I know that some of you moms out there will recognize Dylan and Cole Spouse (pictured here in 2010) in these photos. Dylan’s the twin on the left, and I usually recognize him because he’s the slightly shorter twin with a more bowl-shaped (or feathered) haircut. They both starred in the Disney Channel’s Suite Life with Zack and Cody and Suite Life on Deck from 2005-11. In an odd move after their show’s run came to an end, Dylan and Cole did the unthinkable in terms of Disney actors — they retired from show business. They did not rage. They did not twerk. They simply grabbed their millions of dollars and ran.

The twins are both avid gamers and occasionally speak out on the web, but mostly, Dylan and Cole chill. That is, until Dylan read Joe Jonas’ recent letter in NY Mag, which bemoaned the trials of growing up Disney. I actually empathized with most of Joe’s points, but I didn’t think it was very bright of him to call out his fellow Disney stars (Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato) for “making” him smoke pot. Here are Dylan’s thoughts on Joe’s letter as a whole:

I was wondering if you happened to read/see Joe Jonas’s essay for New York Magazine. A shorter version can be found on E!’s website if you’re interested. But basically Joe talks about the things we don’t see that go on behind the scenes at Disney and explained the pressures that were put on him and his brothers. Many things he talked about were shocking and I was wondering if you agreed with him or had any thoughts of your own on the subject.

I read the article and I have a couple things to say. Most formally the idea that Disney and the corporations “gentrified them.”

First, I think it’s bullsh-t that they were being robbed of choice or creativity. If they wanted too, they could have told Disney “NO.” Cole and I did this hundreds of times and we ended up all right. The only reason they didn’t is because, like many of the people on that channel, I think they fell for the allure of fame. Granted, Cole and I had been acting our entire lives, so we saw it as a means to an end (money making) rather than an opportunity to become successful.

Nowadays artists just assume they have to do what they are told by their proprietors because there is a “rigid structure to achievement.” It is nothing more than a scheme to rob you of your individuality and capitalise the gain they acquire from such treachery. If you believe this, not only are you incredibly foolish, but you are a BAD ARTIST. Individuality is modernity’s most interesting trait regarding artwork and so so many talented individuals realize this. You do not have to become something else to be successful. Not only is it not too late for them to redefine themselves now, it was never too late.

What that article felt like was: “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, still shame on you.”

My personal creed? “Fool me once, you’ll forever regret that decision.”

[From Dylan Sprouse on Tumblr]

Of course Dylan isn’t telling us the contexts of his confrontations with Disney. For all we know, these conversations took place near the end of he and Cole’s run, which would have made replacement (of twins, no less) difficult. Joe told us that he and his brothers felt helpless to say no to Disney, and his words did sound authentic, but that could have been clever PR phrasing at work.

For the record, Demi Lovato is also not all pleased with Joe’s accusation that she made him smoke the pot. She tweeted and deleted her disapproval.

Demi’s sister, Dallas Lovato, did not tweet and delete. Little sisters are the best.

Photos courtesy of WENN