Keke Palmer recounts agent’s shocking response to inappropriate kiss scene she had to shoot age 12
At this point, it’s no secret that film and television aren’t particularly child friendly industries. From Drew Barrymore entering rehab at age 12 on account of a crippling cocaine and alcohol addiction, to Penn Badgley dropping out of middle school to work longer hours on set, and youngsters dodging wildly inappropriate questions at interviews à la Sabrina Carpenter and Dakota Fanning, countless former child stars actors have lamented the lack of protections and safety for them.
The latest to join this growing chorus is Keke Palmer, who recently revealed her agent’s shocking response when she expressed her discomfort over kissing 17-year-old Corbin Bleu in Jump In—a film she starred in at just 12 years old.
If you’ve been a kid in the 00s who enjoyed jumping ropes, you’ve likely watched the sports drama film that was released in 2007. It stars Palmer as Mary Thomas, the leader of the skip rope group Joy Jumpers, who eventually falls for the protagonist Izzy, played by then-17-year-old Corbin Bleu.
During an appearance on the Club Shay Shay podcast aired on Thursday 21 November 2024, Palmer recalled feeling uncomfortable before her infamous kiss scene with Corbin in the movie.
“It was actually a big thing for all of us because I was 12 and Corbin was 17… So that was very weird,” the actor noted, sharing that this was her first-ever kiss.
“He [had] such a brother vibe… Like, that wasn’t the relationship we had,” Palmer continued.
Then, the actor revealed that she and her parents went to express her discomfort to her agent at the time. “I remember I had a call with my agent, and I was like, ‘I’m scared about this. This is weird,’” she retold.
To her surprise and eventual horror, her agent was less than helpful: “She was like, ‘You know, Meagan Good had to kiss Samuel L. Jackson in Eve’s Bayou. So…’”
For context, Eve’s Bayou is a Southern gothic drama released in 1997, in which a young girl learns that her father is having an affair and enlists a voodoo priestess to help. Meagan Good was 14 years old when she filmed the movie, while Samuel L. Jackson was in his 40s. Ew.
The actor recalled feeling stunned by her agent’s response: “I was just like, ‘Huh?! What am I supposed to do with that?’ Like, that was weird, too!” she explained.
“I don’t really know what to make of that! I think there’s a weird thing that happens with kid entertainers where we have to literally dissociate so much as an adult would in a workplace in ways that’s not normal or common,” Keke continued. The actor also noted that she wished there was “more therapy for kid entertainers on set.”
Indeed, this isn’t the first time that an adult actor had to respond to a controversial scene they shot as a child.
In April 2024, Brian Bonsall, star of the film Blank Check, responded to backlash about a kiss scene he filmed at age 12 with his then-31-year-old female co-star.
The lessons that can be drawn from these ordeals are ones that have been repeated throughout the years, every time a child star opened up about their formative and sometimes traumatic experiences while coming of age in Hollywood.
While there are stipulations on the type of content children can film or the number of hours they get to work on set each day, these protections fall short when it comes to emotional and psychological boundaries.
Scenarios like these highlight how often child actors are forced into adult scenarios without adequate oversight, guidance, or support.
