Zac Efron takes next step with 'Charlie St. Cloud'

Photo by Diyah Pera

Zac Efron in "Charlie St. Cloud"

Photo by Diyah Pera

Zac Efron in "Charlie St. Cloud"

Charlie St. Cloud

Accomplished sailor Charlie St. Cloud has the adoration of mother Claire and little brother Sam, as well as a college scholarship that will lead him ...

Rating: PG-13 for language including some sexual references, an intense accident scene and some sensuality

Length: 109 minutes

Released: July 30, 2010 Nationwide

Cast: Zac Efron, Amanda Crew, Donal Logue, Charlie Tahan, Kim Basinger

Director: Burr Steers

Writer: Lewis Colick, Craig Pearce, James Schamus, Ben Sherwood

More info and showtimes »

MINNEAPOLIS - Young girls adore two things: long-lashed boys resembling girls, and unicorns.

A psychiatrist might speculate on the correlation between the two, but our purpose here is to note that girls in their tender years tend to focus their first puppy love - at least their first celebrity crush - on a boy who isn't threateningly macho. The idealized imaginary boyfriend is sweetly pubescent, downy of cheek, and smooth of chest. (See: "Lautner, Taylor;" "Bieber, Justin;" "Jonas, Nick" et al.)

The inescapable problem for a performer who apprentices as a man-genue is that one cannot remain a Non-Threatening Boy forever. Somewhere along his professional path, biology asserts itself. Beards germinate and the Teen Choice Award torch passes to next-gen Disney Channel stars. The maturing cutester moves on to projects aimed at people old enough to drive, or else. (See: "Cassidy, David;" "Phillippe, Ryan;" "Bloom, Orlando" et al.)

Thus the quandary facing Zac Efron. Having graduated with honors from the world of "High School Musical," the doe-eyed 22-year-old actor must figure out what to do with the rest of his career.

Not that his allure is dimming yet. Efron currently is traveling the country promoting his new movie "Charlie St. Cloud," a mystical romance that blends a young adult love story and intense drama. He plays a tragedy-traumatized sailing champion, a role that requires him to brawl in a bar but not step onto the dance floor. In fact, he chose the part over the lead in the remake of "Footloose" because, "I've been in that world so many times before. I want to challenge myself," he said.

Running his new production company is a step toward creative independence, he said. "We have offices" on the Warner Bros. lot, "and desks and chairs. Now we have a better chance of getting movies made than ever before. I guess now I'm supposed to be coming up with ideas for movies," he said. Efron's wish list of collaborators includes Zack Snyder ("300," "Watchmen"), Todd Phillips ("The Hangover") and any writers who can create age-appropriate roles for a young actor in transition.

Still, he's not about to settle into a desk-jockey routine of a full-time producer.

"I've never been in my office. I've sort of looked in once. I'm kind of afraid to go in. Then it all will be real."

So far, his choices have been solid. Had things run the usual Hollywood course, he'd have been urged into projects along the lines of "Teen Wolf 3." Instead, Efron launched his own company (with the proudly immature label Ninjas Runnin' Wild). Efron's first post-"High School" project was a grown-up collaboration with indie-artsy director Richard Linklater, who balances free-spirited oddities such as "Slacker" and "Waking Life" with mainstream hits like "School of Rock." Linklater wanted him for an unlikely project, a classy period piece celebrating the greatest moviemaker of all time. "Me and Orson Welles" cast Efron as a bright, stagestruck high school senior who becomes a member of Welles' Mercury Theatre in 1937.

"I was at this phase, having just done 'High School Musical,' where I was really hungry to work with a director I could learn something from. I met with Rick before having read the entire script and after vibing with him and seeing how cool and relaxed he was, I just really wanted to work with him. I figured I would pick up a lot of knowledge along the way because he's been making such great movies for so long. As I read the script I could see the character was a lot like me. I could see myself pulling it off."

His follow-up was the predictable but pleasant high school body-swap comedy "17 Again." Though it was clearly designed to delight his young fans, indie director Burr Steers brought a caustic edge to the project. The film opened No. 1 at the box office.

In "Charlie St. Cloud," Efron rejoins Steers in a still darker story. Efron tackles scenes of turbulent emotion, especially in relation to his bratty younger brother, whose claims on Charlie prevent him from entering the world of adult relationships.

"It just had all the green lights around it. I looked at it from the audience perspective. We want to challenge the audience with original material. At the same time, I want to challenge myself, and I do think the fans will like this movie," he said. "They'll understand it, it's just a little bit older."

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