Silence on the set: The dark side of children's televisionInvestigation Discovery's explosive four-part docuseries about the alleged behind-the-scenes toxicity at Dan Schneider's Nickelodeon shows aired this week, and aftershocks followed.
The cast members of those shows, including All That, The Amanda, Drake and Josh Show and Zoey 101 — participated in the project along with directors, writers and parents of child stars of that time. In it, Drake Bell revealed for the first time that he was the unnamed minor behind Nickelodeon speech coach Brian Peck's sexual abuse conviction. The relationship between Amanda Bynes, who has had problems as an adult, and Schneider was examined.
Schneider addressed the allegations this week in what has been criticized as a softball interview, given that it was conducted by Bobbie K. Bowman, an actor hired by Schneider to play T-Bo in icarly.
Since the documentary aired, many of the participants, including Bell, Alexa Nikolas, Leon Frierson and Katrina Johnson, have shared their reactions. Others that did not appear in the document, such as Bell's. Drake and Josh her co-star Josh Peck (who is not related to Bell's abuser, Brian Peck), has also spoken out. This is what they are saying:
Drake Bell: Bell, who talks in the series about being sexually assaulted at age 15 and that the abuse continues, said Business Insider, which partnered with Investigation Discovery for the documentary, that the publication of its long-held secret has been “a mental tornado.” He credited the doctor for giving him the opportunity to let go of the “black ball of sludge” that had been building up in him for more than two decades. “If I'm going to tell my story, this is how it's supposed to be told.” The document notes that Schneider was unaware that Bell had been assaulted until Brian Peck was arrested, and Schneider showed support for Bell and his family during the trial (unlike Peck's famous supporters).
Josh Peck: There were calls for Bell's Drake and Josh her co-star Peck, who was not in the documentary, to speak out amid Bell's revelations of assault and abuse. Fans of the show know that they are no longer friends. Bell told his followers to give Peck a break, saying that Peck I contacted him privately. Peck later shared a message on Instagram giving “my support to the survivors who were brave enough to share their stories.”
Alexa Nicolas: Nikolas, who exposes sexual abuse in the entertainment business through her. Eat predators collective: appeared in the document to discuss toxicity in Zoey 101. She left the show after its second season because it negatively affected her mental health. Since the document was published, she said on CNN that it helped validate her experience. “As a survivor, I feel like you always think you're the only one and that's why you end up keeping a lot of what happened to you,” she said. “So to experience and witness so many other people having their own similar experiences was not only horrible and sad to see, but it was extremely validating.” She has also done it since Schneider apologized in a YouTube video.
Katrina Johnson: He Everything that The actress appeared in the documentary and talked about Schneider being her mentor before she was replaced when the younger Bynes was brought in. She also talked about how they told her to lose weight when she went through puberty, saying they called her “fat.” In NewsNation Dan Abrams live This week, Johnson said, for her it was the opposite of a young woman being sexualized. “They wanted her to stay young, small, cute and not mature,” she said. She said that her chest was wrapped in an Ace bandage so that viewers couldn't see her development.
Leon Frierson: He Everything that The actor spoke in the documentary about the discomfort of having to wear extremely tight suits, exposing his young and changing body. Frierson told NewsNation legal contributor Jesse Weber about Dan Abrams live this week that the conversation around the doctor has been “extremely polarized.” As stars of that era, “we brought a lot of light to your childhood… and while we still want to be able to celebrate what we did when we were young actors, it's important that we also shed light [on] “Some of the horrible moments that happened, not only for me, but for those who were really hurt physically and mentally.”
Bryan Hearne: He Everything that The actor said Schneider preferred white children in the cast. He talked in the documentary about how in one sketch he had to wear a skin tone jumpsuit and a conversation was had about how he had to be “charcoal” in color. His mother also appeared in the documentary series, remembering him playing a drug dealer-type child character. Hearne also spoke about being in an on-air challenge that traumatized him, as he was covered in peanut butter and dogs were licking his body. Since the documentary aired, he shared a message on social media with other former child stars, saying if watching it affects them: “I understand you. I hear you. …There is no expiration date [on] healing.” In response to skeptics who ask “why now?” he said because it is “time for justice to be done.”
Giovonnie Samuels: He Everything that The star, also in the documentary, has since said that Schneider had “overlooked” her as a black actress. “She broke my heart,” she said upon learning of Bell's sexual assault. “I cried”. In an interview with ColliderHe said, “a lot of good things have still happened” from being on the show, but “the bad is there.”
Raquel Lee Bolleau: In Amanda's show For a time, he reacted on Instagram to the documentary, in which he did not appear. “I've had a lot to process and deal with. You don't realize how much your childhood affects you until later in life, when you have to face it up close and personal as we all did,” she wrote. She said that it has “really helped her” knowing that she is not alone and that she is “praying for everyone involved.”
Jack Salvatore Jr.: a student of Zoey 101 who went on to work in Schneider's writers room Sam and cat, did not appear in the document, but he saw it and made some new accusations about Schneider in a video. Among them was that Schneider allegedly pulled a shotgun around the writers at his house. Schneider has not yet addressed that allegation. Salvatore said the goal of speaking out now is to not let these things happen to children again.
Devon Werkheiser: The Nickelodeon actor. Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide appeared to mock the docuseries and Bell's sexual assault allegations in a conversation with former castmates Lindsay Shaw and Daniel Curtis Lee. He has since apologized after Bell criticized him.
Madison Shipman: The actress, who appeared on Nickelodeon. game shakers, She defended Schneider and harshly criticized those who criticized her for it. “My experience is my experience,” she said.
As for who hasn't spoken, the list is long. The documentary's directors spoke to Yahoo Entertainment about trying to get Bynes, who declined to participate, and their attempt to carefully examine that era without his involvement. Ariana Grande (Sam & Cat) and Jamie Lynn Spears (Zoey 101), two stars who were apparently sexualized in their roles, as clips resurfaced in the documentary showed, did not participate and have not made any statements. Neither did Miranda Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy, Victoria Justice, Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell.
Schneider, who was fired from Nickelodeon in 2018, broke his silence this week in conversation with the former Zoey 101 star Bowman (aka BooG!e). Schneider called the documentary “very difficult” to watch and some of his past behavior was “embarrassing” and regrettable. “I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology,” including for the massages his subordinates gave him.
However, he defended himself against other allegations, saying he never hired Brian Peck and was unaware of the abuse. He said all sketches and costumes were reviewed by Nickelodeon executives before airing and denied being banned from any of his sets for toxic behavior.
