Zac Efron has pulled out of the starring role in Paramount’s remake of the 1984 movie musical Footloose. Paramount issued the following statement, insisting that plans for the project are still full steam ahead, with or without Efron: “Footloose is a project we’ve longed to see re-booted for a new generation. While Zac is no longer attached, we remain excited and committed to the collective brain trust of Kenny Ortega, Neil Meron and Craig Zaden, who will reinvigorate the franchise. Their fresh take on the film will undoubtedly be filled with the same kind of breakout performances that we’ve come to expect from them.” However, there are rumblings that unless the filmmakers — which include Efron’s High School Musical director, Ortega — can come up with an equally magnetic and bankable song-and-dance dude, the project may be put on hold.
As for Efron, who spent more than a year and a half attached to the project, sources
say the High School Musical phenom had been advised to hold off on doing another
musical until he’d established more versatility in a variety of genres.
Basically, nobody wants to be pigeonholed that early in their career.
Efron has worked hard over the past year to take on projects that
showcase a broad range, beginning with a dramatic role as a wide-eyed
climber in Richard Linklater’s Me and Orson Welles (which debuted at
last year’s Toronto Film Festival but has yet to nail down
distribution) and the upcoming New Line comedy, Seventeen Again,
in
which he plays a 38-year-old guy in the body of a teenager. “I think
the hardest thing about being young and in the business is that a lot
of opportunities present themselves and there’s no road map,” Efron
told EW in an interview last fall. “A lot of people want to give you
their opinion, which can be based on their own personal gain. I’ve made
it my priority to follow my gut feeling. You know when something’s
cheesy and you know when something’s a sell out movie and you know when
a project feels right.”
Comments (1-30) of 54 Add your comment
Thats too bad. It sounded promising.
Thats too bad it sounded promising.
i do not see him as ren. kevin bacon is so wonderful in the original. i would have hated to see it ruined by efron.
I can’t think of a person more perfect for this role than Derek Hough. He would be better than Zac Efron ever thought about being. He has fans of all ages from DWTS. He’s a phenomenal singer and dancer and he already played Ren in Footloose in London. He’s perfect!!
1 – Why are we remaking “Footloose.”
2 – And is something a “franchise” if there was only one movie?
In 5 years he’s going to be working at Denny’s. He should take roles while he can get them. What a snot.
great, now the movie can continue getting flack on its own. he certainly doesn’t need that.
To walk away from the project after people have worked on it for a Year and a half is wrong, unless the script was awful, which is my best guess why he did it.
http://www.entertainmenttodayandbeyond.com/
chuck
I feel like he probably just signed up because he likes Kenny Ortega so much, but if the script is terrible then he shouldn’t do it.
I hope this means the project will just go away. We do not need to remake “Footloose”. Can’t anyone come up with an original storyline these days?
Derek Hough would be perfect for this. He has a great voice and there isn’t a better dancer out there. He was Ren in London in the West End and I read he was amazing.
don’t do footloose zac, but go ahead and do seventeen again–that would drive your movie career down the drain, lol!!!
This was a smart move for Zac. Since he had script approval, the script must not have been very good and that way he bailed. The producers has a year and half to come up with a decent script and they didn’t do it.
Let the project RIP. The original Footloose is perfect. I am an 80s child but am getting sick to death of all the remakes already.
Probably didn’t care for the script casting timing etc.
Not that we needed another Footloose, but there are worse things to be typecast as than a song-and-dance leading man heartthrob. He has plenty of time to tackle the role of a drug-addicted-emotionally-disturbed sexually-ambiguous antihero in some indie film.
Yes, Derek Hough would be perfect.
I don’t think we need another Footloose. Nothing they do for this one can beat the original. BUT since they obviously are going to do it anyways, I think they should look into Nolan Gerard Funk. He can sing, dance, act and he’s much hotter than Zac Efron.
It’s all about sequels and remakes (or reimagings)..is it so hard to come up with a compelling original idea?
he cant fill kevin bacon shoes anyway
My car keys are more “magnetic” than Zac Efron.
Why do they have to mess with perfection anyway? There is no reason to remake Footloose. Be original and create your own movie…stop taking our classics!
i hate messing with perfection, but “Footloose” is no “Gone With the Wind”… a remake would be fun…who should star? helLOOOO? Derek Hough, Derek Hough, Derek Hough….
glad to see him turn down the role and hope he continues to take steps away from the song and dance bit…but i don’t think Seventeen Again is going to do him any favors with pigeon holing…i would have stayed away there too.
As much as I occasionally enjoy watching Footloose, I don’t think anyone can say it’s a great movie. And filling Kevin Bacon’s shoes wouldn’t be problematic – he wasn’t much of an actor or a dancer in the movie (when viewed with modern goggles). So, yeah, I have a nostalgic attachment to the original, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all if a new remake in good hands could be superior to the original. One could only wish to have as successful of a soundtrack, though. The original spawned hit after hit and was played for a couple years non-stop. Of course, I’d dare them to try!
I think Zac Efron has tons of charisma and a bright future, however, his gut didn’t tell him that HSM was cheesy? Really? Not even in the slightest? At the same time, I can see how he doesn’t want to be typecast as “the dancing actor.” A real shame when he does it so well.
I think Zac Efron will be the next person in Hollywood to “come out”
ADAM LAMBERT!!! Sign him now!
Why, Why, Why, would you mess with a classic movie like Footloose, and yes I said classic. I know that it’s no Casablanca, but from 80’s pop culture, it’s a classic. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, just leave well enough alone. Re: KnightRider
Sorry Zac has left. It would have been a fun movie to see. But here’s the perfect replacement….Mitch Hewer, the super talented young Brit from ‘Skins’ and “Brittania High’. He has the dancing ability, the acting chops, and the professionalism to do this. His buddy Dev Patel from ‘Skins’ was a hit in ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. Mitch would be become a new smash in US cinema.