Celebrity4 min(s) read
Published 11:40 12 Dec 2023 GMT
Zac Efron honored his late friend and co-star Matthew Perry during a speech at his Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony.
On Monday (December 11), the 36-year-old actor - who first broke out as the star of Disney's High School Musical movie trilogy in the 2000s - appeared in Los Angeles as the Hollywood Walk of Fame awarded him with a star in recognition of his career accomplishments.
Efron's The Iron Claw costar Jeremy Allen White and director Sean Durkin, as well as Top Gun: Maverick actor Miles Teller, all appeared at the ceremony to reflect on the star's legacy.
The actor is now the 2,767th entertainment industry figure to receive a star on the Walk of Fame, per an official press release.
Watch Efron's speech at the Hollywood Walk of Fame below:Before unveiling his star, Efron praised Matthew Perry for motivating him to reach the next stage of his career after the 2009 comedy 17 Again.
The dynamic duo starred alongside each other in the flick, in which Efron plays the young version of Perry as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity sees him transported to high school in the hopes that he could re-do his life over again.
While the movie received a pretty good reaction at the time, scoring an above-average score of 57% on Rotten Tomatoes' critic rating as well as 67% on its audience rating, over time, it became a movie that continues to entertain audiences even in 2023.
Speaking about the late Friends actor, Efron said: "I really also want to mention someone that’s not here today, and that’s Matthew Perry, who was so kind and generous with me while we worked on 17 Again together," as cited by CNN.
He described collaborating with Perry as "so much fun and it really did propel me and motivate me in so many ways. It really pushed me into the next chapter of my career," adding: "And for that, thank you so much, Matthew."
"Thinking about you a lot today," the Baywatch actor added, appearing to get emotional.
Perry, who sadly died on October 28 at age 54, was discovered in the hot tub at his Los Angeles home by first responders.
In their statement to People, the late actor's family shared their heartbreak, saying: "We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and brother. Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend. You all meant so much to him, and we appreciate the tremendous outpouring of love."
According to the Fools Rush In actor's friend Athenna Crosby, who went to dinner with Perry just a day before his tragic death, Perry expressed his desire to collaborate with Efron again - this time in a biopic.
"He said that he wanted to make a movie about his life," Crosby told ET Canada. "He said that he wanted Zac Efron to play him as a younger version [of himself] and that he was gonna ask him soon to do that. He was just looking forward to sharing more about his story and his recovery from addiction, and really championing that cause to help more people, so he was so optimistic and happy about everything that he wanted to do."
Speaking to ExtraTV last month, The Greatest Showman star responded that he was "hugely honored" upon hearing the revelation of Perry's casting choice.
"It would be extraordinary to do and, of course, I’m just really still devastated by the fact he's gone," he said, adding, "We’ll see what happens."
