SINGAPORE: It was like I was 17 all over again. Two Saturday mornings ago — at 7.15am, to be exact — I was sitting anxiously by the phone, waiting for a boy to call.

But not just any ordinary boy. No, I was waiting for the “It” man-boy of the moment (according to teen magazines and hordes of screaming women worldwide). The chosen one for whom most women (and some men) would pawn their firstborn to receive a personal call on their mobile phones for a lovely morning chat.

His name is Zac Efron — king of tweens, cougars and male hairstylists. Which was exactly why this reporter had been expressively reminded that it was more than worthwhile waking up at the crack of dawn on a precious weekend morning for. That and the fact that it’s actually my job.

Poor pretty Zac Efron, I thought, waiting by the phone. The 21-year-old must be looking at a lifetime of girls ranging from eight to 80 running up to him screaming, “Marry me!”

That’s what you get for playing the impossibly handsome but surprisingly wholesome heartthrob in three High School Musicals and one remake of Hairspray (really just one role multiplied by four) using matinee-pin-up idol looks and impossibly blue eyes.

Oh, yes, upkeeping a smoking-hot bod complete with rock-hard abs doesn’t hurt, either. Sigh. It must be a tough life being the quintessential teen idol. If only he wasn’t so darn goody-two-shoes dull.

In the middle of his worldwide whirlwind press tour to promote his latest movie 17 Again — in which Matthew Perry is a 37-year-old down-and-out dad who gets to be a teenager all over again in the form of an often shirtless Efron — he spoke to TODAY from Los Angeles about his new projects and superhero ambitions.

All delivered in a super-friendly tone, using pitch-perfect, publicist-approved answers, politely side-stepping our more mischievous questions like the good teen idol he is.

Still, Efron seems to be irresistible to Hollywood, and his upcoming projects — including an adaptation of Ben Sherwood’s novel The Death and Life of Charlie St Cloud, Richard Linklater’s period drama Me and Orson Welles, and a rumour that he’s a favourite to star in the movie adaptation of Johnny Quest — is a sign that he might be on his way to following in the footsteps of the other pretty boy-turned-thespian legends (Johnny Depp, Leonardo Dicaprio) he reportedly looks up to.

Maybe those irresistible blue eyes just don’t penetrate through the telephone.

Hi! How did the gruelling day of interviews go?
Great! I am surviving all thanks to a never-ending supply of green tea. This stuff keeps you going. I think I’ll be addicted to green tea soon!

Tell us about your character in 17 Again.
Well, I definitely can relate to playing a teenager — after all, I’ve done it all. I’ve had the first kiss. I’ve had awkward dates and I’ve had the big fight with my parents. But the one thing I’ve never done is gotten into a fight with my teenage daughter or have her come on to me! (Laughs)

Or kiss your “friend’s” mother at a party, we’re guessing! You’re 21, she’s 37 — how did the kissing scene with Leslie Mann go?
She is such an amazing person and so beautiful and I have such a huge crush on her. At first when I read the script, I didn’t know what to think of it at all. But once we started rehearsing, I was like, “Bring it on, man”. She’s a great kisser.

Taking a cue from John Hughes’ Breakfast Club, which high school stereotype were you — the Jock, the Geek, the Criminal, the Outcast or the Princess?
I think I wasn’t any one stereotype. Back in high school, I hung out with different types of people and was friends with pretty much all of them ... I tried to maintain good grades and school always came first.

Did you go to the prom when you were in high school?
Yup. In fact, I went to several proms!

Whom did you take?
Er ... I took my girlfriends.

No kidding. Why did you pull out of the Footloose remake project? Are you holding out for Grease?
(Laughs) I love Grease! As for Footloose, it’s a fantastic project and I know that a lot of people worked very hard to make it happen. But I am at a stage where I have to think about what really is the right next movie for me. The next steps I take are very important. Don’t get me wrong — I do love musicals but what it really comes down to is that I’m looking for new challenges.

It doesn’t sound like you’re loving musicals very much right now.
I think at this at the particular moment, I am very hungry to try something new. To really switch things up. In 20 years, it’ll be nice to look back and say I took a chance. Even if this fails, it’s all about trying.

Is there a specific role you’re dying to play?
Hmm ... Not that I can think of at the moment. For me it’s all about the script. That’s the most important thing. I believe that the roles that I want to play are the ones that I have to stretch for, the one that I have to work hard to achieve.

Well, any directors you would love to work with?
I would love to work with Zack Synder. I think what he did with Watchmen was excellent.

Does this mean we’ll be seeing you fill out a superhero costume sometime in the near future?
Yeah ... maybe one day. If the timing is right.

17 Again opens in cinemas on Thursday.
- TODAY/yb