‘Quiet on Set’ alleges a ‘dark underbelly’ at Nickelodeon

“Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV,” a documentary on allegedly toxic working conditions for child actors at Nickelodeon during its golden age, has reignited criticism of the kids TV powerhouse.

The four-part docuseries, which premiered Sunday on Investigation Discovery and is streaming on Max, interviews former writers, crew members and child actors who describe a volatile, dysfunctional and sometimes sexualized environment at some of Nickelodeon’s most successful TV shows in the mid-nineties and early aughts.

“Quiet on Set” zooms in on former producer Dan Schneider, the creative force behind hit shows including “iCarly,” “The Amanda Show” and “All That.” Schneider was instrumental in launching the careers of teen stars such as Amanda Bynes, Ariana Grande and Drake Bell, who revealed in the documentary he was the unnamed victim in a child sexual abuse trial that sent a former Nickelodeon dialogue coach to prison in the mid-2000s.

Some cast, crew and parents said they were afraid to push back because of the influence the child-star kingmaker wielded in the industry. Schneider doesn’t appear in the docuseries and didn’t respond to questions from The Washington Post. But he apologized in a 20-minute video with BooG!e, who played T-Bo in “iCarly.”

“Watching over the past two nights was very difficult – me facing my past behaviors, some of which are embarrassing and that I regret – and I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology,” Schneider said in the video, which was published on his YouTube channel Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the documentary has brought a wave of scrutiny to Nickelodeon, which has arguably declined in cultural influence but continues to air new episodes of popular shows such as “SpongeBob SquarePants.” On social media, many say they feel sickened looking back at scenes and footage from their childhood shows.

“Though we cannot corroborate or negate allegations of behaviors from productions decades ago, Nickelodeon as a matter of policy investigates all formal complaints as part of our commitment to fostering a safe and professional workplace environment free of harassment or other kinds of inappropriate conduct,” Nickelodeon said in a statement. “Our highest priorities are the well-being and best interests not just of our employees, casts and crew, but of all children, and we have adopted numerous safeguards over the years to help ensure we are living up to our own high standards and the expectations of our audience.”

Here are some of the most disturbing allegations in the documentary.

– –

Dan Schneider is accused of mistreating women and children

Schneider often scared and humiliated his crew members and young casts, former workers recalled in the documentary. In the making of shows such as “iCarly” and “Victorious,” Schneider filmed behind-thescenes videos in which he invades actors’ personal space and makes them uncomfortable, the documentary claims. Schneider also made female crew members give him massages at least every week, some workers said to the filmmakers.

Schneider said he was “embarrassed” about the massages in his YouTube video addressing the documentary.

“It was wrong,” he said. “I apologize to anybody that I ever put in that situation, and even additionally, I apologize to the people who were walking around video village or wherever they happened because there were lots of people there who witnessed it who also may have felt uncomfortable.”

Many of the stars, generally between 8 and 15 years old, were new to the TV acting industry and didn’t want to jeopardize their big break by getting defensive, said Leon Frierson, who was on “All That.”

“There’s a dark underbelly to child stardom,” said Bryan Hearne, an “All That” alum, in the documentary. “Children are just a dollar sign when they show up on set. Nobody’s taking anyone’s mental health serious, and that’s completely unfortunate.”

Christy Stratton and Jenny Kilgen, who said they were illegally forced to share a salary as the only two female writers for

“The Amanda Show,” detailed the sexism they say they faced during the show’s first season, including Stratton being asked by Schneider to act as if she were being sodomized in the writers room. (Schneider, in his YouTube video, apologized for the “inappropriate jokes” he made while leading the writers room.)

“You always felt like disagreeing with Dan or standing up for yourself could result in you getting fired,” Kilgen said.

After the Writers Guild of America told Schneider to give Stratton and Kilgen separate salaries, Kilgen said Schneider threatened to make sure she never worked on another Nickelodeon show again if he found out she tipped off the union.

Jennette McCurdy, who starred in “iCarly” and “Sam and Cat,” wrote in her 2022 memoir “I’m Glad My Mom Died” about the abuse she faced as a child star from her mother and a Nickelodeon executive she referred to only as “The Creator.” The Washington Post noted before the book’s publication that she was “under the domain of Dan Schneider,” working with him on two sitcoms that altogether aired from 2007 to 2014.

The Creator was “mean-spirited, controlling, and terrifying,” she wrote. He made “grown men and women cry with his insults and degradation” and pressured her to drink alcohol when she was 18.

Schneider and Nickelodeon have never acknowledged the identity of “The Creator.” But in a statement in response to the book, Russell Hicks, Nickelodeon’s former president of content and production, said Schneider “cared about the kids on his shows even when sometimes their own families unfortunately did not.”

“Every single thing that Dan ever did on any of his shows was carefully scrutinized and approved by executives at Nickelodeon,” the statement continued.

Nickelodeon launched an internal investigation into Schneider around 2013, the documentary stated.

Nickelodeon investigated Schneider again in the wake of the #MeToo movement, after a costumer complained about the work environment and massages on set. The network and Schneider then abruptly ended their partnership in 2018.

––

Drake Bell talked for first time about being abused by show staffer

Most of the third episode of the docuseries focuses on Drake Bell, now 37, who publicly discusses being abused by his former acting and dialogue coach. Brian Peck was sentenced to 16 months in prison and had to register as a sex offender in 2004, but the court kept the child actor’s name anonymous.

“Now that Drake Bell has disclosed his identity as the plaintiff in the 2004 case, we are dismayed and saddened to learn of the trauma he has endured, and we commend and support the strength required to come forward,” Nickelodeon said in a statement.