Illustration by Meghan Sim.
On March 17, “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” premiered on Investigation Discovery. What followed was a social media maelstrom.
“Quiet on Set” is a short docuseries about the Kids’ TV channel Nickelodeon and the allegations of abuse on the various sets of its shows. The documentary showcases a variety of different cast and crew from Nickelodeon shows discussing their personal experiences on set. It mainly focuses on the allegations of abuse against Dan Schneider, a producer at Nickelodeon, but there are several other alleged abusers discussed in the documentary.
But, the documentary wasn’t, for the most part, saying anything that hadn’t already been said online. There have been dozens of video essays, and even TikToks and Instagram reels about the abusive nature of Nickelodeon years before the documentary even came out.
The two biggest pieces of new information “Quiet on Set” provided were Drake Bell coming forward to discuss the sexual abuse he experienced while working for Nickelodeon as a minor, and two female screenwriters opening up about the discriminatory behavior and pay practices they experienced under Schneider.
So what exactly made “Quiet on Set” into the spectacle that it became?
“Quiet on Set” created the perfect storm of social media engagement. A topic that was already trending given an air of legitimacy because of its release in a documentary format, combined with a new series of different, previously unknown experiences, and bam: social media gold.
But the issue is, this docuseries is about abuse. Specifically, it’s about the abuse of minors on the sets of children’s television — shows that many of us grew up watching. This isn’t really a laughing matter, and the near-constant stream of social media content doesn’t treat the situations brought up in the docuseries with the seriousness that they require. It becomes another way of exploiting the exploitation of these former child stars.
This isn’t a problem specific to “Quiet on Set.” The same thing happened in 2022 when Jennette McCurdy’s memoir “I’m Glad My Mom Died” was released. The memoir focused on McCurdy’s experiences as a child star, and the struggles she faced with the abuse from her mother and others, and on the sets of various projects she worked on.
The memoir became an instant, and lasting, hit. Social media took to it because of how shocking the actress’ life had been behind closed doors.
People clipped chunks of audio from the book and speculated on the meanings of the different passages. McCurdy’s experiences on the sets of both Nickelodeon shows she starred in, “iCarly” and “Sam and Cat,” were some of the most popular sections on social media.
The phenomena around “I’m Glad My Mom Died” and “Quiet on Set,” while not totally terrible, represent a larger issue in the world of social media. Nothing is sacred, and no one is spared.
Yes, a large number of the social media posts were personal reactions or voices of support for the victims of abuse, but a huge part of the conversation around the docuseries was focused on questioning the intentions of some of the victims in sharing their stories, especially parents, who did not go to the police at the time of some of the events that took place.
As a reaction to the series, Schneider made a short apology video where he essentially denied most of the heavier accusations about what he did on set. Schneider aside, other former employees of Nickelodeon came out with their stories about their experiences on set because of the docuseries.
Marc Summers, the host of multiple Nickelodeon shows and appeared briefly in the docuseries, also spoke out against “Quiet on Set.”
“They did a bait and switch on me. They ambushed me. They never told me what this documenting was about […] and so I walked out,” Summers said in an interview on The Elvis Duran Show.
Summers’ personal feelings aside, the point he raises about the ethics of the docuseries is emblematic of the online misrepresentations about the docuseries. “Quiet on Set” is not meant to be a hit piece about Schneider or any of the older cast and crew of Nickelodeon. It clearly makes points about how the sets of these shows were potentially, and at times explicitly, dangerous for children.
However, the misinterpretations of others aren’t the real issue with “Quiet on Set.” The series’ main struggle is that it fails to convey everything that happened both on and off the sets of Nickelodeon shows.
For example, during the filming of “iCarly”, a stunt actor was nearly killed after Schneider insisted on shooting a take of a stunt fall with no cushions or padding for the actor to land on. The take of the stunt actor being injured was used in the final edit of the show and has since become a meme online.
Also on the set of “iCarly,” 17-year-old Mccurdy met 29-year-old Paul Glaser, and the two eventually started dating, including going on a trip together funded by the studio.
Mccurdy also alleged there to be an underaged drinking issue on the set of “Victorious” with the creator of “Victorious” and “iCarly” pressuring the “iCarly” children actors into drinking by comparing them to the “Victorious” cast.
Many of the issues on the set of these shows were left unaddressed in the docuseries, likely due to a lack of witnesses willing to be interviewed.
One of the issues often brought up online is the treatment of Bell in the docuseries. The actor came forward with previously unknown information about the abuse he faced from Brian Peck, a crew member for “All That” and “The Amanda Show.” The segment of the docuseries about Bell is one of the most compelling parts of the series, but it mostly glosses over the actor’s own conviction of child endangerment from 2021.
“Quiet on Set” was released six years after Schneider, the main subject of the series, was fired from Nickelodeon because he “verbally abused colleagues.” But the impression of Schenider’s work is still very much a part of modern culture.
“Danger Force,” the spin-off of Schneider’s show “Henry Danger” only ended in 2024. Additionally, the reboot of “iCarly” concluded in 2023. Schneider shaped Nickelodeon live action shows starting in 1994 with “All That” and continuing for three decades, even past the time he was fired.
There are thousands of videos still being made about various Nickelodeon projects to this day, with some content creators only creating Nickelodeon content.
One YouTuber, Quinton Reviews, makes long-form reviews focused on nostalgic kids’ content, usually heavily layered in memes. His content has breathed a new life into the online discussion around the late 2000s live-action Nickelodeon shows, like “iCarly” and “Victorious.”
Most recently, he uploaded a nearly two-hour-long video titled “We Don’t Talk About Dan Schneider.” As of April 20, this video has 2.6 million views. In it, Quinton discusses the legacy Schneider has left on Nickelodeon.
“Is it just an easier conversation if we blame one semi-retired guy for everything instead of talking about the cultural system that consistently trades in the mental health of children for millions of dollars,” Quinton said, in discussing the way Schneider has become a cultural fall guy for all the problems at Nickelodeon and children’s media in general.
Matt Bennett, one of the former actors of “Victorious,” has found success doing Nickelodeon-themed DJ nights. These “Party 101” events are marketed solely on Nickelodeon nostalgia. He often brings other former Nick stars to these events, much to the excitement of the fans attending.
Bennett posted a response to “Quiet on Set” where he wrote, “Entertainment is important but it’s not as important as the mental and physical health of the people creating it, especially those who aren’t in a position to speak up for themselves. To the people coming to any of my upcoming shows: I’m still dedicated to creating a safe space for you all to have fun.”
Nickelodeon continues to stay relevant whether it be through “Quiet on Set,” YouTube retrospectives, “Party 101,” or Ariana Grande, a former “Victorious” actress.
All this is to say, “Quiet on Set” is one piece of a much larger, louder conversation about child actors, exploitation, abuse, and the Nickelodeon shows three generations have grown up watching. And we can’t look away from it.
