Disney Channel star Cameron Boyce has died at age 20.
He was best known for his role on the television film series “Descendants,” which followed the fictional children of Disney’s movie villains. A Los Angeles native, Boyce made his acting debut in the horror movie “Mirrors” when he was nine years old.
Boyce catapulted into stardom as one of the lead characters on the Disney Channel show “Jessie,” which starred actress Debby Ryan. He eventually went on to play one of Adam Sandler’s children in the “Grown Ups” franchise.
The Twitter account for Disney Channel’s public relations team confirmed the news on Sunday morning.
Boyce’s family, who said they were heartbroken, told NBC News that Boyce had suffered from an ongoing medical condition and had died from a seizure in his sleep.
"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," said his family in a statement.
His former co-star Adam Sandler posted his condolences on Twitter saying Boyce "cared so much about the world."
The latest post on the Boyce’s Instagram page, which has 9.6 million followers, has been flooded with condolences and warm messages from his fans.
Boyce had recently taken to charity work and was even honoured with a Pioneering Spirit Award at last year's Thirst Gala, which was sponsored by the non-profit Thirst Project.
He’d helped the group raise US$30,000 to build wells for clean drinking water in Swaziland.
His employer, Disney Channel, wrote that Boyce “will be dearly missed” and praised him for his humanitarian works and acting talents.
"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," the company said in a statement.
"We offer our deepest condolences to his family, cast mates and colleagues and join his many millions of fans in grieving his untimely passing. He will be dearly missed."
