Dove Cameron Shares How Losing Her Childhood Best Friend at 9 Affected Her Life and Healing Journey
Dove Cameron Reflects on Childhood Trauma in Revealing Interview
In a poignant interview on the Feb. 4 episode of Call Her Daddy, singer and actress Dove Cameron opened up about the tragic murder of her childhood friend, Hayley, when Cameron was just nine years old. This devastating event, which she learned about while home sick from school, has profoundly impacted her life.
Cameron, 30, recalled the moment she received the heartbreaking news. During a third-grade sick day, she overheard a phone call between her parents and Hayley’s preschool principal. “She basically said, ‘This is going to be a really, really disturbing call. Hayley and [her sister] Kelsey are gone. Steve is gone, and he took the girls with him,’” Cameron recounted. The moment left her gasping, and she and her parents spent two days in bed unable to process the tragedy.
The actress and singer described meeting Hayley when they were just two years old, growing up in Bainbridge Island, Washington. “Some little girls, they meet each other, and they’re like, ‘Oh, that’s like you, and it’s funny,’” she noted, reflecting on their deep connection. However, she added that she rarely discusses this part of her life, not because it’s difficult, but due to the way people typically engage with her.
Cameron recounted a tense atmosphere surrounding Hayley’s family leading up to the incident, noting, “I had stayed with her dad for like quite a lot of the summer before [the murder] happened. And I think even at 8, it was like a dark energy. He was a very angry man.” Hayley’s parents underwent a tumultuous divorce, which added to the complexity of the situation.
In the aftermath of Hayley’s death, Cameron’s parents sought therapy for her, but she struggled to make sense of the loss. “I was very very very very very disturbed by knowing someone for all that time and being like raised around them and then realizing that they are capable of doing something so harrowing,” she explained. The experience left a lasting impression on her psyche, stating that it “fissured” her brain and altered her processing of emotions.
Cameron has been candid about her mental health struggles, revealing in an April 2025 episode of Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast that her journey has been filled with challenges, including panic attacks during her time on Disney Channel’s Liv and Maddie. “There was so much going on in my personal life,” she shared, adding that her father’s suicide shortly before she began working on the series significantly affected her.
Reflecting on the turmoil during those formative years, Cameron expressed disbelief and confusion regarding her father’s death, stating, “There was no way for me to wrap my head around it.” Balancing her grief while transitioning into fame proved to be an overwhelming challenge, one she continues to navigate.
