Zoey 101 's Matthew Underwood Says He Was Assaulted by Ex-Agent
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Originally appeared on E! Online
Matthew Underwood is speaking out about his past experience with sexual abuse in Hollywood while responding to the Quiet on Set docuseries.
The Zoey 101 alum says he was sexually harassed and assaulted by his then-agent at age 19, which was about one year after the Nickelodeon show ended its four-season run. Underwood wrote about the incident in an Instagram post shared March 28, noting that had never had a bad experience working on a set of a show by the cable network. His post came in response to the recently released Investigation Discovery docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.
"I know many folks want me to respond to the quiet on set documentary," the 33-year-old began. "I'm going to share something with you that I never thought I'd have to talk about publicly, as it's honestly none of your business anyway."
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Underwood wrote about two separate experiences he had with sexual abuse. "When I was 12 years old, I was groomed and molested by my best friend's stepfather," he wrote, later adding, "When I was 19, I was sexually harassed and then assaulted by my agent at the time, who had spent a decent amount of time building trust with me as a friend and mentor."
The former Nickelodeon star, who did not name either person, added, "Again, my trust was betrayed and my self-image crushed. I reported him to the agency and he has since been fired—although he is still active in the industry. This experience provoked my move away from LA and ended my pursuit of acting."
Underwood stepped away from acting in 2009 and returned to the screen last year to reprise his Zoey 101 role of Logan Reese in the Nickelodeon sequel film Zoey 102, which was released on Paramount+.
Underwood said he spoke out because people have been sending him death threats for not commenting on Quiet on Set, released earlier this month. The docuseries include allegations of inappropriate behavior on the sets of Dan Schneider's '90s and '00s Nickelodeon shows, including Zoey 101.
"I imagine many of my friends in the business are being equally harassed if they aren't joining in the chorus," Underwood wrote in his post, later adding, "I also ask you all to take a few moments and consider why someone might not share their experiences publicly and not immediately shame them for reserving their right to privacy."
He went on to defend Schneider. "I never had a bad experience working on set of a Nickelodeon show and I never had a bad experience with Dan," he said. "I like to believe he is fully capable of being a creator and coworker everyone can enjoy working with."
The producer, who left Nickelodeon in 2018, had responded to many of the allegations made on the docuseries in a March 19 YouTube video. "Facing my past behaviors, some of which are embarrassing and that I regret," he said, "and I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology."
Schneider also noted that he did not have exclusive power over what ended up airing on his shows, adding, "There were many, many levels of scrutiny."
Meanwhile, Nickelodeon told NBC News in a recent statement, "Though we cannot corroborate or negate allegations of behaviors 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."
The group continued, "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."
Read on for revelations from the Quiet on Set docuseries:
Drake Bell Says He Was Sexually Abused at 15
"I've never talked about this outside of therapy," Drake Bell said in the ID series, sharing for the first time that he was sexually abused by Brian Peck.
The series describes the extent of the abuse using graphics from the official charges against Peck—a dialogue and acting coach who also appeared in bit roles such as "Pickle Guy" on All That—because the Drake & Josh actor preferred to not go into detail on camera.
"The abuse was extensive and it got pretty brutal," Bell said. Advised by a producer (who's heard but not seen) to only share whatever he was comfortable with, he replied, "Why don't you think of the worst stuff someone can do to somebody as a sexual assault and that'll answer your question. I don't know how else to put it."
Peck, now 63, was arrested in August 2003 and ultimately sentenced in October 2004 to 16 months in prison after pleading no contest to a count apiece of lewd act upon a child 14 or 15 by a person 10 years older and oral copulation of a person under 16, according to sentencing documents reviewed by E! News. He was also required to register as a sex offender.
E! News reached out to Peck for comment but did not hear back. Nickelodeon told NBC News in a statement, "Now that Drake Bell has disclosed his identity as the plaintiff in the 2004 case, we are dismayed and saddened to learn of the trauma he has endured, and we commend and support the strength required to come forward."
Drake Bell Describes How Brian Peck Got Him Alone
Bell described Peck purposely driving a wedge between him and his manager father Joe Bell (who also appears in the ID series and backs up his son's account) so that he could spend more time with the teen, who had a recurring role on The Amanda Show before he was offered his own sitcom, Drake & Josh, in 2004.
Peck would take him to auditions, Bell said, and then have him sleep over, saying it was too late to drive him back home. One night, Bell described, he woke up on the couch (where he said he always slept) and Peck was sexually assaulting him.
"I froze and was in complete shock and had no idea what to do or how to react," Bell said, "and I had no idea how to get out of the situation."
He recalled Peck being apologetic, but the abuse didn't stop—and Bell said he didn't tell anyone, not even when the mom of his then-girlfriend realized something was wrong and took him to a therapist. He admittedly believed that if he said anything, his career would be over.
Eventually, he said he "exploded" and told his mother everything, and she immediately called police. Bell said that detectives made him give an "excruciatingly detailed" account of the abuse and then had him call Peck to prompt a confession over the phone while they listened in. Peck "just started a full-on confession," Bell said, and was subsequently arrested on Aug. 20, 2003.
Dan Schneider Reaches Out
Bell also said in Quiet on Set that Dan Schneider, creator and executive producer of The Amanda Show and Drake & Josh, was quick to ask him if he needed anything and otherwise had his back after Peck was arrested.
Otherwise, he didn't hear much from anybody he worked with, either because they didn't know or "maybe because it's a really sensitive subject," Bell reflected. "Really the only person that I remember being there for me was Dan. Unfortunately, there was no therapy and I was left to my own devices...which at that age probably isn't the best thing."
Brian Peck's Support System in Hollywood
The records in Bell's case were sealed for years. But once they were unsealed, interested parties could see who wrote the 41 letters of support filed on Peck's behalf before his 2004 sentencing.
No one from Nickelodeon, including Schneider, wrote a letter, according to Business Insider journalist Kate Taylor—whose 2022 investigative piece detailing allegations of misconduct against Schneider inspired the ID series. ("We wrote Kate a bit of a love letter," series co-director Mary Robertson told Vanity Fair, "and then said that we would love to partner and expand upon her already incredible reporting.")
Among those who did write letters: James Marsden, Saturday Night Live player Taran Killam, Boy Meets World actors Will Friedle and Rider Strong, and Growing Pains parents Alan Thicke and Joanna Kerns.
Marsden wrote, as his letter was quoted in the series, that he'd known Peck (who had bit parts in 2000's X-Men and 2003's X2) for 14 years and "what Brian has been through in the last year is the suffering of a hundred men." Killam, who appeared on The Amanda Show and Drake & Josh, wrote of Peck, per the series, "I know for a fact that he regrets any mistakes made."
Thicke died in 2016. E! News has reached out to reps for Marsden, Killam, Friedle, Strong and Kerns for comment but has not heard back.
But, as Taylor noted in the ID series, it was entirely possible that none of the actors knew the extent of the charges against Peck when they wrote the letters.
Kerns said in a statement included in Quiet on Set that she had since learned that her letter was based on "complete misinformation. Knowing what I know now, I never would have written the letter."
Strong and Friedle recently expressed regret for standing by Peck, who appeared on a couple of episodes of Boy Meets World in 1999. They said on a February episode of Pod Meets World, which they cohost with Danielle Fishel, that they didn't know the real story at the time.
"He didn't say that nothing had happened," Strong said. "So, by the time we heard about this case and knew anything about it, it was always in the context of, 'I did this thing, I am guilty. I am going to take whatever punishment the government determines, but I'm a victim of jailbait. There was this hot guy. I just did this thing, and he's underage.' And we bought that storyline."
Added Friedle, "We're sitting in that courtroom on the wrong side of everything. The victim's mother turned and said, 'Look at all the famous people you brought with you. And it doesn't change what you did to my kid.' I just sat there wanting to die. It was like, 'What the hell am I doing here?' It was horrifying all the way around."
Brian Peck's Creepy Pen Pal
In Quiet on Set, All That alum Kyle Sullivan recalled everyone from the show going to Peck's house for a barbecue. The actor and dialogue coach—who also worked on The Amanda Show and Amanda Bynes' subsequent sitcom What I Like About You—had a room full of vintage toys and comic books, Sullivan said, and a garage dedicated to Planet of the Apes memorabilia.
Sullivan recalled that Peck was giving him a tour when he showed the teen a painting of a clown made by the late serial killer John Wayne Gacy, who murdered at least 33 boys and young men, according to official accounts of his crimes, and was executed in 1994. Peck also had a stack of letters purportedly from Gacy that were given a place of pride in the nightstand next to his bed, according to Sullivan.
E! News also reached out to Peck regarding his Gacy fandom alleged in the series but did not hear back.
Kid-Friendly Programming?
Former cast members from shows run by Schneider talked in Quiet on Set about either feeling uncomfortable at the time—or in hindsight—about some of the costumes they were made to wear and various gross-out gags that may have been of questionable taste but were televised for all Nickelodeon viewers to see.
Leon Frierson, who was on All That from 1997 until 2000, recalled having to wear flesh-colored tights and underwear to play a superhero called "Nose Boy" with accessories that "looked like a penis and testicles on my shoulders." In one sketch, Nose Boy sneezed and a glob of snot hit a girl in the face.
In fact, slimy substances hitting girls in the face was a repeat joke in a number of Schneider's shows, including Zoey 101, as pointed out in the ID series by Jamie Lynn Spears' costar Alexa Nikolas. (She and iCarly alum Jennette McCurdy are among the former Nickelodeon actors who have previously spoken out against the network for failing to protect young talent.)
"It was just uncomfortable," Frierson said in the series. But, he added, no one thought to complain to Schneider. "It was important to be on his good side," the now-37-year-old said of the All That writer-producer, "and he made it known who was on his good side."
A spokesperson for Schneider told E! News, "Everything that happened on the shows Dan ran was carefully scrutinized by dozens of involved adults and approved by the network. If there was an actual problem with the scenes that some people, now years later, are 'sexualizing,' they would be taken down, but they are not, they are aired constantly all over the world today still, enjoyed by both kids and parents."
"Remember, all stories, dialogue, costumes, and makeup were fully approved by network executives on two coasts," the rep continued. "A standards and practices group read and ultimately approved every script, and programming executives reviewed and approved all episodes. In addition, every day on every set, there were always parents and caregivers and their friends watching filming and rehearsals. Had there been any scenes or outfits that were inappropriate in any way, they would have been flagged and blocked by this multilayered scrutiny.
"Unfortunately, some adults project their adult minds onto kids' shows, drawing false conclusions about them."
Unrealistic Expectations
Katrina Johnson, who was on All That between 1994 and 1997 and didn't act much after the aughts, shared details from her time on the sketch show that the now-41-year-old is still haunted by.
"One day the producers called my house and spoke to my parents and said, 'Hey, Katrina's getting too fat. We already have a fat one, she can't be the fat one,'" she alleged in Quiet on Set. While her mom and dad stuck up for her, she added, "I mean, that stuck with me. 'You can't be the fat one.' I still hear those words in my head to this day."
Soon after, Johnson said, she hit puberty and no longer looked like a kid, so she was eventually "edged out...by a younger version of me."
Regarding the various recollections in the ID series, Nickelodeon told NBC News in a statement:
"Though we cannot corroborate or negate allegations of behaviors 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."
Not the Right Tone
Bryan Christopher Hearne, who was on seasons seven and eight of All That, was tasked with playing the youngest rapper of all time, "Lil Fetus," another character requiring a skintight bodysuit. He said in the ID series that he overheard someone on set say that the "skin tone should be charcoal."
The crack made him "teary-eyed," he recalled, but by then he was too afraid to tell his mother, Tracey Browne, who had already developed a reputation on set for being quick to speak up in her son's defense. Which, according to both Browne and Hearne in the docuseries, was frowned upon.
"I became an oddball," Browne acknowledged. At the same time, she said, it didn't go unnoticed to her that her son was being asked to play Black stereotypes. Case in point, she said, Hearne playing the role of a kid hustling Girl Scout-type cookies in the manner of someone selling drugs.
Castmate Kyle Sullivan, though he called out Schneider for being weirdly into goo-centric jokes, said in Quiet on Set that he "generally had a good relationship with Dan."
In Hearne's opinion, however, Schneider "had a nicer relationship with some of the other white kids. My time on Nickelodeon played a big part in how I dealt and still deal with racial issues."
A spokesperson for Schneider diusputed this characterization, noting the producer's "long history prominently featuring Black actors in his television shows," as well as his subsequent TV and film projects with All That breakout stars Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell.
Two for the Price of One
It wasn't just the adolescents who recall experiencing a toxic work place on these Schneider-run shows, according to Quiet on Set.
Jenny Kilgen said in the ID series that, when she and Christy Stratton were hired as writers on The Amanda Show in 1999, they were asked to split a salary, as in their combined salaries were equal to what one writer in their position was supposed to make.
But, as Kilgen recalled, she was hungry for work and didn't want to press her luck by complaining. She also said she didn't push back when Schneider asked if he could just call her and Stratton "the girls" instead of by name.
Moreover, both women said, Schneider would make comments about women not being funny, and he'd play demeaning pranks.
On another occasion, when Schneider created the character of "Penelope Taynt" for Bynes to play on The Amanda Show, Stratton and Kilgen said he instructed them not to tell network execs that the name was an intended double entendre, and they kept their mouths shut for fear of his wrath.
When Kilgen found out that their split salary was against union rules, she told the Writers Guild of America. Kilgen said Schneider called her at home and told her that, if he ever found out for sure that she was the one who reported him, that she'd never work for Nickelodeon or any other Viacom-owned entity again.
Quiet on Set noted: "Dan Schneider denies Jenny's claims and states that he had no control over salaries."
A spokesperson for Schneider reiterated as much to E! News, noting The Amanda Show was produced by a different company (Tollin/Robbins), but even on shows he created, salaries "were controlled by the network and also by the WGA."
As for these recollections of Schneider's behavior, "unfortunately writers' rooms were often off-color places, especially more than 20 years ago," the spokesperson said.
"Dan is extremely sorry for his behavior that contributed to that environment and he has grown a lot since then. That behavior is clearly wrong and not for the workplace, and certainly he would never act that way again."
Where Drake Bell Is Now
"I remember all of the abusive events but, everything outside of that, is very blurry to me," Bell said in the series. "Which is a bummer because I experienced a lot of great things in my life and my career during all this time, but it was so overshadowed and ruined by what I was dealing with on the inside."
The actor, who shares a son with estranged wife Janet Von Schmeling (they separated in 2022), pleaded guilty in 2021 to one count each of attempted child endangerment and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles after exchanging texts with a minor. He was sentenced to community service and probation.
Bell said on his behalf in a video posted online that he'd exchanged "reckless and irresponsible" texts with a fan, not realizing the fan was a minor, but ceased communication as soon as he found out. "I want to make clear," he said, "there were no sexual images, nothing physical between me and this individual."
His own experience as a teen "led to a lot of self-destruction and a lot of self-loathing," Bell said in the series. "I would try and just escape with alcohol abuse, substance abuse, really just anything to escape." As for his 2021 arrest, "I took responsibility for that, did what was asked of me, but the media grabbed a hold of so much misinformation, and it absolutely destroyed me. And I started to spin out of control."
In April 2023 he was reported missing in Daytona Beach, Fla., but he turned up the next day and laughed it off. "You leave your phone in the car and don't answer for the night and this?" he tweeted at the time. Earlier that year, however, he had reportedly sought outpatient treatment for substance abuse.
In the series, the Ready Steady Go! artist said that if he'd "continued down that path," it might have been the end of him.
He hit "rock bottom," he continued, so he checked into treatment, where he finally underwent grief and trauma therapy, "surrounded by people who for the first time in a long time wanted to just see me get better."
Dan Schneider Would "Do Things Differently"
Schneider's run at Nickelodeon ended in 2018 when the network canceled his series Game Shakers after three seasons, while Henry Danger continued on for a fifth. In a laudatory joint statement referencing his "string of lasting, groundbreaking hits," the network thanked the producer and his Schneider's Bakery team for their "immeasurable contributions to Nickelodeon," while Schneider said they would "always remain big fans of the network."
But reports quickly followed that his ouster was the consequence of too many complaints made about the prolific content creator's behavior in the post-#MeToo era. (Four people with knowledge of the review told the New York Times in 2021 that an internal investigation determined that Schneider could be verbally abusive but found no evidence of sexual misconduct.)
He said in a statement to Quiet on Set that "this is not an accurate description" of why he and Nickelodeon parted ways. "However," he added, "today, I would absolutely do some things differently. I've learned a lot over the years about how to be a better boss."
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