New movie trailer shows Zac Efron as serial killer Ted Bundy
You’ll never look at San Luis Obispo County native Zac Efron the same way again.
Audiences got their first glimpse at Efron as real-life serial killer Ted Bundy in the chilling new trailer for “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile,” released Friday.
It shows the San Luis Obispo-born actor as a witty, charming killer with a deadly secret.
Directed by Joe Berlinger, “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” promises to reveal “the story behind America’s most notorious serial killer,” as seen through the perspective of Bundy’s longtime girlfriend, Elizabeth Kloepfer (Lily Collins).
“There are things you don’t know ... that will shock you beyond your worst nightmare,” Efron says in a voiceover in the trailer.
Bundy, who assaulted and murdered numerous girls and women in the 1970s, confessed to 30 homicides in seven states between 1974 and 1978 before he was executed in 1989.
His crimes — and legendary good looks and charisma — have fascinated Hollywood ever since, inspiring nearly a dozen movies and television specials. Netflix released the four-part documentary series “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes,” also directed by Berlinger, on Thursday.
“Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” represents a major departure for Efron, whose credits include “The Greatest Showman,” “Baywatch” and the “High School Musical” movies.
An Arroyo Grande High School graduate, he appeared in productions at the Great American Melodrama and Vaudeville in Oceano and PCPA-Pacific Conservatory Theatre in Santa Maria.
In a December 2017 interview, Efron told The Tribune that he’s drawn to film projects that challenge him.
“Whenever I’m looking at a project, I feel like I’m Neo in ‘The Matrix’ and have the option of taking the red pill or the blue pill. The blue one is ‘You wake up and things stay the same,’ or you can take the red pill and see how deep the rabbit hole goes,” Efron said. “I feel like that’s always the more interesting route.”
“Seeing how far I can really push myself, that’s led me to meet some of the most interesting people and go to some of the most interesting places ever and accomplish things I never really dreamed of,” he added.
“Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile” premieres Saturday at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, and opens in theaters nationwide later in 2019.
This story was originally published January 25, 2019 at 4:24 PM with the headline "New movie trailer shows Zac Efron as serial killer Ted Bundy."