ID’s four-part docuseries, Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV brings forth allegations of years of abuse and inappropriate behavior on Nickelodeon sets, with Drake and Josh star Drake Bell speaking out after years of silence. Who is at the center of it all? Kim Masters and Matt Belloni investigate.
What’s going on here? The docuseries explores years of alleged sexual assault at the hands of Nickelodeon dialogue coach Brian Peck and separate allegations of toxic behavior from producer Dan Schneider.
“There's two things going on here,” Belloni explains. “One is this specific behavior by Brian Peck that's alleged in this documentary, which is pretty horrific molestation, allegations of sexual assault. And then there is the larger question of the toxicity on these shows beyond the specific allegations of this one incident. And that's where it all seems to point to Dan Schneider.”
Too much power? Having created Nickelodeon hits like Drake and Josh, Zoey 101, and iCarly, Dan Schneider was afforded the freedom to run sets as he saw fit, which allegedly resulted in a toxic workplace. “The kind of power that this guy had, the ability to consistently come up with hits makes you very, very powerful in Hollywood, and then you're the golden boy and you can't speak out because he would banish you,” Masters says.