Josh Peck is speaking out following the release of a documentary detailing the abuse his “Drake & Josh” co-star Drake Bell suffered at the hands of a Nickelodeon speech coach.
“Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV,” a four-part documentary series released this week by Investigation Discovery, brings together testimonies from former Nickelodeon cast and crew members, court documents and archival footage to reveal the most dark of the children's channel. .
Peck, who recently appeared in 2024 best picture winner “Oppenheimer,” posted on social media Thursday about his emotional experience watching the documentary.
“I finished the documentary Quiet on Set and it took me a few days to process it,” Peck wrote on Instagram. “I reached out to Drake privately, but I wanted to lend my support to the survivors who were brave enough to share their stories of physical and emotional abuse on Nickelodeon sets with the world.”
He continued: “Children must be protected. Reliving this publicly is incredibly difficult, but I hope it can bring healing for the victims and their families, as well as necessary change in our industry.”
Peck's statement comes after his former co-star defended him to fans who criticized his perceived silence.
“Processing this and going through this is a really emotional time,” Bell said in Tik Tok. “She has been very sensitive, but [Peck] He has reached out to talk to me and help me get through this and he has been really great. So he just wanted you guys to know and take it a little easy.”
Bell's story is among the most chilling in the documentary, focusing on the sexual abuse she allegedly suffered for months at the hands of Brian Peck, who worked as a dialogue coach on several Nickelodeon series starring Bell and was arrested by Los Angeles police in August 2003 for “lewd acts with a child.” (Brian Peck and Josh Peck are not related.)
Brian Peck was convicted after pleading no contest in May 2004 to two of 11 counts of child sexual abuse. He served 16 months in prison and was required to register as a sex offender. After serving his sentence, he was hired as an actor in three episodes of Disney Channel's “The Suite Life of Zack & Cody.”
In the documentary, Bell recalls being taken aback by the unwavering support that so many industry executives showed Brian Peck.
“Their whole side of the room was packed,” Bell said. “There were definitely some recognizable faces on that side of the room. And on my side were me, my mother and my brother.”
on a tuesday video response According to the documentary, Dan Schneider, who is at the center of several allegations of abuse by former stars of his shows, cried as he recalled helping Bell's mother draft her testimony against Brian Peck.
“That was probably the darkest part of my career,” he said. saying.
Nickelodeon also issued its own statement to NBC Wednesday.
“While we cannot corroborate or deny allegations of behavior from decades-old productions, Nickelodeon, as a matter of policy, investigates all formal complaints as part of our commitment to fostering a safe and professional work environment, free of harassment or other types of harassment. inappropriate conduct,” the statement said. the statement said.
“Our top priorities are the well-being and best interests of not only our employees, cast and crew, but all children, and we have adopted numerous safeguards over the years to help ensure we live up to our high standards.” standards and the expectations of our audience.”
