Dove Cameron remains true to her core essence, steadfastly countering persistent criticisms that she has "changed so much" since her days as a Disney Channel actress. She explains that transformation from her teenage years to adulthood is a completely natural progression as one ages.
"There will always be a large number of people who associate my name with my image from when I was 19, platinum blonde and smiling at the camera," she told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published on February 22. "It would be so bizarre if I continued to behave like an 18 or 19-year-old as a 30-year-old woman."
Dove, who rose to fame as a teenager on Disney Channel's 'Liv and Maddie' and later starred in the network's 'Descendants' film franchise, has released her own music and currently appears in '56 Days,' a new steamy thriller series on Prime Video.
While the person she is today is different from the 17-year-old who got her big break on Disney, Dove acknowledges that she won't be able to change everyone's perspective of her - but she's okay with that.
"There will always be a large number of people who see me as a child star," she said. "I don't think it's unfortunate. It's just their reality. I understood that people's perception of me had nothing to do with the person I am a long time ago. It doesn't always feel like that, but for the most part, their version of me in their head is from their childhood, that's this beautiful memory."
Dove insists that she also looks back fondly on her early career. "If they have that memory, it's for them," she added. "Whatever I'm doing now, I don't have to do it forever to make them happy. But we can both appreciate it. I loved that time, they loved that time. I love what I'm doing now. Other people will hopefully love what I'm doing now, but it doesn't have to be a fight."
The "Boyfriend" singer - who released her debut EP, 'Alchemical: Volume 1,' in 2023 - also noted that the way she separated herself from her Disney image was a gradual process, which could be why some fans continue to compare her to her younger self.
"The way that I broke out was actually by not trying to break out," she explained. "I never really had a big moment where I was like, 'now I'm going to show people that I'm an adult.' I just figured if I continue to work in some capacity and follow my instincts for what I want to do now naturally as I get older, my work will get older."
Indeed, her last album was a reflection of that, showcasing where Dove was in life through her songs about love, grief, and the hardships she had overcome.
"I guess my music did play a big part in that because I do think some people view that as a huge page turn," she explained. "Whereas to me, I was no longer representing a children's company, so I was just writing the music that I wanted to write."
"It was never really stark," she added. "It was never zero to a hundred."
