Former Even Stevens star Steven Anthony Lawrence claims he was fired from Universal Studios after ‘reporting a suspected pedophile’
A former Disney child star has claimed he was fired from Universal Studios Hollywood after “reporting a suspected pedofile”.
Steven Anthony Lawrence appeared as Bernard “Beans” Aranguren in the hit Disney Channel Original Series, Even Stevens, from 2001 to 2003.
Now 35 years old, Lawrence has shared a statement on Instagram alleging he was fired from his role as a performer at the popular theme park, despite “working to find some sort of amicable solution”.
In the post shared on Monday, January 5 (AEDT), Larence wrote, “I delayed posting this for about a month because I was hoping we could find some sort of amicable solution because I absolutely loved performing and dancing with all you amazing people.”
He said it is “with a heavy heart” that he announces his time at Universal Studios has come to an end, claiming management decided to “retaliate for reporting a suspected pedofile around children”.
”While I will truly miss my job I cannot be associated with an organization or people that don’t care about performer or guest safety while numerous people continue to get hurt,” he wrote.
“With what I know, I WILL NEVER ALLOW MY KID TO GO TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD. Be safe everyone.”
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Along with the caption, Lawrence shared an image of his former Universal Studios Hollywood ID and nametag.
One commenter claiming to have worked alongside Lawrence at the theme park alleged he was “a menace to work with, onstage and off”.
“Left your glasses in the middle of the floor during a set and then yelled at the dressers that they moved your glasses so they wouldn’t get stepped on(tip of the iceberg),” the commenter claimed.
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However, several other commenters, also claiming to have worked alongside the former child star, shared messages of support.
“The frightening thing is this post has had so many other people speak out with their own accounts and has given me more ammunition then I realized,” Lawrence added in the comments section on Tuesday, January 6 (AEDT).
Universal Studios Hollywood has not responded to the claims at the time of publishing.
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