Charlie Garner

Opinion Editor

avg6206@psu.edu

A new four episode docuseries, “Quiet On Set,” was recently released on MAX and Discovery+ to show the dark realities of working in children’s television. The series has been gaining traction mainly based off of some recognizable former child stars sharing their stories and experiences working on the very popular children’s network, Nickelodeon. A number of people came forward to discuss toxic work environments, inappropriate behavior, exploitation, and even abuse. 

There were many people who came on to share their experiences working with Dan Schneider, known for creating popular shows such as: “iCarly,” “Victorious,” “Drake & Josh,” “Zoey 101,” etc. Schneider has been known to have a habit of putting child actors on his shows in inappropriate or uncomfortable situations when they are on-screen. It was first seen in his first Nickelodeon show,“All That,” and continued until he left the network in 2018. He has also been known to show inappropriate behavior behind the scenes, as well. This was mainly seen with the young girls who starred in his shows and the young girl that people bring up the most when discussing this is Amanda Bynes. Amanda Bynes first made appearances in “All That,” but then went on to star in her own show, “The Amanda Show.” She worked very closely with Dan Schneider for many years when she was a child and many people have noticed his questionable behavior with Bynes, which was discussed in “Quiet On Set.” There were also adults who worked on set with Schneider who spoke out against him for his inappropriate behavior and verbal abuse. 

In the early 2000s, two grown men who worked on Nickelodeon, were convicted of sexual abuse of children. The mother of one of the former child stars who was a cast member on “The Amanda Show” stated that the parents were not allowed on set and were, instead, escorted by a production assistant named Jason Handy. Handy had started an email conversation with the young girl and eventually sent a sexually explicit photo of himself to her. This was not initially reported, but Handy was later arrested a few years later for inappropriate behavior towards children. During a law enforcement raid on his residence, “an enormous trove of child pornography,” including “over 10,000 images of children,” was discovered. He also possessed Ziploc bags filled with “tokens” of his relationships with kids he knew, such as a 7-year-old girl’s undergarments. Handy was ultimately found guilty of two felonies and one misdemeanor after testimony suggested that he had sex with a juvenile. Just four months after Jason Handy was arrested, Brian Peck, a dialogue coach who worked on Nickelodeon, was also arrested on 11 charges sexual abuse related to a child actor. 

To the surprise of viewers, Drake Bell, best known for his roles on “Drake & Josh” and “The Amanda Show,” came forward as a victim of Brian Peck’s sexual abuse. According to Bell, he and Peck (no relation to Bell’s co-star, Josh Peck) became very close. Joe Bell, Drake’s father, appears in the docuseries with his own statements against Brian Peck, saying that he would always go out of his way to engage in physical contact with his son. When Bell’s father voiced his concerns about Peck to producers, he was accused of being homophobic and did not take his concerns seriously. Bell’s father claims that up until Peck was successful in creating a rift between Bell and his parents, he made an effort to keep Peck away from his son. Peck persuaded Bell’s mother, who took on the role of primary guardian, that Bell should remain at Peck’s house in order to have easier access to auditions after Bell’s father resigned as his manager. In the documentary, Bell states, “He had pretty much worked his way into every aspect of my life.” Bell, then 15 years old, woke up on one of those occasions to find Peck, then 41, sexually assaulted him. This set off a cycle of abuse that grew more severe over the course of six months. Bell claims he became aware that he had “no way out” and was “trapped.” “Why don’t you think of the worst stuff that someone can do to somebody as a sexual assault, and that’ll answer your question,” Bell says, describing the abuse as “extensive” and “pretty brutal.” The actor does not go into greater detail, but the inference—combined with what is known about Peck’s arrest—suggests a number of traumatic instances of sexual assault. 

Drake Bell did not tell his mother what had happened until Peck allegedly made an attempt to persuade Bell to ask Schneider to portray Peck as Bell’s father on Drake & Josh. This led to Peck’s 2003 arrest and subsequent investigation, during which Bell was forced to retell every agonizing detail and obtain a recorded confession from him via a tapped phone line. Bell, who testified against Peck in court, recalled that Peck’s side of the room was crowded with prominent business people, some of whom had written letters defending Peck. Several celebrities, including actors James Marsden, Taran Killam, Alan Thicke, Ron Melendez, Rider Strong, and Will Friedle, are included as letter writers in “Quiet on Set.” In addition to pleading for Peck’s pardon, some letter writers also seem to have employed victim-blaming terminology. Even though Peck was registered as a sex offender, served 16 months in jail, and entered a plea of not guilty to two charges of child sexual abuse, he managed to return to work on the Disney sitcom “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody” and continued to work in children’s television.