Hairspray director says he was told to cast Amanda Bynes if he wanted Zac Efron: 'I was on the fe...

Adam Shankman said there was a &34;long line of people to play Penny&34; in the movie musical. Hairspray director says he was told to cast Amanda Bynes if he wa

Adam Shankman said there was a "long line of people to play Penny" in the movie musical.

Hairspray director says he was told to cast Amanda Bynes if he wanted Zac Efron: 'I was on the fence'

Adam Shankman said there was a "long line of people to play Penny" in the movie musical.

By Daysia Tolentino

Daysia Tolentino

Daysia Tolentino is a writer at *. *She has written for * *since 2025. Her work has appeared in NBC News, Vulture, GQ, and InStyle.

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September 21, 2025 8:00 a.m. ET

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Amanda Bynes and Zac Efron in 'Hairspray'. Credit:

New line Cinema

Amanda Bynes and Zac Efron nearly weren't welcomed to the '60s.

*Hairspray *director Adam Shankman broke down the casting process for the movie musical on a recent episode of the *And* *That's What You REALLY Missed* podcast. He said that he wanted to cast the *High School Musical* star but was unsure about the *Amanda Show* alum.

"There was a long line of people to play Penny and New Line wanted Amanda," Shankman said. "And I was on the fence about it."

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The studio made a deal with Shankman. If he picked Bynes, executives would let him cast Efron, despite their reservations.

"I wanted Zac and they weren't sold at that point," the *A Walk to Remember* director said.

To be fair, Shankman said that the *Iron Claw* star's audition for *Hairspray *was "terrible." He was also unconvinced that Efron should play heartthrob Link Larkin at first.

"He was super cute and handsome, but there was nothing really smoldery like Link," he said.

Elijah Kelley, Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes, and Nikki Blonsky in 'Hairspray'.

New Line/courtesy Everett Collection

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Shankman asked the *Neighbors* actor to stop smiling during his callback, which improved his look. Efron's wink ultimately snagged him the part.

The *Cheaper by the Dozen 2* director was happy to cast Bynes, who he said brought the perfect "lascivious innocence" to her character Penny Pingleton.

In the nearly two decades since *Hairspray* premiered, cast members have shared the difficulties with their auditions. Brittany Snow, who plays mean girl Amber Von Tussle, recently revealed how she bombed her tryout. She was so nervous that she cracked, so she asked Shankman for a second chance — at the behest of a psychic.

"She asked to come back in, and I was like, 'I want you to come back in,'" Shankman said on *And That's What You REALLY Missed. *"So she did and she was great."

Listen to the full episode of *And That's What You REALLY Missed *with Adam Shankman below.**

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Movies"

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