored his musical roots and starred alongside Hugh Jackman in “The Greatest Showman.” However, fans might be unfamiliar with Efron’s pre-“High School Musical” foray into Lifetime movies.
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Zac Efron rose to fame in 2006 dribbling and singing his heart out on the Disney Channel (via Men’s Health). “There will never be another experience like that for me,” said the actor in regards to his teenage years on the set of “High School Musical,” per Evening Standard, as originally reported by BBC Radio 1.
In the 15-plus years since winning hearts as the Wildcat’s point guard, he’s taken on a few darker roles. In 2019, Efon played Ted Bundy in Netflix’s “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.” In 2017, he honored his musical roots and starred alongside Hugh Jackman in “The Greatest Showman.” However, fans might be unfamiliar with Efron’s pre-“High School Musical” foray into Lifetime movies.
Zac Efron’s first starring role was in Miracle Run
Joe Seer/Shutterstock
Neurodivergent actors lack on-screen representation
Brendon Thorne/Getty Images
Zac Efron is not the first neurotypical actor to play a neurodivergent character — Hollywood has a storied history doing this (via Forbes). “Inclusion in these types of platforms matters so much,” explained actress Monique Donath (per ABC Every Day). Donath, who is the mother of a four-year-old on the autism spectrum, worries about the “misconceptions” and generalizations that often accompany stories of autism on screen. “What kind of world will [my son] grow up in?” she wondered.
Netflix’s recent “Heartbreak High” reboot has been commended for its portrayal of neurodivergence. Australian actress Chloe Hayden plays Quinni, one of the show’s lovable leads. Both Hayden and her character are autistic, making “Heartbreak High” one of the first shows to cast a neurodivergent actor to represent neurodivergence on screen as of 2022, as The Sydney Morning Herald reported. According to Chloe Hayden via Refinery29, “The thing is, media has such a hold on us as to what we believe is real life. So, people see autistic people represented in media played by non-autistic men and they go, ‘That’s what autism is.’” As Mitchell Adams wrote in The Sydney Morning Herald, “in a world where people like me are reduced to caricatures, seeing ourselves represented authentically is a game-changer.” He continued, “this is the moment autistic people like myself have been waiting decades for. Better yet, it is an accurate portrayal of someone on the spectrum by an actor who is on the spectrum themselves.”
Netflix’s recent “Heartbreak High” reboot has been commended for its portrayal of neurodivergence. Australian actress Chloe Hayden plays Quinni, one of the show’s lovable leads. Both Hayden and her character are autistic, making “Heartbreak High” one of the first shows to cast a neurodivergent actor to represent neurodivergence on screen as of 2022, as The Sydney Morning Herald reported. According to Chloe Hayden via Refinery29, “The thing is, media has such a hold on us as to what we believe is real life. So, people see autistic people represented in media played by non-autistic men and they go, ‘That’s what autism is.’”
As Mitchell Adams wrote in The Sydney Morning Herald, “in a world where people like me are reduced to caricatures, seeing ourselves represented authentically is a game-changer.” He continued, “this is the moment autistic people like myself have been waiting decades for. Better yet, it is an accurate portrayal of someone on the spectrum by an actor who is on the spectrum themselves.”
