Literally Just 18 Photos Of Zac Efron Over The Years That Are Pretty Wild To See

    If Zac Efron has 100 fans, I’m one of them. If Zac Efron has 10 fans, I’m one of them. If Zac Efron has one fan, it’s me. If Zac Efron has no fans, I’m dead.

    Lauren Garafano
    by Lauren Garafano

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Zac Efron is the moment. Just a month ago he earned his well-deserved star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and has been receiving Oscar buzz for his stellar performance as Kevin Von Erich in The Iron Claw.

    wrestler jumps up to kick another in the ring
    A24 /Courtesy Everett Collection

    And as a fan who's been rooting for Zac since his High School Musical days, it's just so awesome seeing him thrive as a movie star.

    him with his hollywood star
    Leon Bennett / Getty Images

    Whether you're a longtime fan like me, or have just seen a few of his movies, you just have to admit this evolution is wiiiiild:

    1. Zac Efron in 2004:

    closeup of a younger him in a floral button down
    Jean-paul Aussenard / WireImage

    Here he is on one of his first red carpets ever for WB Network's 2004 All Star Summer Party. 

    2. Zac Efron in 2005:

    his hair is longer and he's wearing a simple button-down
    Michael Bezjian / WireImage

    Here he is at Ashley Tisdale's birthday party. 

    3. Zac Efron in 2006:

    he's smiling with fans behind him
    Barry King / WireImage

    Here he is for some reason at the world premiere for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.

    4. Zac Efron in 2007:

    closeup of him with his long sideswept hair wearing a short-sleeved button down
    Steve Granitz / WireImage

    Here he is at the Disneyland Downtown Disney premiere of High School Musical 2 .

    5. Zac Efron in 2008:

    he's wearing slacks and a short sleeve button down with a vest on top
    Steve Granitz / WireImage

    Here he is at the Teen Choice Awards, which he attended with his then-girlfriend Vanessa Hudgens. 

    6. Zac Efron in 2009:

    his hair almost covers his eyes and he's wearing a blazer with jeans
    Gregg Deguire / FilmMagic

    Here he is with some *very* swoopy hair at the MTV Movie Awards. 

    7. Zac Efron in 2010:

    he's wearing a suit and his hair is short and spiky now
    Dan Macmedan / WireImage

    Here he is at the 82 Annual Academy Awards, where he presented the awards for Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing with Anna Kendrick. 

    8. Zac Efron in 2011:

    Lester Cohen / WireImage

    Here he is in his buzzcut era at the People's Choice Awards. 

    9. Zac Efron in 2012:

    he's wearing a leather jacket and his hair has grown out to be spiked up again
    Barry King / FilmMagic

    Here he is at the premiere of The Lorax, aka the same premiere where he accidentally dropped a condom on the red carpet. NGL, but this was actually kinda hilarious. 

    10. Zac Efron in 2013:

    he's in a suit and his hair is brushed back
    Charles Eshelman / FilmMagic

    Here he is at a screening of his movie At Any Price.  

    11. Zac Efron in 2014:

    in a suit and his hair is spiked up
    Jason Merritt / Getty Images

    Here he is giving us a smoldering look at the Neighbors premiere. 

    12. Zac Efron in 2015:

    in a blazer and his hair is left longer and messy
    Jon Kopaloff / FilmMagic

    Here he is at the LA premiere for his movie We Are Your Friends.

    13. Zac Efron in 2016:

    he's in a light suit and his hair also has some blonde streaks
    Gregg Deguire / Getty Images

    Here he is at the premiere for Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates. 

    14. Zac Efron in 2017:

    closeup of him in a suit
    Alexander Tamargo

    Here he is at the world premiere of Baywatch. 

    15. Zac Efron in 2018:

    he's in a suit and now has facial hair
    Daniele Venturelli / WireImage

    Here he is at the 2018 Golden Globes repping The Greatest Showman. 

    16. Zac Efron in 2019:

    his beard is growing out and he's platinum blonde
    Neilson Barnard / Getty Images

    Zac was in his platinum blonde era. This was also around the same time his movie Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile came out and he got some more praise for his portrayal as Ted Bundy in the movie. 

    17. Zac Efron in 2022:

    he's sitting down wearing a suit at a late night interview
    Nbc / Todd Owyoung / NBC via Getty Images

    Zac understandably wasn't doing any press between 2020–2021 because of the pandemic!! But he came back in 2022 with an appearance on The Tonight Show to promote his movie The Greatest Beer Run Ever.  

    18. Zac Efron in 2023:

    he's wearing a cream suit with some light facial hair and short hair spiked at the front
    Stewart Cook / Getty Images for A24

    Here he is at The Iron Claw premiere looking as dapper as ever.