Zac Efron's Net Worth Revealed
Zac Efron
Zac Efron's net worth in 2023 comes not just from banking on his teen idol breakthrough, but also from taking a lot of risks.
Efron, who was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in December 2023, has taken a lot of dark turns in his career—from getting urinated on in The Paperboy to starring as serial killer Ted Bundy—and his acclaimed turn as Kevin Von Erich in The Iron Claw is no exception.
A24
Honored by his Iron Claw co-stars at his Walk of Fame induction ceremony on Dec. 11, 2023, Efron marveled at the honor and remained humble and charming as ever.
"I've been acting and singing and dancing for as long as I can remember, since I was a little boy, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would be here today," he said at his Walk of Fame induction ceremony, thanking his colleagues and fans. "Standing here today, I realize how unbelievably lucky I am, that over the course of 20 years, I've been blessed to work with truly the most talented, the most creative and the most kind people."
That kindness and low-key attitude, as well as a killer work ethic, helped make Efron a star. Find out Zac Efron's net worth in 2023.
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How did Zac Efron become famous?
Efron only tried his hand at acting when his father encouraged him to participate in an activity after school when he was growing up in Arroyo Grande, California. He took up theater and had small roles in local stage productions of Peter Pan and Gypsy, then won two improv contests with pals. From there, he got guest roles in shows including CSI: Miami, ER and Firefly.
Efron was ready to give up being an actor and enroll in college when he was invited to audition for a little old film called High School Musical when he was 17.
"My mom dropped me off out of a minivan somewhere in North Hollywood. I had no idea what to expect. There were about 40 guys," he recalled to The Hollywood Reporter. "And we walked in, and [director] Kenny Ortega was there with a piano, and they put everybody in a room together, and we ran through different phases of what we would need to do—first dancing, then singing—and a few of us got tapped on the shoulder [to leave], and I didn’t. And next came the scene-reading sections, and I got paired with Vanessa Hudgens."
The HSM franchise made him a heartthrob and a certified movie star. He followed up with projects including 17 Again (playing a younger version of Matthew Perry's character), Me and Orson Welles, The Paperboy, Neighbors, That Awkward Moment, The Lucky One and more—but felt like some people gave him a hard time having gotten his start in a Disney Channel original movie series.
"I'm grateful for every bit of that early success. It was hands down the most honest, carefree, passionate experience of my life. There were no expectations," he told The Hollywood Reporter. "[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."
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What is Zac Efron's net worth in 2023?
Zac Efron's net worth in 2023 is estimated at $25 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Efron's earnings aren't just from his acting career. He's also had several endorsements under his belt, including AT&T, Hugo Boss, Bombas and RVCA, and was announced as chief branding officer for Kodiak Cakes in June 2022.
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How much money has Zac Efron made?
Efron has reportedly earned upwards of $25 million throughout his career as of this writing in December 2023.
While his acclaimed turn as Kevin Von Erich in The Iron Claw put Efron's career on an upswing, he had a bit of a downturn in the 2010s when he battled addiction and suffered a devastating jaw injury which required surgery to correct. Efron, who typically makes around $5 million per movie according to The Hollywood Reporter, also reportedly takes smaller paydays for smaller-budget projects that interest and challenge him.
"I'm constantly faced with two paths: The road that leads to something everybody has already seen or is expecting, or the more challenging road, which tends to be a bit more confusing and definitely the harder road to take. And inevitably I always go with that road when I can," he told Metro of his career choices. "You have to grow and evolve. This was part of something I promised myself when I was young. If it doesn't scare me or it's not [making me] nervous or it's not challenging or it's not maybe something only I could do, or only I could figure out with 100% of my effort, is it worth doing?"
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How much did Zac Efron make from High School Musical?
Disney
Efron's breakout role reportedly paid him $100,000. Despite being the male lead as Troy Bolton, Efron's songs in the first High School Musical TV film were dubbed by a singer named Drew Seeley. You do get small glimpses of Efron's vocals, however: He sings in the balcony scene, as well as in the opening four lines of "Start of Something New" and the first line "Breaking Free."
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How much did Zac Efron make from High School Musical 2?
Disney
Efron's salary for High School Musical 2 isn't publicly known, but we do know he sang his own songs for this one! Because the first High School Musical was such a massive success, it's safe to assume that Efron got a substantial raise for the first sequel.
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How much did Zac Efron make for High School Musical 3: Senior Year?
Disney
Some reports place Efron's HSM 3 salary at $3 million, but those claims haven't been substantiated, and other outlets peg his payday at $5 million. It's pretty safe to assume it would be in the ballpark range between those sums.
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How much did Zac Efron make in Baywatch?
Paramount Pictures
Unsubstantiated reports place Efron's salary at $500,000 for Baywatch, in which he co-starred with Dwayne Johnson. He joked to Yahoo! Movies that he did the film, as well as Dirty Grandpa, purely for the income.
"Funny income," he said. "I'm still going to deal with that for the rest of my life."
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How much did Zac Efron get paid for Gold?
Gold, an Australian survival and psychological thriller, grossed $176,000 globally in its limited theatrical release in March 2022. It was also released on streaming and video on demand. The film had a total budget of about $6.5 million, and Efron's salary for the movie isn't publicly known.
"What drew him to this was that it was a role that he'd never done before. It was a performance he'd never given before. It was extremes he’d never worked in before," Gold director Anthony Hayes told The Sydney Morning Herald. "But with A-list actors who are used to a level of comfort, you never know what's going to happen once you get into the desert. It's easy when you’re just on a Zoom call."
Hayes loved working with Efron, noting, "Once Zac got out there, he was just the hardest working dude you could get."
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How much did Zac Efron get paid for The Greatest Showman?
20th Century Fox
It's not known how much Efron was paid for The Greatest Showman, but if his contract included box office bonuses, he likely made a sweet sum. The film was a sleeper hit in theaters, grossing $438.5 million worldwide on an $84 million budget thanks to positive word-of-mouth from audiences.
Efron sang his own songs as playwright and P.T. Barnum business partner Phillip Carlyle in the film—and he's expressed interest in a potential sequel if star Hugh Jackman is game.
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How much did Zac Efron make from Down to Earth?
Netflix
Efron's payday for two seasons of Down to Earth With Zac Efron, his Netflix docuseries, isn't known. He filmed much of it while living in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic, and showrunner Michael Simkin told Tudum that much of the series was driven purely by what Efron found interesting.
"This show was always something we were figuring out as we were going. I love food. And Zac loves adventure and travel and nature," he said. "And so it just made sense that our way and his way of exploring it would be through the lenses of the things that interest him. Zac knows we can [all] do more and understand more. So, like, what journey would we want to go on [to achieve that]?"
