On May 1, the “Quiet On Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” docuseries hit headlines once more as Dan Schneider, a former Nickelodeon writer and producer, sued the companies and directors behind the docuseries. Schneider filed the lawsuit following the release of the docuseries which he has claimed depicts false and inaccurate slander about him. Mary Robertson, Emma Schwartz, Maxine Productions, Sony Pictures Television, and Warner Brothers Discovery are listed as defendants in the lawsuit.
The “Quiet on Set” docuseries delves into the corrupt and toxic nature of child television under Nickelodeon throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s. The docuseries exposes child-sex offenders who worked for Nickelodeon while providing new insight into what was truly going on between child actors on Nickelodeon sets and the adults that they were expected to trust. In the docuseries, Schneider is portrayed as creating a toxic and unprofessional work environment by engaging in verbal abuse, sexual abuse, and racial and gender discrimination in the workplace. Many of said incidents involve writing suggestive content for child actors to act out and engaging with children in inappropriate ways, causing Schneider to face severe criticism and backlash. In the docuseries, he is painted as a sexual predator towards child actors involved in shows like “The Amanda Show” and “iCarly.”
In the lawsuit, Schneider accuses the creators of the docuseries of defamation and spreading false information regarding his association with children during his time at Nickelodeon. Schneider’s lawyers have claimed that the false information that the creators of the docuseries allowed to air has utterly tarnished Schneider’s reputation, giving him no choice but to sue the docuseries’ creators.
In a statement to the Press Association, Schneider stated that although he does admit to exhibiting inappropriate behavior while working for Nickelodeon, he never engaged in crimes that would classify him as a child predator. In his statement, Schneider suggests that the producers crafted false claims about him to simply increase viewership and ratings. Schneider ended his statement by stating that he feels as though it’s his job to unveil the true truth.
The lawsuit builds off of Schneider’s comments by denying his knowledge of the sexual abuse occurring behind the scenes on Nickelodeon sets. In addition, it refutes the claim that he was involved in said abuse himself by reiterating the idea that Schneider is not a child sex abuser and condemned the abuse when he heard of it. The lawsuit claims that the imagery, voiceovers, and trailer of the docuseries are defamatory as they continuously repeat and suggest that Schneider is a sexual abuser. The lawsuit states that the docuseries has significantly affected Schneider’s mental health as it has caused him to face continuous mental distress, suffering, and irreparable career and financial challenges.
Originally, when the docuseries first came out, Schneider released a YouTube video in which he condemned his past behavior and called it “embarrassing.” Schneider stated that if given the opportunity to relive those situations he would’ve handled them much differently. Despite stating that the alleged sexual jokes on Nickelodeon shows like “iCarly” and “Victorious” were not meant to be sexual and were written for a kids audience, Schneider stated that he would have no issue with Nickelodeon removing those scenes from his shows.
When asked about her opinion on Schneider filing a lawsuit against the creators of the docuseries, Carmen Quintero vocalized her skepticism about Schneider being truthful.
“He can’t admit to something and now deny it,” Quintero said.
Similarly, Natalia Garcia, a junior at ERHS, thinks that the lawsuit is simply an attempt by Schneider to cover up his dark past.
“I watched the docuseries and I remember seeing videos when I was younger and there is no way people would make those accusations about a famous show writer,” Garcia said. “I think he’s trying to cover himself and save his career but there is so much evidence against him that no one can convince me he was innocent in all this.”
