Dove Cameron was more than devastated when she found out about the death of her good friend Cameron Boyce earlier this month.
In a new interview with Seventeen, the Liv and Maddie star opened up about the morning she learned her Descendants 3 costar had suddenly died in his sleep on July 6 at age 20.
Related: Cameron Boyce’s Parents Share More Heartfelt Photo Tributes
She recalled:
“When I heard about Cameron, I had just woken up early in a London hotel room to the sound of my phone ringing off the hook. I was nervous about why I could be getting so many texts and calls, so I only looked at my mother’s text. I knew she would be the gentlest, and the most concise, whatever it was.”
The 23-year-old said her mom’s text “explained what happened,” which caused her to “immediately” call up Descendants star Boo Boo Stewart, who had “already called [her] twice.”
She continued:
“We just sobbed without speaking. If there was a word stronger than devastated that could describe the depth of the pain that I was feeling, I would use it.”
As fans know, the Disney Channel stars became close friends while filming the first Descendants movie — but Cameron had been impressed with Boyce before they even met, thanks to his stint on the show Jessie from 2011 to 2015.
She remembered:
“I had always thought, ‘damn, what a charismatic, bright and brilliant kid.’ ”
When the two finally met, Cameron wasted no time in forging a friendship.
She recalled immediately jumping out of her car and hugging the actor when they first met after telling him:
“‘This is going to sound so weird, but we’re about to do this new thing together, and I’m going to hug you, because I can promise you now, we are going to be friends.’ ”
After that, the duo were as thick as thieves:
“From that first day onward, Cameron was my friend and he treated me, like he treated everyone else, like they were the most important person in the room. I loved him like a brother, and I learned from him every day, how to be joyful, how to be resilient, how to be patient, no matter the circumstances. I couldn’t begin to quantify the wisdom and generosity that this kid had. I still learn from him every day.”
Although Cameron has been struggling in the wake of her good friend’s passing, she said she can always find comfort in her castmates:
“Me, Boo Boo, Cam and Sofia [Carson] still have our core 4 group chat active and open, as we have for 5 years. It’s hard when there are no adequate words to express the pain we are all feeling, but the usual text is ‘love you.’ Or ‘are you eating?’ Or ‘how are we all today?’ I think something like this horrible loss makes you realize how important you are all to each other. I am grateful for my chosen family at a time like this.”
The actress first paid tribute to Boyce three days after his death, with an emotional series of Instagram videos honoring her “earth angel.”
As we reported, the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner revealed on Tuesday that the actor’s cause of death was “sudden unexpected death in epilepsy,” adding the manner of death was “certified as natural.”
Our hearts go out to Boyce’s loved ones at this difficult time.
[Image via WENN]
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