An actor's job is to delve into the mind of their character.
When you're character is one of the most notorious serial killers of all time, this can put considerable stress on your life and work, which is what Zac Efron discovered while playing Ted Bundy in the new movie Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile.
At the European premiere of the movie, Efron was asked by Joe Berlinger of Metro UK how he managed to "limit the mental toll" playing the roll put on him.
"That was put to the test for this one. I've never played a role in which I have to separate myself. It was almost impossible. I would like to say I did that successfully, but I couldn't."
Efron also spoke with Entertainment Weekly about how he "decompressed" from playing the role:
"I did breathing and meditation. I think that's the only way. I really love TM, transcendental meditation. I did TM on the way home. Not while driving [laughs], but when you're shooting a movie one thing we can afford is a ride home, so on the way home I just do some TM and try to phase out of it. Really, you can't ever really let go of all of it. There's always a little bit of you that knows tomorrow you're Ted."
The film, which tells the story of Bundy from the perspective of his longtime girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer, has been accused by some of glorifying the life of one of America's most notable psychopaths.
Efron and director Joe Berlinger have pushed back on those claims, however, saying the film does anything but glorify its subject:
"I wasn't interested in playing a serial killer. I'm not in the business of glamourising such a horrendous person or his acts.
But there is something unique about the way going into the psyche of Ted and his longtime girlfriend Liz, it's a different perspective and not your run-of-the-mill serial killer, cliche, bodycount gets higher and higher and 'oh the guy you always knew did it' [film]. It was what it was like to be there on the day."
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile will be released on Netflix on May 3, and many fans are quite excited!
Does Efron manage to strike the right chord with his performance as Ted Bundy? You'll have to tune in to Netflix to find out.
EXTREMELY WICKED, SHOCKINGLY EVIL AND VILE Official Trailer (2019) Zac Efron, Lily Collins Movie HDwww.youtube.com
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