The Untold Truth Of The Late Cameron Boyce
On July 6, 2019, Cameron Boyce died at 20 years old. The late actor was known for his starring roles in the Disney Channel show "Jessie" and it original movie series "Descendants," though he'd moved into other roles and was building a resume outside of the popular children's network. Boyce's death came as a shock to the industry, with his co-star and friend Dove Cameron posting a touching and emotional video on Instagram in the days after.
Boyce began his rise in the entertainment industry when he appeared in a classic pop-punk music video. His career climb continued when he co-starred in the popular film series "Grown Ups," acting opposite superstar comedian Adam Sandler and exposing new audiences to the young talent. A generation of people know him for his Disney Channel child actor days, where he was a lead in two series and three films. In his last years, he began to distance himself from his Disney Channel projects, taking on roles that let him flex his acting chops in new ways.
To celebrate the actor's life and legacy, we look back at his career and reveal how he lives on today through his family and friends.
Cameron Boyce is related to history
While many may recall that Boyce was biracial, they may not realize his grandmother played an important part in American integration history. The 1954 Supreme Court ruling Brown v. Board of Education established that the segregation of public schools was unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment, ending the precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896.
As part of public school integration, 12 African American students were the first Black children to attend Clinton High School in Clinton, Tennessee, in 1956, making it the state's first integrated public school. Boyce's paternal grandmother Jo Ann Boyce was one of those students, now called The Clinton 12.
In 2016, for Disney Channel's "Be Inspired" short series for Black History Month, Boyce and his grandmother spoke to People about her experience. "All of us, all of our parents, every single student that walked down the hill with me, all of our parents wanted us to do better," Jo Ann said. "They wanted us to have better opportunities, so therefore education was number one for them."
"Things are going to happen in your life and you're going to face adversity, but if you grow from that and learn from that, you're a better person because of it," Cameron said before commending his grandmother. "How could you not be amazed by their bravery? She has chosen to forgive, not forget, and she learned from it and has just grown from her experiences."
Boyce won a Daytime Emmy Award for outstanding promotional announcement for the segment.
Boyce was a trained dancer
While many know Boyce for his acting, he started as a professional dancer. He danced for seven years before transitioning into acting. While talking to Young Hollywood in 2018, Boyce noted that dancing came easily. "It actually did come pretty naturally to me," Boyce said. "I came out of the womb dancing." In a 2019 interview with Glass Magazine, he stated, "Dance is my first love." And in an Instagram post from June 2022, Boyce's father Victor noted, "Cameron could act, Cameron could sing, Cameron's PASSION was dance."
Trained in ballet, break-dancing, hip-hop, jazz, modern, and tap, Boyce kept dancing at the front of his career and life. Projects like the "Descendants" trilogy let him stretch his skill sets. In a 2018 interview with HERO, he said, "It's really cool to have that in my back pocket in case I need it, there [are] so many roles that require dancing or singing and you have to be able to do all three," he shared.
In addition to using his dance training for acting roles, he and four childhood friends formed the dance crew X-Mob. "With X-Mob, those are my guys, I've known them since I was six so we've grown up together," Boyce told HERO. Boyce's nickname in the crew was "Truth." X-Mob continued on, and in the year after Boyce's death, they posted a long-form video to their YouTube channel featuring videos of the actor dancing and home videos the group had taken together.
Boyce's first acting job was in a Panic! At the Disco music video
A Panic! at the Disco music video in 2008 served as Boyce's first acting job. In the band's video for the song "That Great Gentleman," he portrays the child version of Ryan Ross, the band's guitarist. Boyce is the first character on screen, playing with a set of Russian Dolls as the band's lead singer Brendon Urie's voice comes out of one of the nesting dolls.
In a behind-the-scenes look at the video uploaded to YouTube by Fueled By Ramen, audiences can see a young Boyce talking about being in a music video for the first time and the costume he wears to match Ryan Ross. "I've never been in a music video before, " the young actor commented. "The wardrobe is really funny."
This was the first of several music videos Boyce would appear in. Other than his own work within the "Descendants" franchise and with his dance crew, Boyce also turned up in the video for "Hardwired" by Hailey Knox as the male lead and is credited as one of the lead dancers and choreographers in the video for Hozier's "Almost (Sweet Music)."
Boyce's first TV role was in General Hospital: Night Shift
After the Panic! at the Disco music video, Boyce's first silver screen appearance was in a spin-off of the classic medical drama soap opera "General Hospital." In 2008, He took on the recurring role of Michael "Stone" Cates Jr. in the short-lived "General Hospital: Night Shift."
The character was the five-year-old son of Jagger Cates (Antonio Sabàto Jr.), one of the main characters in the second season. Jagger first appeared in "General Hospital" as a patient before audiences watched him go on a new career path. In "Night Shift," Jagger is an FBI agent. Boyce's Stone was named after his father's deceased brother. Over the course of seven episodes, audiences can watch the young actor fine-tune his acting skills as his character goes on a journey of receiving an autism diagnosis.
While a small role, it started what would become a fruitful career on TV for Boyce. From there, the young actor guest starred in the popular Disney Channel series "Good Luck Charlie" and "Shake It Up" before landing leading TV roles on the network.
Boyce never watched his first film
The small screen wasn't the only place audiences could see Boyce. Before winning his role in the Adam Sandler-led "Grown Ups," Boyce's first big-screen effort, director Alexandre Aja's 2008 supernatural horror film "Mirrors," cast him as Michael "Mikey" Carson, the son of Kiefer Sutherland's character, Ben.
The film's premise involves sinister reflections killing their real counterparts. Michael's reflection begins to act odd, causing his parents to be concerned and paint over all the mirrors. However, this doesn't work for long, as Boyce's Michael is later found scrapping the paint off the mirrors in a trance-like state. Before the movie ends, Michael's reflection nearly drowns him, but his mother comes to the rescue.
In 2019, shortly after Cameron's death, Boyce's father shared an Instagram post that included the "Mirrors" poster, which depicts the young Boyce sitting cross-legged on the floor, seemingly staring at his reflection in a puddle of water. Victor Boyce's simple Instagram caption read, "Cameron's first movie. He never watched it."
Debby Ryan helped kickstart the series that gave Boyce his first leading role
The Disney Channel series "Jessie" was Boyce's big break on the network, giving him his first leading role in a TV series. He played Luke Ross, a boy who loves video games and is particularly enamored with the titular Jessie, played by Debby Ryan, who also happens to be his nanny. The series was fairly successful for Disney, breaking the three-season mold with four seasons and 98 episodes.
However, the series might not have happened without an important conversation between Debby Ryan and a producer. The actress was known for her work on the spin-off series "The Suite Life on Deck," in which she played Bailey Pickett. As "The Suite Life on Deck" neared its conclusion, Ryan and Pamela Eells O'Connell, an executive producer on the series, looked at other series for Ryan to star in. O'Connell had previously worked on "The Nanny," and the concept for "Jessie" came up as the two bounced pitches off each other.
In an interview with the Star-Telegram in 2011, Ryan said, "(O'Connell) and I were throwing ideas back and forth when 'The Suite Life' was coming to an end, and she came up with this." Without that conversation, "Jessie" may not have come to be, and without the series, Boyce's first leading role may have come at a different point in his life.
Boyce wasn't initially homeschooled
Though Boyce started his professional career at a young age, he wasn't initially homeschooled like some child actors are. In an interview with Dujour in 2017, Boyce stated he "went to regular school through sixth grade." What changed? When the young actor landed "Jessie," he was forced to switch to a different style of schooling. "I was never planning on being homeschooled, but once I booked Jessie of course I had to become homeschooled," Boyce said in a 2017 interview with Emmys.
Boyce graduated from the Oak Park Independent School. As described by Boyce for Dujour, "Oak Park [Independent] School is set up for people who have busy schedules — Zendaya and Gabby Douglas went there — so the teachers come to you, and I'd never had to go in." While the actor didn't visit campus often, he did make an exception to experience graduation, citing that "to get one taste of normalcy is worth it, even if you're sitting in a ceremony with a bunch of students you don't know" (via Dujour), and considering the other high school experiences he'd missed, like the chance "to go to prom or play varsity basketball" (via Emmys).
The actor credited his mother and father with how his school situation worked out. In an interview with Schön! Magazine in 2017, he shared that his parents were "opposite of stage parents" and they helped ensure he didn't become a "victim to the harsh reality most child actors endure."
Starring in Jessie accelerated Boyce's life
"Jessie" presented Boyce with his first leading role and required a shift in his schooling, but those weren't the only ways the series impacted his life. In his interview with Emmys, the actor said that joining the series "changed [his] trajectory completely." Not only did he start being homeschooled due to the filming schedule, but Boyce began taking college courses and started to learn more about responsibility and accountability in his career.
"All the things you are supposed to learn after you graduate from college I had to learn at the ages of 11, 12 and 13," Boyce shared during the interview. "So at this point in my life I feel that because I was in that professional work environment my whole outlook on life changed." He acknowledged staying in a more traditional school setting may have changed who he was as a person, since he wouldn't have had the same responsibilities he did while starring in "Jessie."
How Cameron Boyce stayed grounded
Despite everything changing around him, Boyce worked to stay grounded and not fall victim to the "stigma of what it is that a Disney kid or a child actor is" (via Emmys). "For the people who view an actor's life as all glamour and we just want to be famous, it's a job that we do, just like any crew member who has a job," the actor continued in the Emmys interview. "We like to do it, not to be in the limelight. It drives me crazy when actors lose sight of (reality.)"
Part of not losing sight of reality was keeping his lives "separate." "When I go home I don't think about how successful my day was," he shared. "I put on some sneakers and go on the driveway and play basketball." Part of staying grounded also meant making time for his first love: dance. "When I find time and the energy but also the creative support of other people, I try to find ways to sort of being cooperated in what I am doing," Boyce shared with Glass Magazine. "But yes, I want to dance for the rest of my life."
While speaking with Schön! Magazine, Boyce discussed that his parents are the reason he "developed a knack for recognizing ugly traits found in the industry," which kept him from experiencing situations other child actors may face. This helped him create that needed separation between his personal and private lives.
Cameron Boyce had epilepsy
Boyce's death came as a shock on July 6, 2019. Just under a month before the release of the third "Descendants" movie, the young actor was found unresponsive in his home, which he shared with two of his former castmates. His family made a statement in the days that followed, saying "Cameron's tragic passing was due to a seizure as a result of an ongoing medical condition, and that condition was epilepsy." Until the statement made by his family, it was not widely known that the actor had epilepsy.
An autopsy conducted by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner initially "deferred" the cause and manner of Boyce's passing. However, after additional testing, it was confirmed that the actor's death was caused by a sudden unexpected death in epilepsy or SUDEP. Based on information provided by The Cameron Boyce Foundation, sudden unexpected death in epilepsy "refers to deaths in people with epilepsy that are not from injury, drowning, or other known causes" and that "most, but not all, cases of SUDEP happen during or right after a seizure."
Boyce's final films put him in lead roles
Boyce died a month before the third installment of the "Descendants" franchise, in which he portrayed main character Carlos, debuted on Disney Channel. A red carpet premiere was planned for July 22, 2019. On July 11, Disney confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that they were canceling the event and instead making a donation on Boyce's behalf to the Thirst Project. The company also stated that "with permission from the Boyce family, Disney Channel will dedicate the telecast of 'Descendants 3' in Cameron Boyce's memory."
"Descendants 3" does not address the future of Boyce's character but an animated special does. "Descendants: The Royal Wedding" follows Dove Cameron's Mal as she gets married. While trying to go back to their home island, Mal comments that she "really wish[es] Carlos was here." Stewart's Jay and Carson's Evie proceed to give her a charm bracelet that has each of the four character's family crests. Later, after the ceremony, Carlos' crest lights up. The moments don't directly touch upon what happened to the character but do pay tribute to Boyce.
Boyce's final feature film, "Runt," screened in February 2020 at the Mammoth Film Festival. Boyce stars as a teen who struggles emotionally after several difficult events in his life. Boyce's performance was praised by critics. "The star commands the screen with authenticity and depth, slowly transforming as Cal becomes a shell of his former self with each violent act," Jordan Elizabeth wrote for Common Sense Media.
Boyce had only just started his post-Disney TV career
Though Boyce appeared in an episode of the CBS series "Code Black" in 2016, his post-Disney career didn't really start until after his death. His first major series after "Jessie" and "Gamer's Guide to Pretty Much Everything" was the Kathryn Hahn-led HBO miniseries "Mrs. Fletcher," which debuted in October 2019.
Boyce played Zach, the college roommate of the lead character Eve's (played by Hahn) son Brendan. When speaking to Haute Living about his experience filming the series, Boyce discussed how shooting in New York City helped inspire him. "New York is by far the most stimulating city I've been to," the actor shared. "I came back home rejuvenated, and more inspired to make art."
Boyce's final role came in March of 2021 with the release of "Paradise City" on Prime Video. Created and written by Ash Avildsen, the series is a continuation of the writer's 2017 movie "American Satan." Starring alongside fellow Disney alumni Bella Thorne and Booboo Stewart, Boyce portrayed Simon, the son of two characters and one of the show's leads.
The series was renewed for a second season, and Avildsen shared his plans for the character following Boyce's death. "I mapped out like six seasons before we even shot this, so his character, Simon, is the driving force as the story continues," Avildsen told Entertainment Weekly. "So we would have to recast, and I hope audiences are emotionally prepared for that."
Cameron Boyce had a planned reunion with former costar Adam Sandler
As part of Adam Sandler's movie deal with Netflix, the comedic actor made the horror comedy "Hubie Halloween." The movie follows Hubie, played by Sandler, as he watches over Halloween festivities in his town: Salem, Massachusetts.
Boyce previously starred with Sandler in the 2010 movie "Grown Ups," taking on the role of Keithie Feder, the son of Sandler's Lenny. Boyce appeared in the sequel, "Grown Ups 2," as well. "Hubie Halloween" was meant to mark their reunion on screen, with Boyce cast as Mike Mundi, one of Hubie's teen coworkers. However, Boyce's death resulted in the role being recast only a few days before the movie was set to begin filming.
Similar to how the casting of Heath Ledger was handled in the film "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus," in which Ledger was in the middle of filming and his friends Jude Law, Johnny Depp, and Colin Farrell took over the role in a retooling of the film, Boyce's friend, roommate, and "Jessie" co-star Karan Brar was cast as Mike.
The film included a tribute to Boyce during the credits, reading "Gone way too soon and one of the kindest, coolest, funniest, and most talented kids we knew. You live on forever in our hearts and are truly missed every day."
Cameron Boyce was a humanitarian
Like many actors, Boyce was a philanthropist and worked with many organizations. However, what many don't know is the number of causes he supported during his time in the spotlight. He raised awareness for a variety of causes, from helping impoverished communities gain access to clean water to trying to end violence on college campuses nationwide.
Starting in 2014, Boyce was actively involved with United Way of America's HomeWalk, which works to end homelessness. He raised money for the organization through various campaigns, including offering personal shout-outs to others raising money, and was a part of the opening ceremonies for the 12th annual HomeWalk in Los Angeles in May 2019 alongside fellow actor Jon Huertas ("This Is Us," "Castle"). The HomeWalk that year raised over $1.1 million and saw more than 100,000 people participate in the five-kilometer walk.
Boyce also teamed with It's On Us, an organization that aspires to end sexual violence on college campuses. The actor spoke on behalf of the organization at the 2019 Biden Courage Awards, which was hosted by the Biden Foundation and It's On Us. The ceremony recognized individuals working toward the organization's mission through intervention, organizing, and policy change. Through his work with It's On Us, Boyce met President Biden.
Boyce's final humanitarian project was to help end gun violence
At the time of his death, Boyce was working with Delaney Tarr, co-founder of March For Our Lives, on a social media campaign called Wielding Peace. The campaign's goal: contribute to the effort against gun violence. The campaign would include "a collection of images that feature people from all walks of life (celebrities, victims of gun violence, common supporters) wielding 'guns.' The catch is, the 'guns' that we're using as props will be items that signify unity and peace." These are the words Boyce used in a letter to ask others for their involvement, as shared by his representative Kasey Kitchen.
However, that catch would include "household items such as musical instruments, cameras, food, sporting equipment, beauty products, articles of clothing... anything that might inspire someone creatively as well as make a strong statement with the sentiment that we need to choose a different weapon." The initial photographs featured Boyce and his roommates Karan Brar and Sophie Reynolds. This work would not go unseen by the public, as the Cameron Boyce Foundation later released it as one of its first campaigns.
The campaign continued on, with "Descendants" co-star Dove Cameron participating in a Wielding Peace campaign to remember Boyce on his 21st birthday in 2020. In conjunction with the Cameron Boyce Foundation, a merchandise collection featuring the tattoo Cameron got in honor of Boyce's initial campaign helped raise money for both the foundation and The Actors Fund COVID Relief.
The Cameron Boyce Pioneering Spirit Award
One of the organizations Boyce regularly worked with was the Thirst Project. The organization works to bring clean water to underdeveloped countries. In 2017, the young actor used his platform on Instagram to help raise $27,000 in 40 days. Boyce continued to work with the Thirst Project until his death, being honored by the organization in 2018 with the Pioneering Spirit Award after raising more than $30,000 to help build two wells in Eswatini. In the words of the Thirst Project's CEO and founder Seth Maxwell to Billboard, "It was more than an honor for the money he raised for our work; it was really an honor for a person who knew no bounds in giving of his time and energy."
After his death, Disney made a charitable donation in his honor to the Thirst Project instead of hosting a "Descendants 3" premiere and Adam Sandler hosted a Facebook fundraiser for the organization, which helped raise over $15,000 to build wells.
Later in 2019, during the tenth annual Thirst Gala, the Thirst Project renamed the award given to Boyce to the Cameron Boyce Pioneering Spirit Award in honor of the actor's memory and his lasting work with the organization. His roommates presented the award to Craig Thompson, a YouTuber who raised more than $150,000 to help build wells.
The Cameron Boyce Foundation
The Cameron Boyce Foundation was founded in 2019 to "honor the legacy of Cameron Boyce by aiming to cure epilepsy through funding research, education, and awareness campaigns while still supporting causes that were important to Cameron." The first campaign the foundation worked on was Wielding Peace, the one Boyce had been working on when he died. It was announced on August 15, 2019.
After the 10th annual Thirst Gala, which included a tribute to Boyce in the renaming of an award he received, the foundation donated $8,000 to build a well in Uganda. The foundation credited the donations from their supporters for making the significant donation possible and pledged to continue their support of the organization in Boyce's name. Information about the Thirst Project remains on the foundation's website under the page Cam's Causes.
The Board of Directors includes Boyce's parents Libby and Victor and Boyce's former castmates Peyton List and Debby Ryan. Former castmates Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart, Adam Sandler, Karan Brar, Sophia Reynolds, and director of the "Descendants" trilogy Kenny Ortega are part of the foundation's Advisory Board.
Boyce's legacy continues in the fight to cure epilepsy
Striving to cure epilepsy, the Cameron Boyce Foundation helps fund research and spread information with its Now What campaign. The campaign's goal is to help newly diagnosed individuals make more informed decisions about their health and provide a tool kit that can help individuals decide what comes next for them both in their lives and regarding their health. Based on its 2022 Impact Report, the foundation boasts more than 800 members in their Now What support group.
In addition to direct donations, the foundation raises funds for its mission via an annual gala. According to the Impact Report, The Cameron Boyce Foundation has raised more than $1.45 million so far. Their 2022 Impact Report breaks down where these donations have been pledged. More than $350,000 has been earmarked for grants to study sudden unexpected deaths in epilepsy. The foundation also continues to donate to the Thirst Project, donating more than $30,000. Further, the report addresses the Cameron Boyce Foundation's ongoing funding and support for Guitars over Guns. That program aims to use music education to help young people find and reach their potential as leaders with the help of professional musicians who serve as mentors.
The Cam for a Cause Gala
The Cameron Boyce Foundation started an annual gala, The Cam for A Cause: A Fundraiser for The Cameron Boyce Foundation to End Epilepsy, in 2022. The gala raises money that the foundation uses to help fund epilepsy research. Those who knew Boyce and other invited parties attend the event and speak to the foundation's goal, share their memories of the late actor, and support epilepsy research.
In 2023, the gala included the awarding of the inaugural Youth Empowerment Award, a distinction given to a young individual who is making a difference in the world. The award is being used as a way to honor Boyce's legacy and the work he did in his life. Yara Shahidi, the first recipient, is known for her appearance as Tinker Bell in Disney's recent "Peter Pan & Wendy" movie and starred in the series "Black-ish" and "Grown-ish." As highlighted by The Hollywood Reporter, Shahidi was "celebrated for her activism surrounding STEM awareness, women's rights, civil rights, and her countless acts of kindness towards others" at the gala.