Television series
Down to Earth with Zac Efron
- Light-hearted
Zac Efron and wellness expert Darin Olien travel the globe exploring sustainable living practices, regenerative agriculture, and eco-conscious communities. It's visually lush and optimistic, part travelogue and part lifestyle education. For viewers curious about environmental solutions and how different cultures approach wellness without cynicism.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy a host-led travel series where curiosity about food, health fads and local customs carries each episode, and you don't mind wellness claims being tested lightly along the way.
Skip it if you find lifestyle evangelism grating, since this one takes its health advice earnestly and sometimes leans toward a product pitch.
What it asks of you: Sixteen episodes of roughly forty minutes each, light and amiable, settling in with a friendly host rather than chasing a plot.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
A Perfect Planet2021
David Attenborough narrates how wildlife thrives in extreme environments across Earth. Stunning cinematography and genuine scientific insight that's meditative rather than preachy about our planet's fragility.
But It's a nature documentary, so if you find those slow or expect dramatic conflict rather than observation, it won't grip you.
Our Planet2019
Another Attenborough series tracking animal migration and adaptation across oceans, forests, and frozen landscapes. The environmental stakes are woven in naturally without feeling like a lecture.
But The climate crisis angle, while honest, builds to sadness. It's beautiful but not light viewing.
The Toys That Made Us2017
Short episodes celebrating how design and culture intersect through everyday objects. Each one is a miniature history lesson that feels like a conversation with someone who genuinely loves their subject.
But If you have no nostalgia for the toys featured, individual episodes can feel slight and manufactured.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Down to Earth with Zac Efron
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
My Octopus Teacher2020
Both are journeys toward understanding how other living systems work and what we can learn by observing rather than imposing. Same spirit of reverence for nature without lecturing.
A filmmaker spends a year with one octopus in a South African kelp forest, learning to see from her perspective. It's meditative, surprising, and genuinely moving about attention, vulnerability, and non-human intelligence.
But Deliberately quiet and patient. Some will find it slow; others will find the emotional arc predictable once the concept lands.
More like this (8)
Ugly Delicious2018
David Chang explores food culture globally with curiosity and humor. He's genuinely interested in how people eat rather than judging, and he asks smart questions about tradition versus innovation.
But The host's voice and rambling conversational style won't appeal to everyone, and some episodes meander.
Chef's Table2015
Exquisite cinematography follows pioneering chefs worldwide as they obsess over ingredients and philosophy. Each episode is a visual essay on creativity and perfectionism.
But At four seasons, some viewers find it slow, precious, or feel it prioritizes aesthetics over the actual eating experience.
Wonders of the Universe2011
Brian Cox makes cosmology accessible and genuinely exciting, explaining vast concepts with clarity and real wonder. His enthusiasm is infectious without being condescending.
But If physics bores you, even an engaging presenter won't change that, and some explanations oversimplify complex ideas.
Salt Fat Acid Heat2018
Samin Nosrat teaches cooking fundamentals through travel and cultural exploration. It's about understanding how food works, not following recipes, and she's a joyful teacher.
But More educational than entertaining; if you want pure recipe content or drama, this prioritizes principle over payoff.
The Great British Bake Off2010
People compete at baking in a gentle, genuinely supportive tent. It's about skill and effort celebrated without manufactured cruelty, and watching someone nail a soufflé is genuinely satisfying.
But The format is repetitive across seasons, and if competition shows bore you, this one's softness won't rescue it.
Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories2016
A Chinese series set in a late-night restaurant where regulars and strangers share small moments over food. It's warm and unglamorous, about connection and acceptance in the margins of the city.
But Subtitled, slow-paced, and deliberately low-stakes. If you want plot momentum or high drama, this trades both for mood.
Shōgun2024
Both examine how different cultures approach sustainability, health, and community—but Shogun shows the conflict and pride that make change hard, where Efron's show assumes goodwill. Wildly different tones, same underlying question.
A 1600s English sailor washes up in Japan and must navigate power, honor, and cultural collision. Visually sumptuous and dramatically gripping with no easy answers about who understands whose world.
But Intense political maneuvering and violence; if you want gentle wellness exploration, this is the opposite energy.
The Biggest Little Farm2019
Both celebrate regenerative agriculture and sustainable living, but this is documentary reality unfolding across years—no expert guide, no travel montage, just two people doing the work. More vulnerable and less polished than Efron's approach.
A couple leaves Los Angeles to build a regenerative farm from depleted soil. Beautifully shot, it's about patience, failure, and working with nature rather than against it—genuine environmental storytelling without righteousness.
But Slow and meditative; the utopian tone may feel naive, and there's minimal conflict or drama. It's a process film, not a problem-solving narrative.
People
Cast
Production
- Brian Volk-WeissExecutive Producer
- Cisco HensonExecutive Producer
- Darin OlienExecutive Producer
- Jason BarrettExecutive Producer
- Michael SimkinExecutive Producer
- Zac EfronExecutive Producer
Recommended by
Somebody Feed Phil, The Detour with David Chang, Kiss the Ground