Does Disney force child actors to grow up to fast?
Sadly the answer is yes.
Well as I believe the answer to be yes, Disney is a very well known network. A lot of people believe that there is nothing better than working for Disney. As you are treated and paid well, however I believe I can prove that’s not correct.
I’ve read many reports and have watched many interviews with Disney stars. About how it was like growing up, under the limelight. Disney have a lot of rules, that the stars have to follow once they signed their contract.
Disney child stars seem so bright and innocent that kids tend to model after them. But as I said there are lots of messed up rules they have to follow. These young celebrities have a lot of keep up with their wholesome and positive image. They’re coached, molded and forced to be on their best behaviour at all times. But that’s not always easy to do. And when they break the rules and misbehave like any other teen, they embarrass themselves and Disney. However that is show business for you. It’s no surprise that Hollywood is emotionally intense.
Even grown up celebrities have a tough time keeping their chins up. But kids have it even rougher. So many former Disney child stars have fallen prey to notorious Disney curse . But instead of an enchanted spinning wheel or a poison apple, these stars run into trouble with the network, had mental breakdowns, or suffered personal and financial loses. Now the Disney legacy is tarnished with the child stars who are associated with scandals and antics that make people’s eyes roll.
But while some of these Hollywood Gods have grown up and fallen from grace, some have missed the Disney curse luckily. However some did not get so lucky.
Before I talk about some of the child Disney stars stories and feelings on that matter. I will tell you some of the rules that all Disney stars have to follow, no matter whether you are a child or adult. These rules are from what they can wear to how they can act and so much more. It's no wonder that a lot of Disney stars haven't returned to the network.
Disney rules:
1. One strict rule Disney stars have to follow is being "good" all the time.
-There is definitely a stigma associated with stars who are on the Disney Channel or who come from a Disney background, and it's that they're all goody-goodies. That's no accident, though, as Disney stars truly are held to an incredibly high standard when it comes to morals and how they behave
2. Disney stars reportedly have to stay in relationships.
-Though Disney Channel doesn't force young stars into relationships, according to a certain Jonas brother, they might force you to stay in one you don't really want to stay in.
3. A strict rule Disney stars have to follow is appearing super innocent.
-Obviously, just about every show that's on the Disney Channel is rated PG or below. With such a young demographic, it makes sense that the network would prefer that their stars put out a clean, innocent vibe.
4. Female Disney stars can't wear bikinis, and apparently it's a strict rule they must follow.
-The company is so strict about how their stars behave off-camera that former Disney star Bella Thorne got in major trouble for being spotted wearing a bikini at the beach. And one that her mom picked out, at that.
These are just a small fraction of the rules the Disney stars have to follow. Teenagers make mistakes, so Disney stars must feel a lot of pressure at the network. Disney star comes with a lot of perks, but it doesn't mean it's always worth it when there are such strict rules to follow. However some of these rules and all the pressure can effect the Disney stars life.
Let’s talk about Miley Cyrus.
Miley Cyrus’s Disney experience:
Miley Cyrus was a massive child Disney star for her hit tv series, Hannah Montana. When Miley now reflects on her childhood she says “she did not have a childhood because of Disney”. Miley has always been very out spoken about her experience with Disney and how it effected her life being in the limelight. In a new interview with Elle, Miley Cyrus shared the moment she knew she wanted to leave the Disney Channel show. Since the series wrapped in 2011, Miley has talked extensively about her time on the show; although she's now "proud" of the work she accomplished, she knew at age 18 that her time as Hannah Montana was coming to an end.
Speaking with Elle for their August cover story, the singer said "the minute" she had sex, she realised she had grown beyond the series. "It felt ridiculous," she said. "I was kind of like, 'I can’t put the f*cking wig on again. It got weird. It just felt like...I was grown up. "
She also said that people often viewed her as a "Disney mascot" instead of a person; however, she reiterated how proud she is of her work on the series, saying, “It’s pretty cool when you hear Cardi B was listening to Hannah Montana when she was in high school. That sh*t makes me happy.”
Miley still gets upset speaking of her childhood and being forced to grow up to fast. She’s said “It should be more shocking that when I was 11 or 12, I was put in full hair and makeup, a wig, and told what to wear by a group of mostly older men.” She also said she recalls not being able to recognise herself when she was off camera. She said that she developed body image problems from such a young age and she didn’t quite understand it herself.
This is just one example of a child Disney actor that’s had to grow up too fast.
More examples
Many child Disney stars experienced similar problems with the company. Such as Demi Lovato, Orlando Brown, Lindsay Lohan and even Zach Efron. All of the beloved Disney stars that I just mentioned also spent some time in rehabilitation. Demi Lovato was a case that shocked the pubic as she was thriving in her TV show sonny have a chance and the two movies of Camprock. Sunny have a chance got cancelled after Demi Lovato quit. The reason that she quit was that she gained an eating disorder as she began to believe that she was overweight. She wasn’t comfortable in her body, all the stress of being on the show and having to be perfect all the time, made her feel like she wasn’t good enough. She felt like her childhood was snatched away. As she was always on screen in makeup feeling pretty, however as soon as the the cameras were off and she had to take it all off she was lost. As she grew older she began taking drugs, trying to forget about her eating disorder. In an interview with Hollyscoop, Demi explains why she regrets being a Disney star. She said “She wouldn’t start out that young if I could start over again, I had no childhood” she said “ It’s difficult to transition from a child star to a mainstream artist, it’s something that’s very challenging”. This is understandable as it would be difficult for anyone to manage, but with her substance abuse and eating disorder this would’ve been 10 times more difficult.
Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez and the Jonas Brothers are some household names that grew up literally in front of our eyes on the Disney channel. However each of these stars have all slammed the Disney channel for stealing their childhood by being overworked and underpaid or thrashed into the spotlight when they weren’t ready for.
Selena Gomez played Alex Russo on “Wizards of Waverly Place” long before she turned into the big singer that she is now. The actress turned singer said that “she felt trapped by Disney’s expectations, I was still under Hollywood and Disney and I was being held to this expectation of being the good girl”. She told the New York time. “ I knew deep down that this wasn’t what I wanted to do, she was forced to get very uncomfortable for a while”. The Jonas brothers had a similar experience, they were forced to wear abstinent rings while under the pressure of Disney. Joe Jonas however said that they felt like they were being forced to behave”. “Disney is great at creating fame” He told the vulture magazine. “ Being part of a company like that comes with great expectations, we didn’t want to disappoint anyone so we put a great deal of pressure on ourselves. The kind of pressure no teenager should go through”.
Again this was just a few examples of some of the Disney child stars, that feel like their childhood was taken away from them. Due to the pressure and influence that Disney holds over them.
In conclusion of everything that I’ve mentioned, I feel horrible for the stars, that had a dream of becoming famous and actually making it, just to be put through all of that pressure and pain. Personally I love Disney and always will, however this has been an eye opening and made me aware of a lot of different traits that the network had and may still have. With all the evidence I’ve found through interviews and reports, it’s proven that Disney does force their child actors to grow up too fast.
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