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Demi Lovato opens up like never before about their experience as a child star in a new documentary now streaming on Hulu and Disney+.
“Child Star,” which Lovato co-directed alongside, Nicola Marsh, highlights the peculiarity of growing up famous along with the tough realities young actors and performers are faced with in the industry. The former Disney Channel kid turned teen pop sensation looks beyond their own career journey to analyze the rise of the entire child performer industry — from the Shirley Temple era to the TikTok and YouTube generation.
Lovato recruited fellow child stars Drew Barrymore, Kenan Thompson, Christina Ricci, Raven-Symoné, Alyson Stoner and JoJo Siwa to share their stories on camera. “Getting to talk to them so candidly about our experiences was so meaningful to me,” Lovato told Variety ahead of a special screening held at Neuehouse Hollywood last week.
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When talking about her participation in the documentary, Siwa told Variety how watching it may generate feelings of discomfort. “I’m preparing for a little bit of trauma that I don’t know exists to kind of unlock,” she said. “Because I think there is something that I maybe have sheltered my brain from realizing, growing up in the limelight as a child star. I have kept it all positive, but I think hearing other people’s experiences, I might kind of sit there and be like, ‘Oh shoot, I feel that too.’”
“Child Star” is now available to stream on Hulu, which is currently discounted to $1.99/month for college students, in addition to Disney+. Stream “Child Star” online below:
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