Zac Efron arrives in Melbourne to film Ricky Stanicky movie with John Cena

Zac Efron has touched down in Melbourne to film a new movie.

The American actor, who lived in Byron Bay during the pandemic and filmed season two of his Netflix docuseries Down to Earth across Australia, was spotted by the Herald Sun arriving at Melbourne Airport on a Qantas flight from Los Angeles on Tuesday morning.

The Australian city is said to be his home over the next two months as he films R-rated comedy Ricky Stanicky with co-star John Cena, who will play the movie’s titular role.

The film is written and directed by Peter Farrelly, who was behind smash hit comedies There’s Something About Mary and Me, Myself and Irene.

Ricky Stanicky is an imaginary character, invented by four friends to have someone upon which to blame their misbehaviour.

“What happens is the (friends’) wives finally say, ‘Hey, wait a second — how come we never met Stanicky? He wasn’t at our wedding,’” Farrelly explained in an interview with Deadline in September last year.

“Well, he was building houses in Africa. Well, he wasn’t at this or that. Bring him here, or don’t come home. So they hire a guy to come in for a day.

“They create a bible for the guy, and they pay him a thousand bucks to come and be Ricky Stanicky. He pulls it off with flying colours to the point where everybody loves him. And then the guys can’t get rid of him.”

Farrelly said he knew Cena was meant to play Ricky Stanicky when he saw the WWE star in the 2022 series Peacemaker.

“His timing is impeccable, and it’s surprising for a guy his size. He comes across like a little guy. His sense of humour is more self-deprecating than big guys usually have,” he told Deadline.

“I learned this is a guy in the Guinness Book of Records for Make-a-Wish Foundation grants. He’s done like 500 of them, and that’s what he does like every weekend.

“He’s a sweet guy, big hearted, and that’s what this Stanicky has to be. He’s got to be this guy who’s a fraud, but you can’t not love him, and it becomes a problem for our guys as he starts surpassing them in many ways.”

Farrelly directed Efron in his latest film The Greatest Beer Run Ever, which premiered globally on Apple TV+ in September.

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Efron starred alongside Russell Crowe, who is also currently in Melbourne.

Crowe was at the Australian Open with girlfriend Britney Theriot on the weekend and spotted by fans on Monday in Melbourne’s west.

He is reportedly sticking around for a few months while shooting a new film about an hour out of the city.

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