The 'Iron Claw' star reflects on his time working with Perry and how his death has shifted his perspective.
Zac Efron is opening up about the loss of his former co-star and friend, Matthew Perry. Perry died on Oct. 28 at the age of 54. The pair starred together in the 2009 comedy 17 Again, in which Efron played a teenage version of Perry's character.
In a conversation with Variety, Efron reflects on his time working with Perry. "He was in a unique position for me in my career, and in my life. His passing is affecting me a lot. It can be incredibly lonely, being an actor and being in the spotlight. It definitely can be isolating," Efron mused.
He added, "It's very important to reach out to friends and foster relationships where you can talk and share stories. I wish in the past couple of years that I had an opportunity to do that with Matthew. I hold the time we shared together really dear. I've been thinking about him a lot, every day."
It's not the first time that Efron has gotten emotional thinking of the Friends' star's death. The 36-year-old got a little choked up remembering Perry as he received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Monday.
"I also want to mention someone that's not here today and that's Matthew Perry, who was so kind and generous with me as we worked on 17 Again," Efron said during his speech. "Collaborating with him and Burr Steers was so much fun and it really did propel me and motivated me. In so many ways, it really pushed me into that next chapter of my career and for that, thank you so much, Matthew, thinking about you today."
Before his death, the late Friends actor said he would love for Efron to play him in a biopic. A close friend of Perry's, Athenna Crosby -- who dined with the actor a day before his death -- told ET in an interview last month that the actor "said that he wanted to make a movie about his life" and hoped to ask Efron to play a younger version of him -- echoing their past shared role.
Crosby spoke with ET on Nov. 1 and shared, "He had worked with Zac Efron in the past on a movie, and 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."
The High School Musical alum reacted to Perry's sentiments while chatting with ET later that month, saying, "Matthew is, you know, the best guy in the world. I had the best time of my life working with him."
"I heard that, it's a huge honor," Efron added. "To think he was thinking of me for that role, I mean, I would be honored to do it, to be honest."
It's been a poignant time for Efron, especially as he reflects on his legacy as a child star turned leading man. After receiving his star, Efron spoke with ET about the honor, and how the entire experience was "very emotional" for him, as someone who essentially grew up working in the industry.
"I can't believe it," Efron said, when asked how it felt to have his name cemented in Hollywood history. "As soon as all my friends started speaking, I kind of lost it."
"It means a lot to me, obviously. It's a huge honor to be here, you know?" he added. "I've been in Hollywood since I was a teenager."
During the star ceremony, Efron became emotional while thanking his parents and his younger brother, Dylan, who were also in attendance.
"I really want to take this moment to thank my first fans, my family," he said. "Thank you, Mom, thank you, Dad and thank you, Dylan. I know that there's been a lot of sacrifices that you guys have made for me over my life. And it couldn't have been easy, but thanks for believing in me and you're the reason I'm here today. So it's very, very special."