Zac Efron isn’t planning to become the next Tom Cruise. The “High School Musical” actor insists he doesn’t intend to follow in the footsteps of the “Top Gun” star.

“I’m not the next Tom Cruise because, there will never be another,” Efron said. “I don’t want to go and copy ‘Top Gun.’”

“Tom emanated drive and focus and the desire to perform,” Efron said about a recent meeting with the 47-year-old Hollywood heavyweight. “He didn’t say it out loud, but I know he was thinking: ‘You’re probably going insane right now.’ It’s not like he was giving me advice. ‘You’re gonna to do it and you’re gonna do it on your own. That’s the way it is. But you don’t have to go crazy: you don’t have to lose yourself in this.’”

Zac, 21, says he admires Johnny Depp – and the way he keeps his private life private.

“This was an industry that once thrived on exposure – the more the better,” Efron said. “Today, I find that the most interesting people are hidden. Johnny Depp is one of the most interesting people in the business. What I would give to have a five-minute conversation with him.” [Source]