Credit: NickelodeonIn light of the Quiet on Set documentary series, a Saturday Night Live legend and Nickelodeon alum has called for more investigations.
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Nickelodeon is home to some of the most popular children’s series of all time, including Spongebob Squarepants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Hey Arnold! They also had plenty of classic live-action shows, including All That, Kenan & Kel, Drake & Josh, and iCarly.
However, a documentary series recently came out called Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV showcasing the terrible conditions for the children behind the scenes at Nickelodeon, especially with shows run by Dan Schneider. Now, multiple performers from that era have spoken out about their experiences, including Saturday Night Live legend Kenan Thompson.
Kenan Thompson Calls For More Investigations at Nickelodeon
Although he is most well-known for his time on SNL, Thompson first got his start at Nickelodeon performing alongside Kel Mitchell, Amanda Bynes, and so many more on shows like Kenan & Kel and All That. Now, in an appearance on The Tamron Hall Show, he spoke out about his time at Nickelodeon and his support of the victims.
“It’s a tough subject. It’s tough for me because I can’t really speak on things that I never witnessed. All these things happened after I left, basically. Dan [Schneider] wasn’t really on ‘Kenan & Kel’ like that. He got a ‘Created by’ credit, but it was a different showrunner. All that negativity kind of started happening outside of our tenure [at Nickelodeon]. I wasn’t really aware of a lot of it, but my heart goes out to anyone that’s been victimized or their families.”
Related: Disney Joins Nickelodeon’s ‘Quiet on Set’ Tragedy: Multiple Child Stars Affirm Allegations
He continued:
“It’s a good thing that the doc is out, and it’s putting things on display that need to be, stories that need to be told for accountability’s sake. But it’s definitely tough to watch because I have fond memories of that place. I have fond memories of my co-stars. To hear that they’ve gone through terrible things like that, it’s really tough.”
Afterward, host Tamron Hall mentioned that Nickelodeon said they were investigating, leading to Thompson responding with “Well, investigate more. It’s supposed to be a safe space. It’s supposed to be a safe place for kids. So to hear all that is like, ‘How dare you.'”
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