Disney star Christy Carlson Romano demands change in working conditions for child actors

Disney star Christy Carlson Romano has demanded a change in working conditions for child actors in an emotional new interview with Fox News Digital.

Romano, 39, who rose to fame as Ren Stevens in the Disney Channel series Even Stevens, a role she played from 2000-2003, is campaigning for child actors to get better support while they work, while she thinks about her own experiences.

The actress, who also voiced the title character in the animated series Kim Possible, also said she felt “triggered” after Elle Fanning claimed she missed out on a movie role at age 16 because she was deemed “inept” .

She said, “I don’t think things are changing in that. I think things can’t change until there is some kind of fundamental infrastructure change. Because we’re working on outdated information about how kids are treated on sets.

“Look, at the end of the day these kids are union paying members. And they are not protected by the union. They don’t get enough direct education from the union. They may have small workshops here and there, but they don’t have enforcers. They don’t have people enforcing protection, and that’s the biggest problem.

On screen: Romano, 39, who rose to fame as Ren Stevens in the Disney Channel series Even Stevens, a role she played from 2000-2003 alongside Shia Labeaouf, is campaigning for child actors to get better support while they work work, while reflecting on her own experiences

“We have an industry that benefits from convenience. We want it loud, fast, funny and cheap, and we need it now, and that’s how productions work. It’s not just a Nickelodeon problem, or a Paramount problem, or whoever it is. It’s not the problem of any particular network. It’s an entire industry issue.

“Therefore it amounts to SAG or even child labor at the federal level. That’s what I experienced. I think that’s valuable. So, when I talk about it, I’m trying not to whistle, I’m more or less advocating for change.’

The star, who began acting on Broadway at age 15, also weighed in on Fanning’s shock claim, saying the confession “triggered” her.

The great actress, now 25, who started her acting career at just three years old, shared The Hollywood Reporters comedic actress roundtable of the “disgusting” moment she lost the role in an unspecified family movie.

She said, “I never told this story, but I tried out a movie. I did not get it. I don’t even think they ever made it, but it was a father-daughter road trip comedy.

“I haven’t heard from my agents because they wouldn’t tell me stuff like this — that filtering system is really important because there are probably a lot more harmful comments that they filtered — but this one hit me. I was 16 years old and someone said, ‘Oh, she didn’t get the father-daughter road trip comedy because she can’t.’ “

‘It’s so disgusting. And I can laugh about it now, like, “What a disgusting pig!”

Romano said, “I’m so angry. I felt very triggered, I felt very helpless and hopeless in some ways because I thought, ‘This just keeps happening.’ These are people I consider my community.

She added that there are “no conference rooms for recovered child actors.”

In 2021, Romano revealed how she spent “millions of dollars” in a new YouTube video entitled How I lost all my money.

While talking about her poor financial choices in her late teens and early 20s, the actress outlined how she put “all” of her “Disney money” on “crazy purchases.”

‘Disgusting’ The actress, who also voiced the title character in the animated series Kim Possible, also said she felt ‘triggered’ after Elle Fanning claimed she missed a movie role at age 16 because she was ‘incapable’ ‘ was deemed. (Fanning pictured 2014, 16 years old)

She started her ten-minute video by revealing that she “started making money from Disney” at age 16, which was partially protected by Coogan law.

She explained that the California Child Actor’s Bill “protects minors from their parents spending all their money” until they reach legal adulthood.

“That’s not exactly what happened to me, but I’ll take you on a journey into my path of financial mastery and how I’ve made and lost millions of dollars,” Romano said.

The mother-of-two continued, “I really regret not investing my money wisely. I didn’t get a house. I didn’t take any money and put it away except the Coogan money. I used that money to go to university when I was 18.’

“I left the company and went to college and I took a lot of that money and spent it on not having student loans. That was smart, sure, except I left school a year and a half later and then I had this money at my disposal,’ she reflected.

For a long time she said she was “never told how much money” and “money had no purpose” to her.

‘I didn’t really know what it was. I just knew I had it and I didn’t care. That’s a problem,” she admitted.

She added, “You have to teach kids the value of every dollar they make, everything they do, the energy it brings to their lives and what it takes to earn that dollar. It’s a relationship that you have to do it.’

Fame game: The star started acting on Broadway at just 15 years old (pictured in 2003 with the cast of Even Stevens)

At age 21, Romano said she “decided to say goodbye to her family for about a year” because she “didn’t like the way it happened.” [her] money was managed.’

“It was a sad year for me, but it was also an interesting year. You know, I started to understand that I had a certain amount of money and that made me feel super confident,” she told viewers.

When people told her she was “not good enough,” the Cadet Kelly star said she would feel “better” and more “accepted” by buying “really big tickets.”

“I used buying things and money as a weapon,” she shared. “I felt like if I could just buy certain things I would feel better or if I just lived a certain lifestyle I would be closer to that joy of feeling accepted and much less alone because I feel really stupid felt because I didn’t know my money and I’ve never really made peace with that. Even to this day I can’t help the fact that money came and went.’

Among her “biggest” regrets, Romano confesses to seeing a psychic who “managed to get a bunch of money” from her.