Dan Schneider has apologised for inappropriate behaviour on the sets of Nickelodeon shows.
The former producer, who was behind shows such as Drake and Josh, iCarly, Victorious and The Amanda Show, left Nickelodeon in 2018.
Over the weekend, several actors, staff and former child stars alleged abuse, inappropriate behaviour and a toxic work environment while working on Schneider’s shows in Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.
In a 20-minute video posted on YouTube on Tuesday, he called the docuseries “difficult” and “embarrassing” to watch.
“Facing my past behaviours – some of which are embarrassing and that I regret – and I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology,” Schneider said.
In Quiet on Set, former writer for The Amanda Show Jenny Kilgen claimed Schneider would make inappropriate and sexual remarks on set and said he had asked her for a massage.
He said in his video it was “wrong” of him to do so, and added: “I apologize to anybody that I ever put in that situation, and even additionally, I apologize to the people who were walking around video village or wherever they happened, because there were lots of people there who witnessed it who also may have felt uncomfortable.”
More on Television
Related Topics:
Image: Schneider left Nickelodeon in 2018. Pic: Reuters
Schneider also said that any questionable content or jokes in the shows he produced should be cut, adding: “Every one of those jokes was written for a kid audience because kids thought they were funny.
“Now we have some adults looking back at them 20 years later through their lens. I have no problem with that. Let’s cut those jokes out of the show.”
Schneider also reiterated there were “many, many levels of scrutiny” on his programmes, that multiple network executives approved the content and look of his shows, and dozens of adults were on set and never raised concerns.
Drake and Josh star Drake Bell also alleged on Quiet on Set that he was sexually abused by Brian Peck, a former dialogue coach at Nickelodeon.
A representative for Peck did not respond to a request for comment from Sky News’ partner outlet NBC News on Bell’s allegations in the docuseries.
Peck pleaded no contest to and was convicted of lewd or lascivious acts with a 14- or 15-year-old child and oral copulation with a minor under 16, according to a case summary from Los Angeles County Superior Court.
Peck was sentenced to 16 months in prison. Bell said in Quiet on Set that Schenider was supportive of him.
When asked about Bells’s allegations of abuse, Schneider became emotional and said he did not hire Peck. He also called it the “darkest part of his career”.
Image: Schneider called Drake Bell’s allegations of abuse from Brian Peck the “darkest part of his career”. Pic: Rex
He was sentenced to two years of probation and 200 hours of community service.
A Nickelodeon spokesperson previously said in response to Quiet on Set: “Though we cannot corroborate or negate allegations of behaviours 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.”
The New York Times reported in 2021 Nickelodeon cut ties with Schneider after an internal investigation found evidence of verbal abuse to colleagues. The investigation did not find evidence of sexual misconduct.
After Schneider’s video response, a spokesperson addressed the investigation and said “all that was found is that he was a challenging, tough and demanding person to work for and with, nothing else”.
Sky News has asked Dan Schneider’s representatives and Nickelodeon for comment.
Anti-Trump protests took place across America on Saturday, with demonstrators decrying the administration’s immigration crackdown and mass firings at government agencies.
Events ranged from small local marches to a rally in front of the White House and a demonstration at a Massachusetts commemoration of the start of the Revolutionary War 250 years ago.
Thomas Bassford, 80, was at the battle reenactment with his two grandsons, as well as his partner and daughter.
He said: “This is a very perilous time in America for liberty. I wanted the boys to learn about the origins of this country and that sometimes we have to fight for freedom.”
At events across the country, people carried banners with slogans including “Trump fascist regime must go now!”, “No fear, no hate, no ICE in our state,” and “Fight fiercely, Harvard, fight,” referencing the university’s recent refusal to hand over much of its control to the government.
Some signs name-checked Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadorian citizen living in Maryland, who the Justice Department admits was mistakenly deported to his home country.
People waved US flags, some of them held upside down to signal distress. In San Francisco, hundreds of people spelt out “Impeach & Remove” on a beach, also with an inverted US flag.
People walked through downtown Anchorage in Alaska with handmade signs listing reasons why they were demonstrating, including one that read: “No sign is BIG enough to list ALL of the reasons I’m here!”
Image: Pic: AP
Protests also took place outside Tesla car dealerships against the role Elon Musk ahas played in downsizing the federal government as de facto head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The protests come just two weeks after similar nationwide demonstrations.
Spreaker
This content is provided by Spreaker, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Spreaker cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Spreaker cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Spreaker cookies for this session only.
Organisers are opposing what they call Mr Trump’s civil rights violations and constitutional violations, including efforts to deport scores of immigrants and to scale back the federal government by firing thousands of government workers and effectively shuttering entire agencies.
The Trump administration, among other things, has moved to shutter Social Security Administration field offices, cut funding for government health programs and scale back protections for transgender people.
US vice president JD Vance has met with Pope Francis.
The “quick and private” meeting took place at the Pope’s residence, Casa Santa Marta, in Vatican City, sources told Sky News.
The meeting came amid tensions between the Vatican and the Trump administration over the US president’s crackdown on migrants and cuts to international aid.
No further details have been released on the meeting between the vice president and the Pope, who has been recovering following weeks in hospital with double pneumonia.
Mr Vance, who is in Rome with his family, also met with the Vatican’s number two, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher.
The Vatican said there had been “an exchange of opinions” over international conflicts, migrants and prisoners.
According to a statement, the two sides had “cordial talks” and the Vatican expressed satisfaction with the Trump administration’s commitment to protecting freedom of religion and conscience.
“There was an exchange of opinions on the international situation, especially regarding countries affected by war, political tensions and difficult humanitarian situations, with particular attention to migrants, refugees and prisoners,” the statement said.
Francis has previously called the Trump administration’s deportation plans a “disgrace”.
Mr Vance, who became Catholic in 2019, has cited medieval-era Catholic teaching to justify the immigration crackdown.
The pope rebutted the theological concept Mr Vance used to defend the crackdown in an unusual open letter to the US Catholic bishops about the Trump administration in February, and called Mr Trump’s plan a “major crisis” for the US.
“What is built on the basis of force, and not on the truth about the equal dignity of every human being, begins badly and will end badly,” the Pope said in the letter.
Mr Vance has acknowledged Francis’s criticism but said he would continue to defend his views. During an appearance in late February at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, he did not address the issue specifically but called himself a “baby Catholic” and acknowledged there were “things about the faith that I don’t know”.
While he had criticised Francis on social media in the past, recently he has posted prayers for the pontiff’s recovery.