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Drake Bell Sees Positive Change After Sharing His Sexual Abuse Incident in 'Quiet On Set' Documentary
Drake Bell reveals the positive changes in his life after "baring his soul" about being a sexual abuse victim as a teenager. Bell also calls his Nickelodeon days "bitter sweet".
Drake Bell finally got the catharsis he looked for!
The actor was among other castmates who shared their stories on the documentary Quiet on Set. The docu-series exposed Nicklodeon’s toxic work culture, which they bore at the time. Many celebs, including Alexa Nikolas, Bryan Hearne, Giovonnie Samuels, and others, made shocking revelations on the sexual, mental, and racial abuse they suffered on the sets.
The Drake and Josh star, who was hesitant at first, shared his story of being a sexual abuse victim at the hands of dialogue coach Brian Peck. However, Bell reveals that baring his heart open was a cathartic experience and positively changed his life.
Bell shared the positive impact on his life after speaking out
The Nickelodeon alum was part of the For Your Consideration (FYC) panel at the Emmys on Tuesday, April 9. At the event, he spoke about the four-part docu-series on Investigation Discovery and its positive impact on his life. He also hopes it will have an impact on the industry.
"I'm still kind of reeling with the idea of this all being my soul, kind of being bared to the world," Bell said. "But you see such good coming out of ... people are approaching me at the airport ... telling me how they have the bravery to come out and speak, and how they're trying to go to their legislatures and get things changed and seeing people online. So you're seeing a change," shared the actor.
The actor recalls talking about his traumatic experiences to anyone but family and friends for the first time, "It was the first time that I've really spoken about this to a stranger. It's not my family or people I worked with who were close to me, who supported me throughout the years," he shared.
The Nickelodeon alum talks about the delayed response on the matter
The shocking docu-series became an eye-opener for the industry and the viewers. Ironically, this happened on the sets of Nickelodeon’s children’s shows in the 1990s and 2000s, which was soaring back then.
Bell recalled a commotion in 2004 when Peck was arrested in connection with his case, but nothing stringent happened afterward. The actor was concerned about history repeating, with the matter ultimately dying out.
Thankfully, that wasn’t the case! "I was so flexed by that, and I'm like, this is the response that I feel should have happened so many years ago … why we have to tell the world about this and this needs to change," Bell added.
In fact, the alleged sexual offender went back to work as if nothing had happened. “[Peck] He's working on the Disney Channel, he's moving around. Right after he was arrested, he left to go work on a film in Arizona," Bell recalled.
Bell recalls the support from his colleagues
The Drake and Josh actor was fighting privately against Nickelodeon's executive producer, and it wasn’t easy. With no backing or support on the matter, Bell had to endure. However, Peck was convicted on the charges of oral copulation and sexual abuse and was arrested for 16 months.
Despite having a turbulent time as a young actor, Bell looks back fondly. "I have dear friends that I worked with that I talk to today on a weekly basis ... that have supported me through the years, and I've just become great friends with," he said. “It's a bittersweet thing where I love to look back and watch episodes."
The actor added that he’s “hoping that we see the shifts and the changes inside the industry that are needed.” And he wishes the same situation “never happens” in the future.
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