To say that Zac Efron’s next role will be a departure from the usual shirtless and brainless comedies we’re used to seeing the hunky actor in would be a massive understatement.
We’ve already got our first look at the Baywatch star inhabiting the skin of serial killer Ted Bundy for the upcoming Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile, but that doesn’t make the correlation between the two any easier to stomach.
Directed by Joe Berlinger, who most notably co-helmed Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory and received an Oscar nomination for his efforts, Extremely Wicked has compiled quite an ensemble apart from Efron, including John Malkovich, Lily Collins, and Jim Parsons. Told from the point-of-view of Bundy’s then-girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer (Collins), the picture will span the entirety of the serial killer’s spree, promising an in-depth look at him and the crimes he committed.
Production wrapped on the pic last month and while the film is still without a release date, Efron recently sat down with Entertainment Tonight to discuss his process, while also sharing the below video of him getting into character.
Speaking about what attracted him to the script, the actor said:
“It’s very interesting. I think the movie itself is really deep. It doesn’t really glorify Ted Bundy. He wasn’t a person to be glorified. It was fun to go and experiment in that realm of reality. I didn’t go full method and I didn’t have to like do any weird stuff to anybody to get into character.”
Based on an original screenplay by Michael Werewie that won the Nicholl Fellowship prize and was featured on the Black List, Efron went on to further praise the film’s complexity.
“It simply tells a story and sort of how the world was able to be charmed over by this guy who was notoriously evil and the vexing position that so many people were put in, the world was put in.”
While we’re forced to wait and see whether Efron’s venture into uncharted territory with Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile successfully reinvents his career, there’s no harm in temporarily letting the hype get the better of us, right?
