By India McCarty
Former child star Aaron Carter’s siblings are sharing the moment they hoped would help him turn his life around.
“When Aaron joined DANCING WITH THE STARS in 2009, we were all so excited for him. He was excited and I knew that he was going to be amazing because he was an incredible dancer,” his sister, Angel Carter Conrad, shared in THE CARTERS: HURTS TO LOVE YOU, a new documentary about the family.
She added, “We all looked at it as this opportunity for Aaron to hopefully change his life and do something better.”
Melissa Joan Hart, another former child star who was competing on the same season of DWTS, shared her impression of Carter at the time. He had previously guest-starred on her hit show SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH.
“To see him on the set of SABRINA as this little boy who was goofy and silly and loving life and loved hamming it up for the camera and then to see him on DWTS and now he’s older and you can see he’s in his head…” she explained. “I feel like at this point he was past the pop star phase but I feel like there was this gap in transitioning like we do from child to adult and trying to figure out who you are as an adult.”
Hart continued, “‘Are you an adult actor, are you a pop star still? Can you be a pop star still? Where do you fit?’ You could just see that he was trying so hard. He seemed really vulnerable.”
Carter passed away in 2022 in a drug-related drowning. He was 34 years old.
“I’ll never forget, you know, being in London at the time when it happened and getting the text message,” his brother Nick said in HURTS TO LOVE YOU. “It’s still unbelievable to this day. I haven’t even had a chance to grieve.”
The documentary also delves into the deaths of their other siblings. Leslie Carter died in 2012 at the age of 25, while Bobbie Jean “B.J.” Carter passed away in 2023 at 41 (trailer via YouTube).
Related: Nick Carter Mourns Brother Aaron: ‘God, Please Take Care Of My Baby Brother’
“I’m so thankful I have you, because there’s only one person who understands what we went through,” Angel told her older brother in one scene.
He replied, “We’re the only ones left.”
Director Soleil Moon Frye — a former child star herself, the star of PUNKY BREWSTER — spoke to CBS about the documentary.
“There had been so many stories about this family, so much noise, so many different people telling different perspectives — and Angel really deserved the safe space to share, to share her journey, and to provide that light,” she shared. “I felt an incredible sense of responsibility to honor their memories and create this from a place of love and empathy and compassion.”
Frye said she hopes HURTS TO LOVE YOU will help viewers “connect it to their lives and loved ones, adding, “This is one of the most universal stories that has to be told right now. We are in a global crisis, mental health, addiction. These are conversations that we have to be having.”
HURTS TO LOVE YOU is an intimate look at one family’s struggles with addiction, compounded by their involvement in the entertainment industry. THE CARTERS: HURTS TO LOVE YOU is available to stream on Paramount+.
Read Next: Aaron Carter’s Sister Advocates for Mental Health After Dysfunctional Childhood
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