What does 'Quiet on the Set' mean for the future of kids' TV?

A new documentary exposes the 'dark underbelly' of Nickelodeon productions

Photo composite of TV producer Dan Schneider and cast members of Drake And Josh, iCarly and Zoey 101
Will the shocking revelations produce change?
(Image credit: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images / Shutterstock)

"Quiet on the Set" is raising quite a ruckus. The four-part documentary goes behind the scenes of Nickelodeon's popular turn-of-the-millennium shows — "Drake & Josh," "The Amanda Show" and "iCarly" among them — to depict a "volatile, dysfunctional and sometimes sexualized environment" where child actors worked in degrading and sometimes dangerous conditions, said The Washington Post. "There's a dark underbelly to child stardom," said Bryan Hearne, who was an actor on "All That."

The documentary focuses on Dan Schneider, the "golden boy" creator of many Nickelodeon shows who left the network under a cloud of scandal in 2018. Child and adult actors interviewed for the film "recounted tales of alleged racism, sexism, harassment and verbal abuse at his hands," USA Today said. Schneider expressed remorse in an interview posted to his YouTube page. "I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology," he said. 

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.