RENEE, PIP & MICHAEL
He’s been lying low in Byron Bay but if TV bosses have their way, Zac Efron could be around for a bit longer. New Idea has learnt that Network Ten is hoping to convince Zac to appear in the next season of I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!, with an insider revealing he’s been offered $1.5 million to take part.
Set to begin filming in January, the new season will likely be filmed locally as travel restrictions will prevent it being filmed in its South African location.
“[Network] Ten are saving a fortune filming in Australia and can now afford some bigger names,” says the source. “Zac is the No. 1 most wanted participant.”
If he agrees, it won’t be Zac’s first adventure-based reality show. Last year he filmed Killing Zac Efron, in which he explored the jungles of Papua New Guinea. During production he contracted typhoid and was airlifted to hospital in Brisbane.
It’s thought Zac was in Byron filming his new Netflix show, Down to Earth with Zac Efron, when the pandemic began and chose to stay in the NSW beach town. He’s said to love Byron so much he’s looking at buying property nearby.
She’s a successful actor, DJ, model and author, but now it seems Kate Ritchie could be adding dancer to her impressive résumé. She’s rumoured to be the latest star joining the 2021 series of
Dancing with the Stars.
Following in the footsteps of fellow Home and Away star Lynne Mcgranger, a TV production insider tells New Idea Kate is always the top pick when reality TV producers draw up their wish-list of stars to take part in the much-loved reality primetime shows.
“Kate has an open invitation to do all the shows and they chase her every year,” says the source, but this time it’s been confirmed: “Kate will do
DWTS in 2021.”
It seems Kate might have been considering an offer for some time. In March 2019 she dropped some serious hints that she was interested in appearing on the Network Ten show.
“Maybe you’ll see me on a series of Dancing with the Stars,” she told Body + Soul. “That’s something I’ve always said no to, and no disrespect intended. I think it’s amazing that people do that.”
But despite saying she was ready for a new challenge after a five-year hiatus from TV, problems close to home appeared to put her plans on hold. Husband Stuart Webb was charged with drink driving, Kate took out an AVO against him, and it’s been reported they have since split up.
However, it appears in recent months Kate has started to reconsider the possibility of other work.
In an interview last month, the Nova FM host said she was looking for new challenges and was particularly keen to get back into acting, adding she was open to all kinds of work.
And DWTS could be perfect. “I look forward to being part of an ensemble again one day soon,” she told TV Hits. “It’s all about finding the right role.”