Variety are reporting that Zac Efron, best known for his role as Troy Bolton in Kenny Ortega’s High School Musical series, is in talks to star in an adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ novel, The Lucky One, who’s also responsible for such weepy films as Dear John, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, A Walk to Remember and Message in a Bottle.
The synopsis for The Lucky One is embedded below:
After U.S. Marine Logan Thibault finds a photograph of a smiling young woman buried in the dirt during his tour of duty in Iraq, he experiences a sudden streak of luck — winning poker games and even surviving deadly combat. Only his best friend, Victor, seems to have an explanation for his good fortune: the photograph — his lucky charm.
Back home in Colorado, Thibault can’t seem to get the woman in the photograph out of his mind and he sets out on a journey across the country to find her. But Thibault is caught off guard by the strong attraction he feels for the woman he encounters in North Carolina – Elizabeth, a divorced mother — and he keeps the story of the photo, and his luck, a secret. As he and Elizabeth embark upon a passionate love affair, his secret soon threatens to tear them apart — destroying not only their love, but also their lives.
Efron seems a perfect fit for the role, having experience in the genre before with 17 Again, and with the upcoming Charlie St. Cloud. It’d be interesting to see Efron attempt something out with his comfort zone, but I’m sure this will please a lot of Sparks fans for the time being.
Warner Bros. Pictures hold the rights to the novel, and with Denise DiNovi producing, expect Efron’s involvement to be confirmed soon, with a director following soon after.
