Better late than never, here’s the October edition of the Sexiest Males Alive List.

If ever there was a time when Zac Efron had a shot at taking top honors, this would surely have to be it. And not surprisingly, he did, on the strenght of High School Musical 3 (check back next week for my review) and the newly released 17 Again trailer. Zac may well be the world’s hottest celebrity at the moment, in several ways, but most importantly with regards to this list, he is the most attractive one around. It was mostly a matter of bad luck, however, that Hunter Parrish’s red hot presence in the fourth season of Weeds (which premiered in Norway this week) and his sharing the 17 Again spotlight with rival Efron, he still failed to secure his third consecutive month in the #1 spot. In any other month, he could just as well still be on top.

It seems like whenever I begin to take someone’s slide for granted (as I did with Ed Speleers and Adam Brody in July), they immediatelt bounce back. On a list relatively light on upward mobility, Aaron Carter seemingly set out to prove this point. Back in August, I asked whether his sexiness was somehow overrated, and again in September, I simply noted that his slide was set to continue. No longer. He still has a long way to go to recapture the #21 spot he held on our initial SMA list in June, but at #28, he’s back slightly above his pre-slide levels, a surge nearly earning him the title of Climber Of The Month. Also in September, I noted the rivalry between Carter and Zac Hanson for Sexiest 90’s Pop Act. Now, we return with mixed leadership: Carter is above Hanson, but Zac’s gain this month is bigger, making it possible that their roles would be reversed for the November edition.

At the opposite end of the scale, soccer doesn’t seem to be a claim to fame at the moment, as both Liverpool’s Daniel Agger and Tottenham’s Gareth Bale suffer steep 14 spot declines, sharing the dubious honors as this month’s biggest slide. Neither last month’s best newcomer, Gossip Girl‘s Ed Westwick (#45) nor young Home and Away star Rhys Wakefield (#50), should consider themselves safe however, as they decline a near-similar 13 spots.

In the newcomer category, we extend our congratulations to young Frenchman Gaspard Ulliel, whose hotness managed to get my attention, even though I haven’t seen a single one of his movies. His #11 debut, in fact is the strongest we’ve ever registered. In another suprise, Thomas Dekker, formerly of Heroes and 7th Heaven, currently of The Sarah Connor Chronicles, makes a very respectable debut at #35. Elsewhere, movies Camp Rock and The Wackness helped Joe Jonas and Josh Peck make a stand, at #42 and #43, respectively. Since our last installment, David Archuleta, Ryan Clarke, John Dempsie, Michael Cera and Frankie Muniz have all fallen off the list.

As always, generally the movement on this list is caused by any particular guy being considered by  me to be relatively more attractive than he was considered previously. That, however, of course doesn’t necessarily mean that any ot the other people on this list have become markedly less attractive, only that they perhaps have not been as good at getting my attention lately. With that said, let’s break it down:

#1-10: Apart from the changes at the top, it’s also worth noting that Ricky Ullman and David Gallagher both climb three spots, no easy task, considering how tough the competition in the top tier is. It’s perhaps only fitting then, that I cannot find any overarching rationale for their collective mini-surge, other than their undeniable cuteness. However, I must admit that I was intrigued by watching this trailer, for Gallagher’s lead in the 2006 adaptation of The Picture Of Dorian Gray. For Ullman, those Phil Of The Future encores proved themselves far more durable than initially expected. Other than Efron and Parrish, no one in the Top Ten got any extraordinary exposure in the last month, and hence it would be premature to read much into the fact that Ryan Sheckler and Mitch Hewer both post modest declines this month. We should, however, salute Logan Lerman on breaking into the the top tier for the first time.

#11-20: Last month we saw a sudden rise for Chris Egan, perhaps best known for his role in Eragon, opposite Ed Speleers. This positive trend continues for them both, with Egan landing at #12, courtesy of a couple of incredibly hot pictures I stumbled upon recently. For Speleers, this means he has climbed all the way from #35 to #16 in a matter of three months. Meanwhile, once reliable Top Ten material like Cristiano Ronaldo and Charlie Hunnam seem headed in the opposite direction. A much improved Ronaldo (soccer-wise) should get ample sampling in the coming months, but the Brit needs to find an opening. Among the others, the changes are mostly minor, but we should note that Kevin Zegers continues his steady climb from last month. The sensation, of course, is the aforementioned Ulliel, the out-of-nowhere Frenchman who makes me want to write a post about him and other good-looking compatriots like Aurelien Wiik and Louis Garrel.

#21-30: Two of those who had a great month in September, Adam Brody and returnee Zac Hanson, continue down that path in October. Likewise, it seems like the reasons behind their rise haven’t changed much, either. Brody’s general attractiveness is easily captured in pictures like this one, and he has this vibe of smart cuteness about him. Zac’s climb should still mostly be attributed to the nostalgia I was taken by (or rather, all the pics I took my time to sift through) for my admiring post about him a couple of months ago. Also, having listened a lot to Hanson lately, I was again struck by how sexy his voice is. Aside from the already mentioned Carter Counterattack, and minor changes for everyone from Ryan Donowho (who just slipped out of the Top Twenty), to Jesse Eisenberg and Jeremy Sumpter, it’s worth noting that the once-solid Mitch Firth now has fallen ten spots from his personal best, ranking #13 in June. Granted, it’s not always easy for a guy who lost his daily sampling on Home and Away years ago to keep relevant, but the steadiness of his decline could be a cause for concern. In more positive news, Chace Crawford gains four spots, opening up a huge lead over Gossip Girl colleague Ed Westwick.

#31-40: I’m not a big fan of historical dramas, but with Jonathan Rhys-Meyers on The Tudors, I think it’s safe to say history has never looked better. With the disadvantage that disinterest brings, his #32 debut is hugely impressive. Same goes for Thomas Dekker at #35, whom I found only mildly attractive when he did a stint on 7th Heaven a couple of years ago. I haven’t seen him in neither Heroes nor Terminator, but there’s something oddly appealing about the gay vibe of these pictures. Suddenly a grown-up, it turns out he’s become better at the heartthrob pose as well. Elsewhere, I’m a little surprised that Raphael Nadal once again failed to capitalize on positive exposure. He saw no bump from his New York Magazine cover. Fellow soccer players Fernando Torres and Gareth Bale seemingly have the same problem, although I would definitely not rule out a surge (pun unintended) on their part, were they to take the Nadal rout.

#41-50: A low forties debut is always a little vulnerable, but we welcome Josh Peck and Joe Jonas into this exclusive club, no matter what. For the long term, I suspect Jonas to be the one most likely to stick around, as my Jonas Brothers kick shows no sign of abating, but on the other hand, I’m quite likely to go see The Wackness again soon. Defying the general downward spiral, Ryan Phillippe and Taylor Hanson post modest yet impressive gains. Phillippe got a boost from the research I did for Early Gay Crushes piece, while the trickle-down effect of my Hanson obsession seems to have worked to Taylor’s benefit. Moving down, on the other hand, are both Jody Latham, Rhys Wakefield, Daniel Agger and Ed Westwick. The huge drop for the latter three cannot possible bode well for the months to come, as they create a sense that their highs were artificially high. I still won’t write off people like Latham and German actor Kostja Ullmann, however. Ullmann in particular have shown an admirable ability to cling onto the list from his consistently vulnerable position.

1. Zac Efron (Previous ranking: 3)
2. Hunter Parrish (1)
3. Jesse McCartney (2)
4. Emile Hirsch (4)
5. Nicholas Hoult (5)
6. Ricky Ullman (9)
7. David Gallagher (10)
8. Ryan Sheckler (7)
9. Mitch Hewer (6)
10. Logan Lerman (12)
11. Gaspard Ulliel (new)
12. Chris Egan (14)
13. Charlie Hunnam (8)
14. Cristiano Ronaldo (11)
15. Tyler Hoechlin (15)
16. Alex Pettyfer (13)
17. Ed Speleers (23)
18. Sean Faris (16)
19. Kevin Zegers (20)
20. Jamie Bell (18)
21. Adam Brody (25)
22. Ryan Donowho (19)
23. Mitch Firth (17)
24. Jesse Eisenberg (21)
25. Jeremy Sumpter (22)
26. Chace Crawford (30)
27. Chris Lowell (26)
28. Aaron Carter (36)
29. Zac Hanson (38)
30. Leonardo DiCaprio (29)
31. Raphael Nadal (27)
32. Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (new)
33. Max Theriot (28)
34. Randy Harrison (33)
35. Thomas Dekker (new)
36. Fernando Torres (31)
37. Jonathan Taylor Thomas (40)
38. Gareth Bale (24)
39. Michael Angarano (34)
40. Chad Michael Murray (42)
41. Ryan Phillippe (45)
42. Joe Jonas (new)
43. Josh Peck (new)
44. Taylor Hanson (49)
45. Ed Westwick (32)
46. Brady Corbett (39)
47. Kostja Ullmann (46)
48. Jody Latham (44)
49. Daniel Agger (35)
50. Rhys Wakefield (37)