Details About The Accident That Changed Zac Efron's Appearance Forever
Actor Zac Efron has enjoyed a successful run in Hollywood since his 2005 breakout role next to Vanessa Hudgens in Disney's "High School Musical." Though the California native had struggled with several tragedies in his life, Efron became a popular leading man, starring in such movies as "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile," and "The Iron Claw." But as much as fans enjoyed his work, much of the buzz surrounding Efron in his career was on his dashing good looks. It's perhaps because of that focus that fans began to notice physical changes to Efron's face, most notably, his jaw.
Efron went from a more rounded chin to a square one, leading many to believe he had undergone plastic surgery. However, he would eventually dispel that rumor.In an October 2022 interview with Men's Health, Efron said that in 2013, he'd been running in socks in his home when he slipped and fell, slamming chin-first into a granite fountain. The injury left him with a shattered jaw, requiring him to have it wired shut. Speaking to "Entertainment Tonight" in 2022, Efron admitted, "It was funny. It sucks. I almost died, but we're good."
Zac Efron publicly had fun with the mystery of his jaw injury
When "Down to Earth" star Zac Efron suffered his broken jaw in 2013, it led to a gradual change in his appearance over the next few years. Though fans believed his startling new look to be the result of plastic surgery, they didn't know the truth behind the scenes.
According to the 2022 interview with Men's Health, Efron said that he worked with a specialist to rehab the injury, which caused his facial muscles to work harder than before. "The masseters just grew," he commented. "They just got really, really big." While Efron's story finally solved the mystery of his physical change years later, he did mock the incident during a 2014 promotional tour.
In a hilarious Rotten Tomatoes YouTube video from that year, Efron appeared next to "Awkward" co-stars Michael B. Jordan and Miles Teller, both of whom roasted his injury. As Efron held an ice pack to his bandaged face, Jordan and Teller told the story of a romantic rendezvous that ended badly. The incident apparently angered Efron's female friend so much that she took a heavy book and hit Efron in the face, breaking his jaw.