Descendants 3 Red Carpet Premiere Canceled in Wake of Disney Star Cameron Boyce's Death
Descendants star Cameron Boyce‘s life and legacy is being honored in a way that was near and dear to his heart.
On Thursday, Disney Channel announced that the upcoming red carpet premiere of Descendants 3, in which Cameron stars as Carlos, was canceled.
“We’re proud to be part of Cameron Boyce’s legacy by showcasing his talents on screen, but we are cancelling the red carpet premiere event for Descendants 3 (scheduled for July 22),” a statement reads.
“And instead, The Walt Disney Company will make a donation to the Thirst Project, a philanthropic organization to which Cameron was deeply committed,” the statement continues.
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The Thirst project “is a nonprofit organization that works with the support of young people to END the global water crisis by building freshwater wells in developing communities that need safe, clean drinking water,” according to the organization’s website.
“With permission from the Boyce family, Disney Channel will dedicate the telecast of Descendants 3 in Cameron Boyce’s memory,” the statement reads.
On Friday, Seth Maxwell, the Founder/CEO of The Thirst Project, released a statement to PEOPLE about Boyce.
“As an organization, we have been without words this past week for so many reasons. We honored Cameron Boyce with the Pioneering Spirit Award just last year for all of the amazing work he has done on behalf of Thirst Project. 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. His legacy will live on in every student we work with, in every person, and in every community where a water project is built,” Maxwell began his statement.
Maxwell also thanked Disney for its generous donation. “My heart hurts, and I’m so sad and angry and confused by the loss of Cameron Boyce. And I know I’m not unique in that at all. We so appreciate the amazing gesture and generosity of the donation by the Walt Disney Company and know that Cameron would be so happy that his work with us to make the world a better place will be able to continue on,” the statement continued.
“Cameron was truly PRECIOUS. One of a kind. The most sincere and authentically sweet, kind, loving, generous, funny, wonderful human. He had a way of making you feel like you were the only person in the room when he talked to you. Anyone who was ever lucky enough to have a Cam interaction left a better person for it. Cameron radiated love. He never did anything halfway,” said Maxwell. “All of us at Thirst Project appreciate the overwhelming outpouring of love and support by everyone who has personally donated and reached out asking to get involved in Cam’s memory/honor.”
Maxwell concluded: “We are committed to honoring Cameron’s life, and we are resolved to continue the work we did together to build a socially-conscious and active generation of young people and to work until every single person has safe, clean drinking water. He BELIEVED in the work of changing the world. He lived out that passion in his every action. His life was marked and led by love. We had no idea how blessed we were to get to do life together with Cameron at THIS time in human history. He will be deeply missed.”
On Saturday, Cameron — who was best known for his role as Cruella de Vil’s son in the Descendants TV movies and as Luke Ross on Disney Channel’s Jessie — was found unresponsive in his North Hollywood home, and he was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:35 p.m., the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner announced. He was 20.
Two days later, “an autopsy was performed and the cause and manner of death were deferred pending additional testing,” the coroner said.
As of Thursday, “preliminary information suggests the death occurred under natural circumstances,” but “the final cause and manner of death will be determined at a later date,” according to the coroner.
The star’s family said on Tuesday that his “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,” the family added.
In an emotional Instagram tribute on Thursday, Cameron’s sister Maya Boyce shared photos of her brother captured throughout his life alongside a lengthy and heartfelt statement.
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“Yes, he died. Yes, I’m sad. Cameron was my best friend. He is someone I will always idolize. His smile could light up a room, unlike anyone else’s,” Maya, 17, began the post.
“He was perfect. He always said that if you have a voice, you have the privilege of using that voice for change, and he did not take that idea lightly. He understood his responsibility as someone so many kids would look up to,” she continued. “Cameron always went out of his way to be giving and kind.”
Later in the post, Maya said Cameron “was sunlight wearing shoes. I can confidently say, he wants us to celebrate, grow, and persevere. Yes, he died. Yes, I’m sad. I’m also happy. And grateful. I was with him hours before he died. It was normal and fun,” she continued. “We said, ‘I love you.’ He was happy.”
