Former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell is coming forward to allege he was a victim of Brian Peck’s sexual abuse.
In a new clip from the upcoming Investigation Discovery series Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV released on Tuesday, March 5, Bell is seen sitting down for a solo interview where he is expected to discuss his experience working with Peck.
“The clip reveals that former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell will be sharing publicly, for the first time, the story of the abuse he suffered at the hands of Brian Peck,” Investigation Discovery announced via Instagram, “his former dialogue coach who was convicted in 2004 for his crimes against Drake and ordered to register as a sex offender.”
Peck worked as a dialogue coach on Nickelodeon’s All That and The Amanda Show. Bell starred in the latter program from 1999 to 2002 before helping launch a new series called Drake & Josh in 2004.
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Back in August 2003, Peck was arrested on more than a dozen charges related to sexual abuse allegations involving an unnamed minor, Variety reported.
In May 2004, 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. It remains unclear who these victims are and Bell has not yet publicly specified the nature of the abuse he experienced.
Per Variety, Peck was sentenced to 16 months in prison and ordered to register as a sex offender in October 2004.
Us Weekly has reached out to Peck and Bell’s reps for comment on the upcoming Investigation Discovery series.
Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV is described by Investigation Discovery as a four-part docuseries that uncovers the toxic and dangerous culture behind some of the most iconic children’s shows of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
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Investigation Discovery says the series features “unprecedented access” to key cast members, writers and crew from a variety of past Nickelodeon shows – including iCarly, Sam & Cat and Victorious – who are ready to share their experiences.
Just last month, former Boy Meets World stars Rider Strong and Will Friedle addressed their complicated connection with Peck, who appeared on two episodes of their hit show.
In 2003, both Strong and Friedle showed their support for Peck after he was arrested by writing letters to a judge and attending a court hearing. Looking back, the actors said they didn’t know the full story. (It remains unclear who Peck’s victims were at the time of his 2003 arrest.)
“We’re sitting in that courtroom on the wrong side of everything,” Friedle recalled on the February 19 episode of their “Pod Meets World” podcast. “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.”
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Friedle admitted he still struggles with his decision to stand by Peck, adding, “We weren’t told the whole story, but it doesn’t change the fact that we did it. I still can’t get the words out to describe all of the things that I’m feeling inside of myself.”
Friedle hasn’t seen Peck in nearly two decades. Strong, however, ran into the actor at a party seven years ago. “Here I was at this party and I had to leave,” he said when recalling the unexpected reunion. “I was so freaked the f—k out.”
Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV is set to air on Investigation Discovery Sunday, March 17, and Monday, March 18, at 9 p.m. ET.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
