Far be it from me to call into question the motives of an eighteen year old girl, but this entire debacle makes absolutely no sense. Disney star Demi Lovato announced today that she's officially leaving her hit program Sonny With A Chance. The show had been on hiatus for more than six months after she abruptly entered rehab for physical and emotional problems, but its future was very much still up in the air, at least until this morning. Now it's destined to move on in another form, highlighting the show within a show So Random.
All of this I have no problem with. It's Lovato's choice whether or not to return, but her rational is beyond suspect. First, she told People Magazine that she wanted to leave to focus on her music career, but later, she reconsidered her argument, saying, “I don't think going back to Sonny would be healthy for my recovery. Being in front of a camera would make me nervous.” How exactly this nervousness would differ from the jitters of touring is anyone's guess, but perhaps there's something specifically television-related to those “emotional problems” she went to rehab for.
So Random, refashioned as a sketch comedy program, will make its official debut in June on the Disney Channel. It's hard to imagine it will approach the popularity of Sonny With A Chance, but it's not like the network has been left with many options following Levoto's leaving.
