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Leonardo DiCaprio has been a star that many younger actors look up to, including High School Musical alum Zac Efron. But in Efron’s younger years, he admitted to harboring a bit jealousy towards his idol.
Leonardo DiCaprio has given Zac Efron personal advice
Efron had a similar celebrity experience as DiCaprio did during the latter’s Titanic days. Like DiCaprio, Efron became a teen idol thanks to starring in the popular High School Musical films. DiCaprio once joked that he was more than happy to relinquish his status as a sort of sex symbol to Efron during that time.
“I look at young Zac Efron and think ‘Go get it pal, leave me in peace,’” Leo once said according to Ace Showbiz. “I was never happy with the teen idol tag at all – never wanted to be a sex symbol or all that stuff – it was the work that appealed to me. Really nothing else.”
But DiCaprio has also given sage advice to Efron personally. The wisdom the Oscar-winner passed off to the actor was simple but effective.
“I thought I was gonna ask him questions,” Efron once told GQ of their meeting. “He ended up asking me questions, and in that, he told me a lot. He said, ‘There’s one way that you can really f*** this all up. Just do heroin. If you steer clear of that—the other obstacles you’ll be able to navigate.’ And that makes sense, dude.”
High School Musical helped open the doors for Efron as an actor. But it also brought Efron a certain level of attention and fame that, like other celebrities, he was uncomfortable with.
“I can tell you that fame is probably the most unadorable thing about acting. High School Musical is what got me here today and I’m very grateful – but the fame part isn’t so fun,” Efron once told Fanbolt.
Attaining that level of fame meant attracting paparazzi, having constant photographs taken of him, and celebrity gossip. Drawing from his own experience, Efron advised other aspiring actors to avoid pursuing stardom solely for fame’s sake.
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“Don’t do anything just to be famous. It would really suck if you had the fame without the love for what you do,” he said.
The irony of Efron’s situation was that he used to envy DiCaprio for the amount of attention the latter received.
“Leo, for me, was the first time I ever recognised fame. I was in fifth grade when he was literally on every magazine cover for Titanic and all the girls had these Tigerbeat magazines and I’d say, ‘Dude, what’s so great about this kid?’ I was jealous,” Efron once said according to FemaleFirst. “I mean, you couldn’t help but hate this guy. And now, to some degree, I’ve made it and I’m going through the same thing.”
Zac Efron went to Leonardo DiCaprio for advice dealing with fame
Staying away from drugs wasn’t the only advice that DiCaprio gave Efron. Over breakfast, DiCaprio spoke with the young star about his growing popularity in Hollywood.
“He cooked waffles and then he burnt those and then we made pancakes. It was awesome,” Efron once told Hot Ones. “I had a billion questions for him at that point. Definitely dealing with too much paparazzi presence in my life. And sitting next to Leo I was just like, ‘Dude, how have you handled this for so long?’ And he was like, ‘Frankly, you’re getting it a little bit different.’”
DiCaprio’s words meant a lot to the young star, who was just beginning to adjust to his celebrity.
“I really appreciate that he took that time. He made me feel good about it, helped me a little bit,” Efron said. “That’s the biggest hand you can extend if you’re in Hollywood, looking out for somebody younger.”
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