this is "nightline." tonight, life and legacy. a young star's life cut short. ♪ looks like this place could use a bit of misbehavior ♪ >> cameron boyce, his parents opening up to robin roberts for the first time since their son's shocking death. >> you never know. it's not cliche to say. >> and how they're keeping their son's passions alive. >> we wanted to do all the things he wanted to do since he can't do them. plus, serena versus the ump. the new espn docuseries examining the u.s. open fight. the superstar accused of cheating. her public meltdown dividing fans and the surprising admission from her coach.

>> i feel at the moment that she's lost on the court, so i try to help her. that's my job. >> but first, the "nightline" five. number one in just sixty seconds. k r ining us.

beloved disney star cameron boyce's sudden death sent shock waves across the "descendants"

film universe and beyond last month. for the first time, the star's parents are talking to robin roberts in an exclusive interview. >> i want him to be remembered. and i want him to be remembered positively and to help people, to continue to help people. we got cheated from all the things he was gonna do. >> cameron boyce was a shining star in hollywood whose young life would tragically end all too soon. the 20 year old passed away last month after complications from epilepsy. >> this is, for me, the hardest thing. he was in a place where he was truly happy. i mean, cameron was always happy. never a negative thing came out of his mouth. >> unh-uh. >> never. >> he won the hearts of tweens all across the country. >> that seems kind of crazy doesn't it? >> acting, dancing and singing his way through some of the disney channel's biggest hits including "the descendants" trilogy.

a natural born entertainer. he choreographed and performed this mesmerizing dance for hozier's music video "almost sweet music." he had millions of fans, all over the world. but to libby and victor boyce, cameron will forever be their baby boy. >> we were extremely, extremely close. he's who i would go to for things. he was, you know, truly one of the loves of my life. and he always will be. >> how are you doing right now? >> we're hangin' in there. we have rough days. and we have some moments where, you know, we're celebrating his life and just thinking about what an amazing 20 years we had. today cameron's parents are speaking for the first time since their son's sudden passing. >> there's nothing -- nothing like this in the world that you could ever prepare for. >> it's really sinking in that he's never gonna walk in the door. i've been havin' dreams about him, like, every night. last night, i had another one about him. and i was thinking, "oh, wow. he's -- he's here." and then i woke up.

and, of course, he's not. and so, it's been really bad. >> reporter: cameron passed away in his sleep on july 6th. the los angeles coroner determined the cause as sudden unexpected death in epilepsy. >> the night he passed away, we were out to dinner with him just hours before. it was a completely normal, beautiful family night out to dinner. there was no indication that anything was wrong. i mean there was no way to know in hours my son would be dead. like, it was just staggeringly crazy and horrible. and we were texting that night. and somewhere between the last text he sent me and the morning, he was gone. >> yeah. >> which is just, you know, it -- it's not cliché to say you never know. >> you never know. you never know. it's -- it's not cliché to say. >> cameron had been diagnosed with epilepsy when he was 17 years old. but he hadn't had a seizure for more than a year before his death. >> he only ever had five seizures.

and the fifth one is what is the one that he died from. >> was he receiving treatment? >> he was on medication, for one. but they did all kinda s -- scans on his brain. there was nothing that showed that there was a problem. and he only ever had seizures while he slept. he never had one while he was awake. >> if i ever thought that he could die from a seizure, i would have never let him out of my sight, which would have been awful for him. >> in your quiet moments, and you think of your son, what's the first thing that comes to mind? >> replaying his birth, replaying his steps -- his first steps, riding a bike, plays and shows. my mind is just goin' crazy with all kinds of memories. >> memories that began in los angeles, where cameron and his younger sister maya were born and raised. what kind of child was he growing up? >> he was amazing. he was always -- extremely wise. just the kindest, sweetest human you could possibly meet ever.

>> reporter: like when he paid homage to his grandmother in 2016. >> my grandma is one of the china 12. >> the clinton 12 was the first group of black students to be integrated into an all-white high school in clinton, tn. and my nana was one of the clinton 12. i've heard time and time again that he was an old soul. >> he used to say to me, "share your wisdom, mom. share your wisdom with me." which -- >> who says that? >> who says that as a kid? and he would take it in. and you would see him implement the things we shared with him. >> but cameron discovered his love for the stage all on his own. when did you know you had a little performer on your hands? >> oh, that's easy -- preschool. he's, like, four. and they were gonna give a show. all the kids are in a row. and they're standing. and they're -- they're doing their thing. and cameron is killing it. and to the point where eventually all the kids kind of just stopped and they just watched him. >> after booking national commercials for companies like

burger king and music videos for headlining bands like panic at the disco, cameron hit the big screen. his first major role at just 11 years old, portraying adam sandler's son in the 2010 comedy "grown ups." he also landed a role on the disney channel hit "jesse." it wasn't long before he caught the attention of "high school musical" director and emmy-winning choreographer kenny ortega. >> he had this incredible talent and ability and -- and that there was just something so delightful and exciting about him. you know? even when he was standing still. ortega cast him in his breakout role as cruella devil's son carlos in the descendants trilogy. >> to have been exposed to it as young as he was and to not have any missteps. you don't hear that often with

child actors. >> and that's what a lot of people would tell us. people that worked on sets, people you know, behind the scenes, would always tell me, "man, your son is not like other kids" everywhere we went. every set he worked on, everyone really, really loved him and enjoyed him. >> but in 2015, shortly after "the descendants" premiered cameron suffered his first seizure. >> that was an ambulance ride. went to the hospital. and then we went to see a specialist. he says, "a lot of people have a seizure. and then -- and never have another one again. and so, we're -- we're hopin' for that." 'cause they didn't see anything wrong with his brain. so, a whole year went by and nothing happened. and then had another one. and then it was like, "okay, does he have epilepsy?" >> what do you want to make people aware in particular -- >> well -- >> do you think? >> they don't know a lot about it. there's not enough information about it. and the other thing that has been striking to me is how many people have come up and said, "my son has epilepsy. and now they're scared. this was very rare.

we have come to learn that having a cardiac arrest when you have epilepsy in -- is not a seizure -- is not -- it's very rare. so, i want people to know that. and i want to bring attention to this illness in terms of what they do know. >> since cameron's passing, his parents have set up the cameron boyce foundation to help raise more awareness about epilepsy and other causes cameron was passionate about like ending gun violence and the global water crisis, for which he was honored by the thirst project. >> what you leave should be bigger than you. and i really believe that. >> we want to continue his legacy. we want to honor him. we want to do all the things that he wanted to do, since he can't do them. we're now his voice. >> you know, i can never fill my son's shoes, ever. but we're gonna try to continue his legacy as best we can. because it's just too important to just let it die. >> his extended family, "descendants" co-stars

are also picking up the torch. >> he was truly committed to the young men and women who looked up to him. so we are committed as "the descendants family," as cam's family to continue his voice. >> he was the person you'd always ask for, like, if you needed to talk to somebody. >> he was always there. and he was that person for everybody. >> if we could all be more like cameron, even ten percent, i think we would all be better happens. everybody -- >> his sister said that he was sunlight wearing shoes. and i think that's the most perfect description of who cameron was. >> that radiance lives on forever in videos like this. >> it was snowing out. and he was joyful in the snow. and he just was dancing through it. i love that because it's him. and that's what he emanated where he went and whoever he talked to and whatever he did. it wasn't a performance. it was just, "oh, it's snowing. and i love it. and i'm happy." >> it says a lot about him. >> yeah.

he was all about not bokngei cud joy. no labels. he was just a human being. >> no labels. >> reporter: didn't fit in. he stood out. >> he did. >> our thanks to robin. up next, the backstory behind the superstar and the umpire at that heated us opens match. of once-weekly ozempic®. d abl in a study with ozempic®, a majority of adults lowered their blood sugar and reached an a1c of less than 7 and maintained it. oh! under 7? (announcer) and you may lose weight. in the same one-year study, adults lost on average up to 12 pounds. oh! up to 12 pounds? (announcer) a two-year study showed that ozempic® does not increase the risk of major cardiovascular events like heart attack, stroke, or death. oh! no increased risk? (announcer) ozempic® should not be the first medicine for treating diabetes, or for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis.

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look at the fallout from the fight in their new docuseries "backstory." >> i don't cheat! >> it was the battle that defined the 2018 u.s. open women's final. not one between the players on the court, but a battle between a superstar and a chair umpire. >> you owe me an apology! i have never cheated in my life! one centered around allegations of cheating between a player and her devoted coach. >> serena williams' meltdown would overshadow a historic match and have the world talking about tennis, and women in sports, long after the final set. >> good evening, everyone, and we welcome you to the trophy presentation of the united states open. [ booing ] >> reporter: now espn's

docuseries covers the darkest moment in recent tennis history. >> the match last year was the ugliest finish in grand slam history. it defied -- it divided friends. it divided families. people one on one side or the other, they either believed serena and were completely against the chair umpire carlos ramos, or they believe ramos and were completely against serena. >> the series follows pulitzer prize-winning journalist don van netta as he peels back the layers of this event, including the lives of both williams and ramos, to try and understand how two found themselves at this breaking point and what it all says about tennis and society. >> i want to first ask you about ramos's backstory, his history as an umpire. what is that? how would you characterize it? >> he was somebody who came to umpiring very early. set it as his career goal when he was living in portugal. >> ramos was only 16 when he began working as a chair umpire. one friend said he was so focused he treated local satellite events as if they were the wimbledon final.

>> ramos had an incredible will to succeed. so did two little girls a world away in compton, california. >> venus and serena williams are perhaps the greatest sports story ever. i mean, you have two sisters, not just one tiger woods in the family but two in an african-american family, in a predominately white sport. this family came out of compton and decided, "we're going to take over tennis, and we're going to win." >> and win she did, becoming not only the dominant player in women's tennis but one who was willing to push the envelope through her fierce will to win, challenge of the officials, to even her outfit choices. serena won six singles titles at the u.s. open and heading into the 2018 open she had a shot at the record books. >> there was an expectation that she was going to tie margaret court's record of 24 singles titles, grand slam singles titles. and everybody expected serena

was going to win going into the match. >> but williams quickly found herself down against osaka, and whether it was the pressure of the moment or a simple slip-up, williams and her coach would make a huge mistake. >> patrick mouratoglou has been serena's coach for seven years. two games into the second set he believed she was in trouble, tried to help her, and he did something that would change the match. >> code violation, coaching. warning mrs. williams. >> if he gives me a thumbs up he is telling me to come on. we don't have any code, and i know you don't know that and understand why you may have thought that that was coaching, but it is not. i don't cheat to win. i'd rather lose. i am just letting you know. >> i was just like, what? patrick mouratoglou is not known to be one of those coaches who coaches all the time. >> i didn't understand until they showed patrick, and when they showed him it was -- i

thought to go forward, to go into the net to get to the net. >> from that moment on the match would spiral out of control for williams. a broken racket in frustration, another violation, and then this moment. >> you stole a point from me. you're a thief, too. >> code violation, verbal abuse. game penalty mrs. williams. >> wow, game penalty. on my goodness, this is very unfortunate. >> osaka would finish her off in the second set. "backstory" follows don as he confronts serena's coach to find out exactly what happened in that pivotal moment. >> it was the first time, patrick, you ever sent a signal to serena? >> yes. >> and you chose to do it at that moment, why? >> because i felt it was an important moment. she was -- it was probably one of the biggest moments of her career. she's in a grand slam final to

equal the record of all times. and she's losing, and she's -- i feel at that moment, she's lost on the court. so i try to help her, that's my job. it was horrible for us. it was horrible for serena. it's fantastic for tennis. it's unbelievable that was the best moment of tennis for last ten years. tennis was everywhere. we don't have any dramas any tennis. we have dramas in all the other sports, but not in tennis. >> in a postmatch press conference, serena was unbowed. >> the fact that i have to go through this is just an example for the next person that has emotions and that want to express themselves. and they want to be a strong woman, and they are going to be allowed to do that because of today. >> serena versus the umpire pushed every button -- race, gender, power, rules, sportsmanship, fairness. but even to this day, nobody has conceded any ground. serena williams refuses to admit there was a clear coaching

violation or that she lost control of her emotions. when chair umpires are at their best, they're invisible. carlos ramos was by the book, but he lost control of the match. even if the backstory of serena's fury fades with time, many will see in that singular enduring image what she wants us to see. serena as the champion for justice, defending her honor against a man, sitting high in a chair, looking down on her. >> you can watch back story on sunday. next, the first day of kindergarten made easier for a little boy surrounded by his second family in blue. you'll see what we mean. ♪witch

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>> finally, one wish from a father for his five-year-old. >> jake nealy is off to his first day of kindergarten. and he's a little shy, but he's not alone. lining the entrance of school,

special escorts in blue, these police officers honoring one of their own. jake's dad, west palm beach florida police sgt.bill nealy. who died of cancer last year with a request. to have his work family take care of his family at home. >> if he's up there looking down on us, i hope we made him happy. >> good luck with school, jake! and a big salute to his brothers in blue. it was barbara bush who said family means putting your arnd eh otr and you can always catch our full episodes on hulu