'Quiet on Set' Nickelodeon Doc: Most Shocking Revelations

Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV is breaking down what child stars and staff alike went through while working for Nickelodeon in the 1990s to early 2000s. We broke down everything the documentary exposes — keep reading to uncover all of the project’s biggest bombshells.

The documentary premiered across two nights on March 17-18, 2024, via Investigation Discovery and its first two episodes are now available on Max. Per a press release, Quiet on Set sheds light on an “insidious environment rife with allegations of abuse, sexism, racism and inappropriate dynamics with its underage stars and crew.”

In particular, the documentary focuses on longtime producer Dan Schneider, who created shows and is responsible for launching the careers of actors who would become major stars like Amanda Bynes and Ariana Grande. The film series details Schneider’s alleged bizarre behavior on set, which included inappropriate jokes, massages and gender disparity.

While Schneider does not appear in the documentary, multiple statements attributed to him responding to the various allegations are shown on screen.

After splitting from Nickelodeon in 2018, Schneider has denied allegations of misconduct, telling the New York Times in 2021, “I couldn’t and I wouldn’t have the long-term friendships and continued loyalty from so many reputable people if I’d mistreated my actors of any age, especially minors.”

Days before the series’ release, Business Insider revealed that Drake Bell of Drake & Josh, would be retelling the abuse he was subjugated to by a former acting coach Brian Peck, including allegations of child molestation. Peck worked as a dialogue coach on The Amanda Show and All That, before he was convicted in 2004 of sexually abusing a minor.

In response to J-14‘s request for comment, Nickelodeon provided the following statement:

“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.”

Scroll through our gallery to uncover the biggest bombshells that were uncovered from Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.

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Dan Schneider’s Tumultuous Reign

The series spotlights Schneider and, as those who previously worked for him allege, his abuse of power that went unchecked for decades.

“Working for Dan was like being in an abusive relationship,” writer Christy Stratton said in the documentary. “He had fostered this very fun, casual atmosphere, but I felt Dan could be very volatile and could turn any moment. I was scared.”

Female Discrimination In the Writers’ Room

Two former writers on The Amanda Show, Christy Stratton and Jenny Kilgen, allege that there was an abusive environment in the writers’ room, including gender disparity.

For starters, the writers, who were the only female writers on the show, were made to “split a salary.”

They also allege that Schneider played degrading pranks on the women and often humiliated them. In one incident in the writers’ room, Kilgen alleges that Schneider asked Stratton to lean over the table and pretend to be sodomized.

Inappropriate Jokes

The documentary takes a look at several instances of inappropriate jokes taken directly from shows such as Victorious, All That and The Amanda Show.
In one instance, a young Ariana Grande from Victorious attempts to “juice a potato“ while moving her hands over a brown potato.
One character played by Amanda Bynes from The Amanda Show is named Penelope Taynt, which was a joke about the taint, a slang term for the part of the body between the anus and the genitals. Writers claim Schneider asked them to “keep it a secret” from Nickelodeon executives.

On-Set Predators

There were two instances of convicted pedophiles on the set of Dan’s shows, including a former production assistant named Jason Michael Handy and Bryan Peck, an actor and dialogue coach.

Handy was sentenced to six years in prison in 2004 after he plead no contest to two felony counts involving two girls. One girl was a former extra on The Amanda Show, whose mother appeared in the documentary and spoke on her behalf of the situation.

As for Peck, who played a “Pickle Boy” in a recurring segment on The Amanda Show, the dialect coach spent 16 months in prison after pleading no contest to two charges and was found guilty to both. He had been accused on 11 counts of sexually abusing a minor.

In the documentary, Drake Bell reveals for the first time he was Peck’s unnamed victim.

Breaking It DownBreaking Down ‘Quiet on Set’ Nickelodeon Documentary’s Most Shocking Revelations

Dan Schneider’s Tumultuous Reign

Female Discrimination In the Writers’ Room

Inappropriate Jokes

On-Set Predators