Post-High School Musical, it would have been easy for ZAC EFRON to disappear in a cloud of fake tan and hairspray to the graveyard of teen fads, faster than you can say ‘Macauley Culkin’. Instead, the headstrong actor – recently voted one of the hottest actors under 25 – has smoothly integrated himself into Hollywood, making friends in high places and setting the foundations for a stellar career in acting…

1 Attracting the big bucks
As the third instalment of High School Musical dances its way onto the silver screen – breaking box offices records in the US and UK – Zac is steadily infiltrating the elite $8 million (Dhs29 million) -a-movie twenty-something club, alongside household names like Shia LaBeouf and Emile Hirsch.

Established as box office gold, he’s set to earn a hefty Dhs29 million as the star of an upcoming Footloose remake, and his hefty pay packet could rocket to as much as Dhs33.7 million-a-picture if a rumoured fourth instalment of the uber-successful High School Musical franchise goes ahead.

It’s a huge leap from the Dhs367,000 he was paid for his award-winning breakthrough role in Hairspray. But, according to industry insiders, he’s well worth the gamble.

“He is the reason [for High School Musical’s success],” says a top talent agent. “Because without him, they don’t have a movie.”

2 Breaking the mould
While Zac is aware that HSM is his cash cow, his reluctance to be typecast, along with his perseverance as an actor, have led him to search for roles outside the high school hunk genre.

Cue worthy period drama Me And Orson Welles, alongside Claire Danes; comedy Seventeen Again with Matthew Perry, and a slated appearance on London’s West End.

“Zac wants to prove what a real actor he is. He wants to show off his full range of talents,” said a source.

And his diversity has paid off – Robert De Niro is rumoured to be chasing him for his upcoming project Bridge And Tunnel.

3 Working the rumour mill
Thanks to information mysteriously ‘leaked’ onto the gossip sites, Zac’s name has been linked to a series of career-enhancing projects, including Pirates Of The Caribbean 4 – where it was suggested he was being groomed to eventually replace Johnny Depp in the Disney juggernaut – and hit stage play Equus. While there was no truth to either casting rumour, his association with the projects heightened the Hollywood buzz around Zac, and gave him the opportunity to bid for the roles.

“I wish I was going to be in Pirates Of The Caribbean 4,” said Zac. “So hopefully that will happen for me.”

4 Learning from the best
Zac is aware one false move could finish him – “So many people are waiting for us to misstep, and we don’t want to give anyone that satisfaction” – so he is seeking advice from former pin-ups-turned-serious-actors. “I would love to just sit down and talk with Leonardo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp and pick their brains about their early careers,” says Zac. Adding, “They do it because they love it, not because they enjoy being famous. You have to have good foresight and be really careful, because if you don’t adapt and learn at a very young age, you can really mess up.’’

5 Conquering the ‘Cute’ factor
With a gaggle of devoted female fans, Zac knows he needs to get the guys on side if he’s going to broaden his fan base. So, when risque snaps of his girlfriend, lad mag fave Vanessa Hudgens, surfaced on the net earlier this year – amid a chorus of cat calls and frat boy slaps from the male population – the timing couldn’t have been better.

Followed by steamy shots of him frolicking on the beach with Vanessa – along with rumours that the squeaky clean star doesn’t like to shower much – his image as ‘one of the boys’ was firmly cemented.

But all the while, Zac’s been careful not to alienate his teen fans, throwing them an occasional bone of a comment to cling onto.

“I like curvy girls; I don’t always find myself dating super-skinny girls,” he charmed. “It’s not all about what you look like, it’s so much more. I know it sounds really cheesy, but it’s more about what’s on the inside when you’re dating a girl.”