Drake Bell Says He Was Sexually Abused as a Child Actor by Nickelodeon Dialogue Coach
Drake Bell attends the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards which broadcasted live on FOX at Microsoft Theater on March 14, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Credit - Photo by Jeff Kravitz/2019 iHeartMedia
The actor Drake Bell speaks out about being sexually abused when he was 15-years-old in a new documentary series, Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.
The former Nickelodeon child star comes forward about being abused by Brian Peck in the series, which is set to be released on March 17 and March 18, according to a statement from Investigation Discovery. Peck worked as a dialogue coach on two Nickelodeon shows, All That and The Amanda Show, which Bell appeared on before going on to star in the 2004 show Drake & Josh, Business Insider reports.
In 2003, Peck was arrested and charged with sexually abusing a minor. According to a Los Angeles Police Department press release at the time, the unnamed child was being coached by Peck and was abused over a six-month period. During the trial, Peck pleaded no contest “to performing a lewd act with a 14- or 15-year-old and to oral copulation with a minor under 16,” Business Insider reports. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison and required to register as a sex offender in 2004.
Quiet on Set explores the toxic work culture on the set of Dan Schneider's immensely popular children's shows for Nickelodeon, including iCarly, Victorious, Zoey 101, and more, through the accounts of former child stars and crew members.
Write to Moises Mendez II at moises.mendez@time.com.
