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

"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. 

"Apologies aren't enough," said The Guardian. The young actors traumatized by their time on Nickelodeon shows are "seeking change and accountability in an industry that turned a blind eye to predatory behavior." Will the shocking revelations produce change? "I'm realistic, they're not going to say we're going to kill this programming," said Scaachi Koul, a consultant for the documentary, "but I hope it will force them to reorganize how they do it."

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"More protections are now in place" since Schneider's ouster, The Wrap said, but industry experts say "there's still more to be done." Background checks are now mandatory. And guidelines now call for parents or guardians — including on-set tutors — to be in sight of child actors at all times, but there are gaps: Too many people fear being blackballed by the entertainment industry. "Employees in general have this fear, 'Maybe I'll lose my job if I speak out about this issue,'" said Chantal Payton of Payton Employment Law. 

One former star — Drake Bell, of "Drake & Josh" — was sexually abused by a dialogue coach on the show. He has emerged to criticize Nickelodeon for its handling of the scandal, The Hollywood Reporter said. (The network released a statement that it is committed "to fostering a safe and professional workplace environment.") "I find it pretty empty, their responses, because, I mean, they still show our shows, they still put our shows on," Bell said during a podcast interview. "And I have to pay for my own therapy."

The reaction

Nickelodeon's "nebulous" response to the documentary does "little to assure audiences that there's been any notable transformation" in working conditions for child actors, Lorraine Ali said at the Los Angeles Times. There's reason to be skeptical that much has changed, or will. The "weak-sauce defenses" offered by figures in the scandal demonstrate that the "hushing effect of power and the quiet acceptance of predatory behavior is still an evergreen in Hollywood."

"What the industry can learn is what it should already have learned from the #MeToo movement," Eric Deggans said on NPR. While Nickelodeon isn't the powerhouse it was 20 years ago, other networks and streamers — Disney+, AppleTV+ and Netflix — all have original series that "employ a lot of young actors." There needs to be more focus on providing them with healthy workplaces. "They should have the agency to be able to speak up without worrying about losing their job or ending their career." 

"The current safeguards for child safety and well-being in the studio environment are clearly insufficient," Kelly Lawler said at USA Today. The former child actors who spoke out in the documentary "urge more regulation, tougher laws and other safeguards." But many say they would never let their own children act. Profits, after all, all too often come before safety in Hollywood. And in any case, those regulations wouldn't touch the "wild west" of child influencers on TikTok and other social media sites. "Will the documentary change anything? It's hard to be optimistic."