Dan Schneider, director of many of the older Nickelodeon shows like “iCarly,” “The Amanda Show!,” “Drake and Josh,” “Victorious,” and many more, was recently accused of many counts against minors including aggression and harassment. With him were two other men who were imprisoned for assault of a minor and sending inappropriate videos to minors.
The recent documentary “Quiet on Set” has brought many revelations about Schneider and these other two men. Many cast members say Schneider had a strange sense of humor that many on screen found uncomfortable. He had a weird obsession with feet which showed through with many scenes with the actors bare footed. He had a lot of weird sexual jokes for the actors to perform. Schneider also showed clear signs of favoring white actors over Black actors.
Not only the actors were affected though. Female writers reported being sexually harassed. One writer said Schneider asked her to tell a story while in an inappropriate position. He also forced the female writers to share a salary while having plenty of money to pay male writers a full salary.
Schneider wasn’t the only strange character on set. A behind-the-scenes acting coach named Brian Peck was sent to jail after child star Drake Bell anonymously reported being sexually abused by him. Bell only recently came out to the public on the Max documentary “Quiet on Set.”
During his time directing “The Amanda Show!,” Schneider was very close to the main character played by Amanda Bynes. Bynes also was very close to him. A video was uncovered of Bynes sitting in a hot tub with Schneider, who was fully clothed. Bynes was wearing a swimsuit. The other cast members were different. They said they felt much more uncomfortable around him. Many said when he entered the room, they could “feel his presence.”
Only two members of the behind-the-scenes crew were given jail time for abusing and harassing cast members under the age of 16.
Schneider was banned in 2014 from going near the cast members after members came out about him being abusive and mean on set. He called them “idiots” and other harsh words. Cast members hope that what they experienced under Dan Schneider doesn’t happen to other children.
