Revealing the child actors and toxicity in 90s TV Shows
The documentary "Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV" sheds light on the toxic, dangerous atmosphere in which famous American children's programs from the late 90s and early 00s were created. Discrimination based on gender, a toxic work environment, and paedophiles on set, jokes referring to pornography.
"Quiet on Set" was supposed to consist of four episodes. However, the series caused such a huge buzz, initiated thousands of conversations, and caused shock, outrage, and despair that the creators decided to shoot one more special episode. They invited former child actors who did not expect such a huge response. Unshown statements recorded for "Quiet on Set" were also broadcast. One caused outrage from a former actress who appeared in that interview.
This is about Raquel Lee Bolleau, who, as a child, appeared in "The Amanda Show". The former actress spoke about filming a scene where Amanda Bynes repeatedly spat in her face with water, beverages, etc.
When Bolleau discovered this previously unseen segment ended up in the special episode, she was furious. The woman posted a video on social media criticising the creators of "Quiet on Set". She was upset not just about including her statement in the fifth episode but also about not being invited to the panel with other actors who appeared in the documentary and later talked about their adult lives.
For the special episode of "Quiet on Set," Drake Bell spoke again—the child actor in this documentary admitted to being accused years ago by Brian Peck. The beloved dialogue coach on "The Amanda Show" molested Bell on set, for which he was sentenced to 16 months in prison.
Shane Lyons, the child cast member of "All That," also spoke about Peck's alarming behaviour for the first time. The former actor then did not realise that "Pickle" was incorporating sexual undertones in his conversation with a 13-year-old. The paedophile on set spared Lyons physical molestation. And although a lot has changed in the industry over the last 20 years, according to the former actor, children are still at risk.
Pedophiles on set with children
The former star of "All That" points out gaps in the laws that state that as long as a parent or guardian of the child is on set, the producer does not have to check the backgrounds of the people he hires.
One of the villains of the documentary "Silence on Set" was Dan Schneider, the creator of Nickelodeon's biggest hits for children and youth. The man who created teenage stars and, at the same time, had at least three paedophiles on set.
In the special episode, Schneider's loud interview, in which the producer explained the accusations, was shown to his former actors. Giovonnie Samuels and Bryan Hearne listened with pity to claims that sexual jokes were written for a young audience. And that if he knew any child felt uncomfortable, he would have stopped immediately.
Dan Schneider faced no consequences for what young people experienced in his programmes for years. However, he had long been accused of sexualizing and fetishizing young stars (Ariana Grande, Jennette McCurdy, etc.). From 1994 to 2018, he was the creator, producer, and screenwriter of Nickelodeon's biggest hits. Between 2020 and 2024, he appeared in the closing credits of "Danger Force" as a co-author and creator of the "iCarly" series, which was rebooted in 2021 by Paramount+.
Jennette McCurdy of "iCarly" described in her 2022 book titled "I'm Glad My Mom Died" what she experienced working for Schneider, who, after the announcements of "Quiet on Set," decided to clear his image by speaking in front of the camera.
