Zac Efron to Swimsuit Up with Dwayne Johnson in BAYWATCH Movie

After being stuck in development hell for years, the Paramount project finally gained traction when Dwayne Johnson signed on to star in the big screen adaptation.

Production on Baywatch is slated to start in 2016.

Any reason to get Zac Efron to take his shirt off, right?

More shirtless Zac Efron is coming to a theater near you. Dwayne Johnson is already officially set as a star and producer, with Seth Gordon (Horrible Bosses, The Jim Gaffigan Show) taking the director’s chair.

Efron just wrapped production on Fox and Chernin Entertainment’s comedy Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates along with Adam Devine, Anna Kendrick and Aubrey Plaza. Oh, and according to Johnson, it will be rated R, which is an odd choice for Baywatch. The film would seek to combine comedic, dramatic, and action elements. The “High School Musical” star will soon reunite with Rogen and Rose Byrne for Neighbors 2. Yes, that’s the same Baywatch that made Pamela Anderson and David Hasselhoff slow-motion ubiquities in the ’90s. So let’s hope the script, with the most recent draft coming from Damian Shannon and Mark Swift (both of the 2009 reboot of Friday the 13th and Freddy vs. Jason), packs a strong comedy punch.

The plot will reportedly centre on Johnson’s character, a straight-laced lifeguard, who teams up with Efron’s renegade youngster.