Disney child stars now - Tragic deaths, 'haunting' pasts, and MeToo revelations
Despite Disney launching many child stars to fame it wasn't all it cracked up to be
Disney Channel has launched many child stars into the spotlight, with the likes of Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and Zac Efron all being able to thank the network for their early success.
But there are also many who have also spoken out about their experiences with the channel, claiming that it was nothing like they had hoped and didn't manifest to be a lifelong dream.
The channel is also credited with kick-starting the careers of Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato and Sabrina Carpenter. Many of these now-adult stars have spoken about their experiences growing up in the spotlight, revealing that things weren't always as rosy as they seemed.
Some experienced pressure with having to keep up their working personas in real life, with it all becoming too much at times. From MeToo claims to being "haunted" by a young television past, we explore what life was really like for the child stars of Disney Channel.
Demi Lovato
Camp Rock star Demi, has recently been at the heart of some serious allegations. The teen star got her first big TV break at age 15 when she was discovered by Disney Channel during an open audition in Dallas, Texas.
She made her debut in the short series As the Bell Rings in 2007, reports the Daily Record. Her on-screen career took off in 2009 when she landed a starring role in Sonny With A Chance. Despite her rise to fame, but it wasn't always smooth sailing.
Demi bravely came forward admitting a harrowing experience during her time on a Disney movie set, as part of the MeToo Movement in 2021. She claimed that she was raped by a co-star who "never got taken out of the movie they were in".
Her harrowing ordeal was highlighted in her Youtube documentary series Demi Lovato: Dancing With the Devil, where she recounted: "We were hooking up but I said, 'Hey, this is not going any further. I'm a virgin, and I don't want to lose it this way.' And that didn't matter to them, they did it anyways."
She went on to reveal her internal struggle, lamenting: "And I internalised it and I told myself it was my fault, because I still went in the room with him. I still hooked up with him. The Christian, Southern girl in me didn't see it [as rape] because sex was not normalised as a child or in the South."
Demi boldly declared: "And, you know what, f*** it, I'm just gonna say it: My #MeToo story is me telling somebody that someone did this to me, and they never got in trouble for it."
Bella Thorne
Former child actress Bella Thorne has been vocal about her challenges growing up in the spotlight after her acting debut at the tender age of six.
By age 13, she achieved stardom with significant roles like CeCe Jones on Shake It Up, although her fame came with strict stipulations from the network, including claims that she was prohibited from wearing a bikini at the beach.
On an episode of Emily Ratajkowski's podcast High Low With EmRata, Bella revealed a shocking tidbit from her past with Disney. She recounted: "I almost got fired off the Disney Channel 'cause I was 14, and I wore a two-piece on the beach. This stylist that I was hanging out with put this chain on me. It's like a body chain? I don't know! I don't care."
She went on to describe the repercussions of being photographed at the beach, saying: "There was a fan, they got a photo of me on the beach, I almost got fired. It was all over the media - it was literally viral in that time. And it was 'How dare this little girl do this? This is so disgusting'."
Bella also detailed how the incident led to constraints on her future apparel choices: "They were like, 'Hey, we're getting a lot of heat for this. Everyone's getting heat for this because you're in a bikini on a beach, so she needs to make sure she goes out in boy shorts and a loose t-shirt next time she's at the beach'."
Selena Gomez
Adding to the confessions of former Disney stars, Selena Gomez opened up in a tell-all interview with Vanity Fair in 2023. The star of Wizards of Waverly Place discussed how she no longer feels burdened by her Disney history.
Following her candid revelations about being silenced during her Disney days in her 2022 Apple documentary My Mind and Me, Selena told Vanity Fair: "I definitely feel free of it. Sometimes I get triggered. It's not that I'm ashamed of my past, it's just that I've worked so hard to find my own way. I don't want to be who I was. I want to be who I am."
In the documentary, she candidly spoke about her experience with the TV giant: "I don't want to do that ever again. I feel like a product. It was making me angry. You know what it is? It made me feel like Disney."
Selena added with frustration: "I just spent years of my life trying to not be that. And I f***king look like a witch with the outfit, doing it all with the wand again."
Cameron Boyce
Renowned for his role as the villain's offspring Carlos in Descendants: The Rise of Red, Cameron Boyce became a household name for portraying Cruella de Vil's son in the hit trilogy. Before his stellar performance in the film series, he charmed audiences as Luke Ross in the loved Disney sitcom Jessie, sharing the screen with stars such as Debby Ryan and Peyton List.
Tragically, Cameron passed away five years ago at the tender age of 20 due to a seizure caused by epilepsy, leaving fans worldwide in shock and grief over his sudden death.
A heartbroken statement issued to ABC News said: "Cameron's tragic passing was due to a seizure as a result of an ongoing medical condition, and that condition was Epilepsy. We are still trying to navigate our way."
Sabrina Carpenter
Sabrina's rise to fame as a chart-topping singer with her global hit Espresso has been a long time coming. Before becoming a music sensation, she got her start as a child star on the Disney show Girl Meets World.
However, she always had aspirations to break into the music industry, which she pursued from her early teens. Despite facing skepticism due to her age and Disney background, Sabrina persevered.
In an interview with Variety, she recalled: "People maybe wrote me off, from my past as a Disney kid. It's not like you start doing well and everyone loves it and you're set for life you reach a certain place you've always wanted to be at and then there's a whole new group of people that want to try to bring you down."
Her determination paid off with the release of her hit album Short n' Sweet in 2024, catapulting her to new heights of fame.