Jenna Ortega reveals moment Cameron Boyce stopped audition over 'uncomfortable' kiss

13 September 2024, 15:12 | Updated: 8 November 2024, 18:26

Jenna Ortega's sweet story about Cameron Boyce stopping an audition for her goes viral. Picture: Karwai Tang/WireImage, David Livingston/WireImage

By Katie Louise Smith

Jenna's audition with Cameron was also the last time she saw her friend before he sadly passed away.

Loading audio...

Jenna Ortega's sweet story about Cameron Boyce refusing to kiss her during an audition because she felt uncomfortable has gone viral, and people are now sobbing at how kind Cameron's actions were.

In an interview with Canal+, Jenna was joined by Beetlejuice Beetlejuice co-stars Winona Ryder and Catherine O'Hara. While discussing their audition experiences, Winona brought up how respectful actor Jeff Bridges was when they read for a scene together, explaining how he opted to kiss her forehead instead of her lips because she was so young at the time.

Jenna recalled her own experience where an audition called for her to kiss "boy after boy after boy" at the age of 15/16, then shared a story about how Cameron, her friend who she knew from her Disney Channel days, supported her during a particularly difficult audition.

It was also the last time she saw him before he sadly passed away at the age of 20 in 2019.

Read more: Disney's 'Descendants 4' Includes Emotional Tribute To Cameron Boyce Following His Death
Read more: Skai Jackson dedicates Dancing With The Stars routine to Cameron Boyce

Jenna Ortega discusses Wednesday season 2 theories

"The last time I saw my friend Cameron Boyce — I'd known him since I was like 11 or 12, and we were supposed to kiss [in an audition] and he knew me, since I was 11 or 12," Jenna explained. "This is a few years later, 15/16, came in, we were supposed to be love interests."

She continued: "But because he obviously felt weird and he was a bit older, he was like — we both just kinda looked at each other and we were like, 'No, we can't do this.' And it was so sweet because I was uncomfortable and I was having a hard time in the audition... And then, we wished each other well."

"I remember being really thankful and grateful that he did that," Jenna added, before Catherine added that he was a "gentleman" for the sweet move.

The clip has gone viral on X/Twitter, with people praising Cameron for the sweet gesture. One fan wrote: "That's a really sweet memory of Cameron. It's also disappointing that it was up to Jenna and Cameron, the kids in the situation to acknowledge that something was weird. Where were the adults?"

"One of the sweetest human beings to ever walk the planet," another added, as someone else commented: "No one ever has a bad thing to say about him just such a gentleman and sweetheart."

Jenna Ortega knew Cameron Boyce since she was 11 years old, as they both starred on the Disney Channel. Picture: Jenna Ortega via Facebook

Following Cameron's tragic passing in 2019, Jenna shared a beautiful tribute to her friend on Instagram alongside a photo of the two during their Disney Channel days.

"Cameron will forever be one of the nicest people I've met," she wrote in an Instagram post. "I'll never forget one of the first times I met him. He was skateboarding outside of the Jessie set. I was heading to an audition, when he rode past me with his arms reaching for a high five, shouting 'Good luck! You're gonna do awesome!' I looked at my mom with the biggest grin on my face. He was so good at making people happy. Thank you for all of the smiles, Cameron. The world is a little less bright without you in it."