Last month, we received the heartbreaking news that Disney star, Cameron Boyce, had sadly, and unexpectedly, passed away.
Cameron, who was only twenty-years-old when he died suddenly, made a huge impact on both his fans and those who personally knew and loved him.
Tributes have been flooding in for the Disney star, from both celebrities and family members. And now Cameron’s parents have spoken out about his heartbreaking final moments.
At the ripe age of just 9-years-old, Boyce made his debut appearances in the horror films, Mirrors and Eagle Eye.
Throughout his career, he went on to star in many other movies, such as Grown Ups 2 with Adam Sandler, and the animated version of Marvel’s Spiderman.
You will probably remember Cameron best from his role as Carlos De Vil in the Disney movie franchise, Descendants.
He also starred in other Disney titles such as Good Luck Charlie, Shake It Up, and Jessie.
Cameron was always very vocal about his diverse heritage, and how coming from a mixed Jewish and Afro Caribbean family was important to him.
Cameron’s grandmother, Jo Ann Allen Boyce, was one of the first twelve black students to be integrated into a white high school in Clinton, 1956.
The actor was visibly very proud of his heritage and posted about his family on his social media accounts quite regularly.
Speaking to Haute Living, Cameron discussed his pride concerning his grandmother’s story: “Her story doesn’t just inspire me … It hits home with everyone who stops to listen to it.
“She and the other eleven students set the stage for our generation to come together. We have to ensure – especially with some of the controversy plaguing us now – that we continue to push towards dreams that have yet to be realized. Equality in its truest sense.”
In 2016, Cameron directed a short film for Black History Month, in which he addressed his grandmother’s role in the Clinton 12 movement, and ultimately kept the memory of these advocates alive.
Cameron was a vocal advocate for The Thirst Project, a charity dedicated to providing clean and drinkable water to disadvantaged communities.
His humanitarian work raised $30,000 to build two wells for clean drinking water in Swaziland, and he also used his platform to raise awareness about the Global Water Crisis.
And news of his untimely death has hit the world hard.
The actor passed away on July 6th, after suffering a seizure in his sleep – but, initially, we weren’t sure what the cause of that seizure actually was.
In an official statement upon news of Cameron’s death, a family spokesperson expressed the family’s heartbreak: “The world is now undoubtedly without one of its brightest lights, but his spirit will live on through the kindness and compassion of all who knew and loved him.
“We are utterly heartbroken and ask for privacy during this immensely difficult time as we grieve the loss of our precious son and brother.”
Fans and personal friends alike have been sharing heartwarming tributes and stories about Cameron over social media.
Social media users have been expressing their shock and sadness over Cameron’s unexpected death, with many fans feeling a close attachment to the actor.
Fans aren’t the only ones who have been hit hard by the shocking news. An array of different celebrities who knew and worked with Cameron have been sharing their grief.
Fellow Descendents star, Sarah Jeffery, shared a photo of the pair hugging, with a simple love heart as the caption.
Cameron’s on-screen mom, Wendy Raquel, shared a picture of the pair on the set of Descendents together, and wrote: “…we had so much fun creating magic on the set and at @amazinggraceconservatory A Lifetime…precious memories that I will cherish forever!”
Fellow Jessie star, Debbie Ryan, also posted a tribute.
The actress shared a video of Cameron to her Instagram Story, where he can be heard discussing the need to use social media to make the world a better place.
Boyce had famously starred alongside Sandler in Grown Ups 2, wherein he played Keithie Feder, son of Adam Sandler’s character, Leonard Feder, and the pair had made an iconic duo.
Sharing a black and white photo of Cameron, Sandler wrote: “Too young. Too sweet. Too funny. Just the nicest, most talented, and most decent kid around. Loved that kid. Cared so much about his family. Cared so much about the world. Thank you, Cameron, for all you gave to us. So much more was on the way. All our hearts are broken.”
Cameron was a big family guy and was regularly spotted in cute family pictures in his dad’s Instagram posts.
Only 2 months ago, he shared a video of him surprising his mom on Mother’s Day, and her reaction was nothing short of overjoyed.
Victor Boyce regularly shared his and his son’s daily doings on his Instagram account, with his posts demonstrating their close father-son relationship.
And it was adorable to see. On Cameron’s twentieth birthday, his dad fondly referred to him as a “goofball” and his “favorite son.”
Though, considering that Cameron only passed away last month, the family will most certainly be going through an unimaginable period of grief and pain, and will understandably not be thinking of social media right away.
He had kind words for everyone who has supported the family so far.
In a tweet the day following his son’s death, Victor wrote: “I’m overwhelmed with the love and support our family has received. It really does help to ease the pain of this nightmare I can’t wake up from. I can’t thank you guys enough.”
One user expressed how much of a role model Cameron was to her growing up, and credited Victor and his wife for raising such an admirable person.
Countless Twitter users sent heartwarming messages to Victor, telling him about the positive impact that his son had on their lives.
Cameron had suffered an epileptic seizure while he was sleeping, which sadly proved to be fatal.
A spokesperson for the Boyce family confirmed that Cameron had been suffering from Epilepsy as an on-going medical condition throughout his life.
“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 through this extremely heart-wrenching time, and continue to ask for privacy so that the family, and all who knew and loved him can grieve his loss and make arrangements for his funeral – which in and of itself, is agonizing.”
And the coroner confirmed what the family had already told us, that the Disney star’s tragic death was due to epilepsy.
Cameron Boyce was one of a kind and made an astounding impact on both the world and the people that he interacted with in his life.
He will be sorely missed and our thoughts go out to his family.
In a heartbreaking interview with ABC News, Libby and Victor Boyce have opened up about Cameron’s final moments – alongside what they hope his legacy will be.
“The night he passed away, we were out to dinner with him just hours before. It was a completely normal, beautiful family night out to dinner,” Victor revealed.
But he was determined not to feel like it was holding him back in any way. “It didn’t define him. He wasn’t scared. He never complained about anything,” said Victor.
“He loved life. He was kind of in a place — this is, for me, the hardest thing — he was in a place where he was truly happy. I mean, Cameron was always happy. Never a negative thing came out of his mouth. Never! But he was just really finding his groove,” mom, Libby, claimed.
“He was really getting into the charity stuff, really getting into what he wanted to do with his voice, which is what we always told him to do. Use your voice. Use it to make positive in the world, and that’s what he was starting to do,” she went on.
Libby and Victor have set up The Cameron Boyce Foundation to help his legacy live on. It’s a charity dedicated to ending violence amongst young people, particularly in terms of mass shootings.
“His legacy is important to us because we don’t want him to be remembered as just an actor or some Disney kid. Because he was so much more than that. He wanted to be known as his own person, you know, individually and not cookie-cutter,” said Victor.
It’s impossible to imagine how the Boyce family are coping with this tragedy – but the fact that they’re trying to ensure that some good can come out of it is incredibly admirable.
