South Australia is in the international spotlight again for SA-shot, Stan Original Film, Gold. Led by an all-star cast featuring Zac Efron, Susie Porter and Anthony Hayes, Gold will hit cinemas in the US on March 11.  

Efron (The Greatest Showman, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile) joins AACTA Award-winning stars Porter (Ladies in Black, The Second), and Hayes (Animal Kingdom, The Light Between Oceans, War Machine), who also directs, co-stars and co-wrote Gold with Polly Smyth.

Set against the backdrop of a vast, unique and unforgiving landscape, Gold is a taut thriller about greed and the lengths to which people will go to secure themselves a fortune.

When two drifters travelling through the desert stumble across the biggest gold nugget ever found, the dream of immense wealth and greed takes hold. They hatch a plan to protect and excavate their bounty with one man leaving to secure the necessary equipment to pull it out of the earth. The other man remains and must endure harsh desert elements, preying wild dogs and mysterious intruders, whilst battling the sinking suspicion that he has been abandoned to his own fate.

Gold was shot late in 2020 around Leigh Creek in South Australia’s unique Flinders Ranges; 

“I’ve never been anywhere quite like it, to be honest, when we drove out to the location. I was just blown away by the scenery and the sort of feel and the vibe of the area. Unbelievably beautiful, It’s mesmerising.”

Zac Efron on the location in South Australia

Early reviews of Gold have touted the role as Efron’s best performance yet.  Efron and Hayes have commended South Australian crews for their commitment on a shoot that battled the elements in high temperatures “it was awesome, it was like a team-building exercise, it really showed a lot of solidarity and teamwork on behalf of the crew and our production. It was really, really fun” said Efron.

“There’s a real can-do attitude with the South Australian crew, they are amazing, and the quality is second to none. They’re so hardworking.”

Anthony Hayes, Producer and Actor, Gold

John Schwarz and Michael Schwarz’s Deeper Water Films (Killerman, Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan), produced the film alongside Anthony Hayes for Rogue Star Pictures, with South Australian co-producer Julie Byrne of Adelaide Studios-based production company Triptych Pictures. Executive producers are Silvio Salom, Nick Forward, Paul Wiegard, Nicholas Cole and Andrew Mann.