A heartbreaking loss. Dove Cameron shared a tribute to her Descendants costar Cameron Boyce three days after his untimely death.
In an emotional video post on Instagram on Tuesday, July 9, the actress broke down repeatedly as she tried to speak about the loss of her close friend and costar.
“The last 72 hours have felt like two weeks and I’ve spent them trying to make my thoughts and feelings into words that might communicate anything about what I’m feeling. I’ve been unsuccessful,” she said in the black-and-white videos that were filmed in a bedroom. “My system is still in shock and my brain is still foggy and full of holes.”
Addressing his family, she broke down in tears before reading a note that she wrote to her pal.
“Cameron was one of my favorite people alive in the world, though I know that’s not unique to me. Cameron was magic. An earth angel,” she read. “Over the last six years, since he was only 14, Cameron talked me down from countless ledges, got me through eating disorders, helped me out of a dark relationship and through endless breakdowns. He would whisper the dance moves to me on live television when I didn’t know what I was doing or hold my hand quietly to communicate wordlessly when we both knew we were thinking the same thing. I can’t count on my hands the number of times we ruined something because we couldn’t stop making each other laugh.”
“He was undoubtedly the most talented person most of us will ever know but what was special about Cameron was who he was in the small moments when maybe no one was looking, the moments between the big ones, when he didn’t have to be good or kind,” she added. “Cameron was always good and kind. He was selfless and generous, he was magnanimous and arguably a true philanthropist at only 20. Beloved by anyone who had ever been lucky enough to experience his light and indescribable energy. Cameron was the ultimate example of a human being.”
“Goodbye my dear, dear friend and brother, you leave behind a colossal wake, a profound chasm that can never be filled, but you also leave millions and millions of deeply impacted, hope-filled and love-filled human beings who are who they are because of you and how you spent your brief 20 years on this earth,” she concluded. “What a gift you were, you turned the world on its head. We can all only hope to be half of the human that you were and you deserved so much more time. Bye to an earth angel. I will spend the rest of my life missing and loving you and all the better for knowing you.”
Us Weekly previously confirmed that Boyce died at the age of 20 on Saturday, July 6.
“It is with a profoundly heavy heart that we report that this morning we lost Cameron,” a spokesperson told Us on behalf of the actor’s family. “He passed away in his sleep due to a seizure which was a result of an ongoing medical condition for which he was being treated. 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.”
Boyce starred alongside Cameron, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart and Mitchell Hope in Disney Channel’s Descendants franchise. The third film, Descendants 3, is set to air on Disney Channel Friday, August 2, at 8 p.m. ET.
The Liv and Maddie alum’s boyfriend, Thomas Doherty, who joined the cast for the second film, posted two photos of Boyce on Monday, July 8.
“A truly beautiful soul ❤️,” Doherty wrote via Instagram.
Boyce also appeared on Disney Channel’s Jessie and BUNK’d.
A spokesperson for the network released a statement after the news broke: “From a young age, Cameron Boyce dreamed of sharing his extraordinary artistic talents with the world. He was an incredibly talented performer, a remarkably caring and thoughtful person and, above all else, he was a loving and dedicated son, brother, grandson and friend. We offer our deepest condolences to his family, castmates and colleagues and join his many millions of fans in grieving his untimely passing. He will be dearly missed.”
Boyce’s friends and costars including Adam Sandler, Debby Ryan and Salma Hayek also paid tribute to the actor.
