Zac Efron has made a career out of being a Disney teenage heartthrob while appearing in outrageous comedies where he’s poked fun at his image, but The Greatest Beer Run Ever is about to shake things up for the 34-year-old actor and potentially earn his first Oscar nomination. Earning world-wide recognition for the breezy High School Musical movies, Efron proved himself a great actor in movies like Me and Orson Welles, and showcased his comedic side in raunchy flicks like Dirty Grandpa. While major awards and critical acclaim have alluded him, 2019’s Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, where he portrayed serial killer Ted Bundy, provided a new edge to his image.
Efron will be seen next in The Greatest Beer Run Ever, a feature-length adaptation of a true-story-turned-beer-commercial that follows John “Chickie” Donahue in 1967 as he leaves New York to bring beer to his childhood buddies in the Army while they are fighting in Vietnam. Helmed by writer/director Peter Farrelly, he’ll be appearing alongside veteran actors like Bill Murray and Oscar-winner Russell Crowe in the comedy/drama that recently completed filming in Thailand. The film may be able to earn Efron his first nomination because of past Oscar track records.
People know and love Efron as a heartthrob comedic actor, but the Academy loves a story of idol-turned-artist like pre-scandal Johnny Depp. Voter’s eyes will be on Efron when the movie is released. Farrelly is also coming off his Oscar-winning film Green Book, meaning he has a lot of pull in the industry right now to pick and choose worthwhile projects. The simple fact that he chose Efron to lead his next project is a huge bode of confidence in the actor’s skills. Finally, it’s a light-hearted story, akin to Green Book and recent winner Coda, about Vietnam. Oscar loves war movies, plus the trend seems to be picking lighter fare to win the big prizes on Oscar night, so Efron has more than a shot to make a splash at next year’s ceremony.
As of April 2022, there aren’t very many Oscar contenders, which, of course, is more than typical for this time of year. But looking at the months ahead, few have a nomination locked. Austin Butler’s turn as Elvis Presley is certainly stirring up buzz, while others believe Nicolas Cage’s portrayal of himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is fitting for Oscar gold. Green Book star Viggo Mortenson returns this year by leading Ron Howard’s Thirteen Lives, which charts the evens of the 2018 Thailand cave rescue. Audiences will also get to see the always beloved Tom Hanks star in A Man Called Otto. Then there is whole stacked cast of Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, which includes Robert De Niro and Leo DiCaprio. So really, right now, it’s anyone’s game.
Time will tell how Efron does and what The Greatest Beer Run Ever does for his career. No matter the award buzz, it’s a major step forward for the actor who has spent the past decade parodying his image and popping up in sophomoric comedies. Given the recent picture released of the actor from the set, it looks like Zac Efron has been really throwing himself into the role, and the movie has the chance of getting an Oscar Nomination in 2022.
