Over the years, Zac Efron [1] has proved he's so much more than a handsome face. He's a charming song-and-dance man [2], a celebrity who's honest and open about his personal struggles, and, as it turns out, a pretty awesome actor too. While we know him best, of course, from musicals like The Greatest Showman and High School Musical [3], 2019 has been a breakout year for him as a dramatic actor [4], playing Ted Bundy [5] in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile [6]. Over the years, Efron has provided us with plenty of soundbites about his career, his routines to stay healthy, and even his struggles with sobriety. Ahead, check out some of Efron's best quotes, sure to give you a new perspective on an actor we all know and love!
Zac Efron's Quotes About Fame at a Young Age
- "No matter who you are, you face challenges growing up [7]. You go with your things, you learn, you have to. It's impossible to lead an honest and fulfiling life as a man and not make mistakes and 'fess up to them when you need to. But it's especially humiliating when they happen to be so public and so scrutinized."
- "When you have success young, and you accept the good things, you have to accept all of it. You have to accept the moments of glory but also a great responsibility. And that responsibility, to some degree, involves being a role model. At the same time, I'm a human being, and I've made a lot of mistakes. I've learned from each one."
- "I'm grateful for every bit of that early success [8]. It was hands down the most honest, carefree, passionate experience of my life. There were no expectations. [But later] I definitely felt that pressure. I'm not comfortable with it at all times. The people that I saw and the people that I started to meet, the majority were young. These were kids, and I looked into their eyes and I saw myself as a fan, and it was shocking to be on the other end of that. You just want to please every single one."
Zac Efron's Quotes About Sobriety
- "I was drinking a lot [9], way too much. It's never one specific thing. I mean, you're in your 20s, single, going through life in Hollywood, you know? Everything is thrown at you. I wouldn't take anything back; I needed to learn everything I did. But it was an interesting journey, to say the least."
- "I just started going [to therapy]. And I think it's changed my life. I'm much more comfortable in my own skin. Things are so much easier now."
Zac Efron's Quotes About Finding Balance
- "When I was younger, [fitness] was a sense of stability [10], and something that I had to accomplish every day — one of the few things I could go do and know that I was doing my homework; I felt like I was staying on track when I was training. Now, it's turned a lot more into a lifestyle and philosophy."
- "Without those moments where you feel like your lowest, it's impossible to appreciate the high ones [11]."
Zac Efron's Quotes About Staying Healthy
- "Recently what I've started doing is searching for the cure inside [12] that's causing the symptoms of what I'm getting on the outside. Getting more sleep has really taken away the bags under my eyes, so I don't need to worry about it as much. There are other lifestyle changes — I've been experimenting with eating purely vegan. That's completely changed the way that my body works, and the way that I metabolise food, the way it turns into energy, the way that I sleep. It's been brilliant. It's been great for my exercise, and great for my routine."
- "For guys, [his Baywatch physique] is unrealistic. I'm telling you. I got very big and buff for that movie, but I don't want people to think that's the best way to be. Like, be your size… I don't want to glamorise this. [13]"
Zac Efron's Quotes About Acting
- "I'm constantly searching for characters that are about betterment of self and betterment of others. And I'm searching for those parts because those are the ones that make me happy. They're the ones that fulfil me personally. [14]"
- "The voice is like any other muscle [15] in the body. If you don't train it every day, if you don't use it every day, it can shrink. It's been out of commission for a while for me. I've lowered my register."
- "Exploring acting has been a profoundly justifying journey, a very, very cool journey. And it's unfinished — I still have a long way to go. I feel like I'm literally just getting started."
- "I would do [a superhero movie] in a second. I'm just waiting for the right opportunity. And the right tights [16]."