Zac Efron's exit leaves Footloose revival in limbo

So Zac Efron does want to have an actual career. The actor has dropped out of Paramount’s revival of Footloose, the future of which is now uncertain.

Footloose, of course, was first an ’80s vehicle for Kevin Bacon, and Efron’s agents apparently realized that hip-shaking is no longer the radical act of sexual resistance it once was (you need fangs for that kind of thing now). Since the entire project was predicated on the tween success Efron has has with the High School Musical movies, it’s no longer clear if Paramount will go ahead with the movie.

Still, the studio said, Efron’s High School Musical director Kenny Ortega remains attached to the movie, so who knows? Efron will co-star in 17 Again next month, and he also has a part in Richard Linklater's Me and Orson Welles (pictured), which still lacks an American distributor.

Related links:
Ctrl-V: Trailer Stash: 17 Again, etc.
Features: Pretenders in Chief: Paste casts the presidents
Zac Efron on IMDb

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.