Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV Aired on HBO Max on March 17 and has taken the world by storm. The five-episode docu-series uncovers the toxic culture hidden behind some of the most iconic children’s shows of the late 1990s and early 2000s, specifically within the Nickelodeon network.
In the first episode of the docu-series, the success of the network is explained, but some huge underlying red flags also appear. Nickelodeon was one of the most popular children’s channels in the 90s and late 2000s and its only competition was Disney. Growing up, you were either a Disney Channel kid or a Nickelodeon kid. There was one man behind the rising popularity of Nickelodeon and that was Dan Schneider.
Schneider created many successful shows such as All That, The Amanda Show, Drake and Josh, Zoey 101, iCarly, Sam and Cat and Victorious. While being the “Golden Boy” of Nickelodeon, there were some much bigger issues happening within the network that came out and caused some concerns. Most concerns relating to workplace harassment, sexual abuse and pushing the limits on child labor laws were brought up, all these issues circling back around to “Golden Boy”, Dan Schneider.
Episode 2 dove deeper into the parent-child relationship on Nickelodeon. The episode discussed how parents just wanted to support their children in following their dreams, which resulted in them keeping their mouths shut when things looked questionable. This episode talked about one crew member in particular, Jason Handy, a Production Assistant on the set of All That.
Handy had good relationships with the kids that appeared harmless to parents when he was actually a pedophile who put on a deceptive front. Handy wrote himself that he was a “pedophile, full-blown.” Handy was arrested in 2003 on two felony charges for the distribution of child pornography and sexual activity with minors. Shortly after Handy’s arrest came the arrest of Brian Peck.
Episode 3 is about Brain Peck, who was a voice and dialogue coach at Nickelodeon. Brain was arrested on 11 counts of sexual assault of a minor, a minor who was a child actor on Nickelodeon. The child actor remained anonymous for many years and never spoke out on the issue and experience until this docu-series. The child actor was Drake Bell, who played Drake on Drake and Josh.
Bell talked about his experience with Peck during his time on Nickelodeon and how he is traumatized, but he works through it as best he can. We learn about Bell’s relationships with his parents, his relationship with Dan Schneider and how his relationship with Peck turned down the wrong path so quickly.
Episode 4 was still about Drake Bell and his traumatic experience with sexual assault by Peck, but more on the side with how Peck received support, not Bell. During the court case, Peck had support letters written by Rider Strong, Will Friedle, James Marsden and Thomas DeSanto and in total, had 41 letters from other Hollywood stars asking the judge for leniency.
Peck’s side of the court was full, while Bell’s was only filled with his mother and father. Knowing all the harm the mental and physical challenges Bell went through at the time was honestly hard to watch. Also, knowing that someone with a good name in Hollywood could get away with such acts for so long without getting caught is concerning.
The final episode in the series aired on April 7 and was hosted by Soledad O’Brien. She asked these child stars who spoke up about their experience with making the docu-series, their experience with Nickelodeon and the challenges they faced as child actors. Looking at children’s television now is different due to this coming out.
The life of a child actor is not all fun, games, and making money. These actors have trauma that will live with them forever. The industry has taken many more precautions since the early 1990s and 2000s, but watching this series is very eye-opening to the life of a child actor.
