Trigger Warning: This article includes references to suicide and substance abuse.
Demi Lovato gets candid about the struggles in her most recent documentary, where she attempts to unravel the issue of being famous at a very young age.
Directed partly by Nicola Marsh, the documentary, Child Star finds the singer (she/they) reflecting on the toxic and damaging effect of stardom on her mental state, which resulted in suicidal tendencies and self-destructive behavior.
In the documentary, Lovato explained that this popularity was also depriving her of tranquillity, creating myriad stress-related events like the incident with Alex Welch, where they punched one of the dancers during the 2010 Jonas Brothers tour.
Reflecting on the dark side of fame, they said, “Unfortunately, sometimes that looks explosive, like an incident where you punch your backup dancer on an airplane or you overdose from heroin.” This event made Lovato go to rehab. In September 2018, another horrible situation occurred when they overdosed on drugs and suffered several strokes as well as a heart attack.
As per People, working on the documentary gave Lovato an alternative to thinking about her actions in the past and more constructively moving on from them. When the Cool for the Summer singer thought back about mistreating people who she was close to during her dark periods, she felt a great need to make amends. Filming Child Star made that feasible for her. She said, “I wasn’t the nicest person to work with at times because I was struggling so much internally, and I was under a lot of pressure.”
When Lovato found herself back in contact with fellow stars Raven-Symoné and Alyson Stoner who were featured in the documentary, their conversations became “very therapeutic.”. She appreciated them for being welcoming and encouraging.
In an interview with People, Lovato also discussed what encouraged her to make Child Star. She has always been interested in the story of child stars as well as the pressures faced by them while growing up. She further stressed that regardless of her issues in the past, there was nothing that she concealed or was unwilling to talk about. She stated, “I’ve realized that my experiences don’t define me.”
Demi Lovato’s Child Star, released on September 17, consists of stories of various child actors, including Drew Barrymore, JoJo Siwa, Kenan Thompson, Christina Ricci, Raven-Symoné, and Alyson Stoner, who made their debut in the TV industry as children. They also talk about their experiences as a child actor—the good and the bad—and what it is really like working as a child actor in the past and present to the audience.
Disclaimer: If you know someone who is having suicidal thoughts, anxiety, going through depression, or suffering from a serious mental illness, reach out to a nearby doctor, mental health expert, or an NGO for immediate help. There are several helplines available for the same.
