Zac Efron Under Fire From PETA After Advertisement With Captive Bear

Zac Efron made a name for himself starring in Disney’s High School Musical series. He eventually honed his craft and acted in a variety of films and also became one of Hollywood’s biggest hunks. PETA is also after him now by the looks of it.

According to TMZ, PETA is slamming Zac Efron after he appeared in an ad campaign with a bear that has spent its entire life in captivity. The organization is urging Efron to “come down to Earth” and recognize that bears belong with their families, not on screen.

Debbie Metzler, PETA Foundation Director of Captive Animal Welfare, believes that Zac, who’s been named Chief Brand Officer for Kodiak Cakes, forgot to ask Tank the bear a question – “How wrong is it to use a captive bear to promote ‘keeping bears wild’?”

27-year-old Tank was born in captivity and was taken from a breeder at just 6 weeks old. The bear was also featured on the Discovery+ Show, “Man Vs. Bear.” Kodiak Cakes is running a limited-time collab with Zac, where a dollar-for-dollar match of their “Keep It Wild” merchandise will go directly to the Vital Ground Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the preservation of wild grizzly bear habitats.

In response to the promo, PETA decided to say, “It’s hypocritical to exploit one animal to potentially help another. No true conservation group would ever force captive animals to perform tricks for the camera in order to raise awareness about their wild counterparts.” We’ll keep you updated on this ongoing story.

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