Zac Efron had to reveal horrifying reason behind face transformation after fans noticed he ‘looked different’

Zac Efron has explained the reason why his appearance has changed after fans began to ask questions.

While the star has gone on to have an illustrious film career, many of us will have a fond place for him in our hearts as star basketball player, Troy Bolton, in Disney's High School Musical franchise.

If you don't know what that film series is, you're missing out on Sharpay Evans and some beautiful teen angst.

Anyway, since that time, Efron has gone on to star in musicals The Greatest Showman and 17 Again, as well as A24’s biographical wrestling movie The Iron Claw and Amazon Prime Video’s Ricky Stanicky.

While devoted fans of his are caught up with his back catalogue, many do not know about the reason why his facial features have drastically changed in recent years.

Zac Efron first broke onto our screens for Disney's High School Musical (Frazer Harrison / Staff / Getty)

However, Efron’s appearance was brought into public discourse after the release of his new Netflix film, A Family Affair.

In his latest American romantic comedy, he plays the Hollywood icon Chris Cole, who falls in love with his assistant Zara Ford’s (played by Joey King) divorced mother, Brooke Harwood (Nicole Kidman), and after watching the flick, fans asked social media why his face had seemingly changed.

One X user questioned: “What did Zac Efron do to his face?”, as a second wrote: “Started watching Family Affair on Netflix.... what has happened to Zac Efron's face?! It doesn't even move anymore.”

“Zac Efron’s face looks so different,” remarked someone else.

Well, it turns out that Efron’s altered appearance dates back to 2013, when he accidentally shattered his jaw.

Speaking to Men’s Health in 2022, the Baywatch star revealed he’d been ‘running through his house in socks and slipped’ on a pool of water.

Efron revealed that he'd been involved in a horrific accident where he accidentally shattered his jaw (Matt Winkelmeyer / Staff / Getty)

As he fell, he hit his chin on the side of a granite fountain, which knocked him out cold. As he came around, he quickly discovered that his ‘chin bone was hanging off his face’.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Efron said: “It was funny. It sucks. I almost died, but we're good.”

He later revealed that his face had changed shape after forgoing physical therapy to film his Netflix series, Down to Earth with Zac Efron.

As a result, his masseters 'just frew' as they overcompensated for weaker, still-developing jaw muscles.

Earlier this year, fans of the star were quick to defend him after The Traitors US and RuPaul's Drag Race star, Bob The Drag Queen, made a joke about Efron's ability as an actor to his younger brother, Dylan Efron.