In news that screams Byron Bay, Hollywood icon and High School Musical legend Zac Efron is believed to be building a house made out of hemp in the beloved coastal town.
According to Daily Mail Australia, the 17 Again star has been “secretly living” in the iconic town, which is home to Byron Baes and FBoy Island, as construction on his “Futurecave” kicks off.
In a May 9 Instagram post, Australian environmentalist designer and Efron’s builder, Joost Bakker, said he was “excited to get started on Zac’s house”.
“Especially want to thank these two legends @main__frank for working so hard to get this project designed and approved! (And somehow interpreting my sketches).”
Since that post, Bakker has shared updates regarding Zac’s home and the building process, which included the use of hemp blocks, recycled oyster shells and plant-based construction materials.
Per the publication, Efron’s new Aussie digs will cover 830sqm with a $2.65m build cost.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Bakker said Efron is encouraging him to “push [his] ideas as far as they can go”.
“We’re experimenting with making hemp blocks, replacing concrete with two materials that restore the environment – hemp, possibly the best plant on earth at repairing and restoring soil health, and of course oysters, nature’s ultimate ocean restorer,” he told the publication.
“I want to create a building material that I hope will become mainstream one day — a material that naturally breathes, is anti-mould, naturally fire resistant and improves the indoor air Zac will ultimately breathe.”
In a November 2025 interview with Domain, Bakker explained that he planned to build a six-bedroom, six-bathroom home adorned with plant ecosystems.
“The mattresses that Zac will sleep on, they’ll be completely plant-based, natural hemp-based mattresses,” he said.
“For the past year, we’ve experimented with making hemp blocks, replacing concrete with two materials that restore the environment. Hemp: possibly the best plant on earth at repairing and restoring.”
Australia has seemingly adopted Efron (or maybe it’s the other way around) after the actor stayed Down Under during COVID-19.
In 2021, the actor made headlines after it was confirmed that he bought property in Tomewin, NSW, for $2million.
Efron then made it extremely clear that he was very staunch about Australia’s environment with his Netflix docuseries Down to Earth with Zac Efron: Down Under, where he dove deep into habitat conservation and eco-innovation.
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