Dark side of Nickelodeon: Quiet on Set first two episodes premiere
Click to view-The first 2 episodes of Nickelodeon documentary is now streaming on MAX after airing on ID.
-The documentary centers around Dan Schneider who helped produce/create some of Nicks most iconic shows in the late 90s/00s
-Some of the revelations include:
1. Sexism in the writers room: there were only 2 female writers on the first season of the Amanda show and Dan made them split their salary with one another which was illegal. One of the writers ended up suing and settled.
2. Racism: Dan keeping 1 token black actor on the show at all times and ignoring them compared to the other cast. One of the kids who had a vocal parent on set, ensuring their child's overall safety was fired from All That after 2 seasons.
3. Inappropriateness: Dan making child actors perform inappropriate scenes/sketches on various shows (Ariana trying to "water" a potato and pouring water over herself in a suggestive manner)
3. Pediophilia/Grooming: Nickelodeon/Schneider employed two pediophiles on All-That. Drake Bell reveals that he was a victim of Brian Peck who somehow went on to do 3-episode voiceover stint on Suite Life on Disney after he got out of prison (Disney would remove his credits from the episodes and terminate him after finding out).
Nickelodeon/Dan put out the following statements:
Nickelodeon: “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. 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.”
Spokesperson for Schneider: Everything that happened on the shows Dan ran was carefully scrutinized by dozens of involved adults, and approved by the network. If there was an actual problem with the scenes that some people, now years later are “sexualizing”, they would be taken down, but they are not, they are aired constantly all over the world today still, enjoyed by both kids and parents.
Remember, all stories, dialogue, costumes, and makeup were fully approved by network executives on two coasts. A standards and practices group read and ultimately approved every script, and programming executives reviewed and approved all episodes. In addition, every day on every set, there were always parents and caregivers and their friends watching filming and rehearsals. Had there been any scenes or outfits that were inappropriate in any way, they would have been flagged and blocked by this multilayered scrutiny.
Unfortunately, some adults project their adult minds onto kids’ shows, drawing false conclusions about them.
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