Zac's a poker pro, says director
Friday November 27 2009
Zac Efron is a dab hand at poker, filmmaker Richard Linklater has revealed.
Richard, who directed the High School Musical star in Me And Orson Welles, joked that he was initially taken in by Zac's clean-cut image, but soon got hustled.
"Zac's really very smart - don't play poker with him, he'll take your money," he said.
"If you ever underestimate Zac, you'd realise that he's actually a couple of steps ahead of you. I learnt this."
Richard said that Zac was his first choice to play teenager Richard Samuels, who lucks his way into working with a young Orson Welles, played by Christian Mackay.
"Zac was the first guy I met for that part and I just said, 'That's it. I've found my lead character'," he recalled. "I just thought he was great. He had all the charisma, a little bit of innocence because he's young and he also has a knowing quality."
But he had initial reservations about Zac's pretty boy looks.
"I had just seen Hairspray and my first impression was that he's almost too good-looking," Richard went on. "But in my experience, you can't judge the full range of an actor based on what you've seen him in, so we set up a meeting. A minute or two into the conversation, I knew he would be the perfect Richard Samuels."
He added: "He's got a rare quality you don't see very often."
:: Me And Orson Welles is released in cinemas on December 4.
Press Association
