Zac Efron‘s fans think he looks completely unrecognizable in an Entertainment Weekly interview filmed from the set of his new film, The Iron Claw. The interview is part of the mag’s new cover shoot in promotion of the upcoming biopic about the legendary Von Erich family, also starring Jeremy Allen White and Harris Dickinson, which sees Efron playing the role of professional wrestler Kevin Von Erich.
Stepping into the role of the legendary wrestler who rose to fame in the 1960s naturally meant the already very physically fit star had to get into even better shape for the part, which is something he certainly achieved if the pictures and videos are anything to go by. Although the 36-year-old High School Musical alum’s appearance certainly did change for the role, it wasn’t his extra-bulky body which fans seemed to comment on in the social media comments – it was his face!
Fans Can’t Stop Talking About Zac Efron’s Face On Social Media
The Greatest Showman star’s changing appearance has been a hot topic of discussion for many years now – in particular his jaw area. The Baywatch actor previously told fans he had to have his face reconstructed after having a bad accident back in 2013, but it is looking different once again, causing the internet to ask many questions.
Many fans took to Instagram and X, formerly Twitter, to comment on the video taken during the Entertainment Weekly shoot, with one asking, “What happened to his face?” as someone else quipped, “[He] looks like Prince Farquhar in Shrek.” Another thought: “His jaw makes him look like David Hasselhoff from Baywatch.”
"Omg Zac, what happened to you?" asked another fan. "His face doesn't even move now," noted another, as someone else thought: "Growth hormone has wrecked his jaw/lips." Another fan reminded other social media users about his 2013 accident, saying: "Before everyone comments about it, Z said that his jaw shattered in an accident and he had to get it restructured which is supposedly why it looks different now."
Not everyone was buying that excuse though, with another fan replying: "The accident happened in 2013. Please stop with this false narrative."
A Plastic Surgeon Weighs In
That's what social media thinks, but what does a plastic surgeon think? While celebrity facial plastic surgeon Dr. Sam Rizk doesn't seem to doubt that the actor had an accident ten years ago which led to him having plastic surgery on his jaw area, he does think he went one step further and did "something better."
"He probably took the opportunity, in addition to correcting it, to do something better," Rizk told the New York Post. "He might have had jaw advancements where they pull the chin a little bit more forward because his chin looks a little bit more prominent. Or a chin implant or mandibular angle implants [in the lower jaw] or all of the above."
But it isn't just the jaw that Rizk noticed a difference in, noting his eyebrows and cheeks are also looking different too! "He always had a straight eyebrow, and now they have more of an arch. His eyebrow is a little bit higher, which indicates he had some type of brow lift or he had Botox," he suspected, adding that the change makes him look a little more feminine. "We attribute an arch to a feminine eyebrow. Generally speaking, the male eyelid doesn't have an angle in its arch," he added. Interesting!
As for his plumper cheeks: "Cheeks don't get fuller as you age. You lose volume in the cheeks when you age. When he was younger he had a flatter cheek," he noted, adding that the actor "most likely" had some sort of cheek filler to contribute to the plumper look.
