‘No Way Out’: Former Nickelodeon Star Drake Bell Reveals Abuse He Suffered in New Docuseries

Drake Bell speaks out on the alleged sexual abuse he faced as a Nickelodeon child star in the upcoming documentary series Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV. In the four-part show, premiering March 17 and 18, the musician and actor alleges suffering frequent abuse at the home of former dialogue coach Brian Peck.

“Why don’t you think of the worst stuff that someone could do to somebody as a sexual assault, and that’ll answer your question,” Bell says in the docuseries.

Bell got his big break as a series regular on Nickelodeon’s The Amanda Show in 1999, the hit live-action sketch show starring Amanda Bynes, before leading Drake & Josh alongside Josh Peck in 2004. Brian Peck — no relation to Josh — served as a dialogue coach on Nickelodeon’s All That and The Amanda Show. 

As the docuseries shows, Peck (who was 26 years older than Bell at the time) infiltrates Bell’s life — attending his concerts, hosting Bell’s 15th birthday party at his home, and inviting him on trips to Disneyland. 

Bell says the sexual abuse began at age 15. The former Nickelodeon star — his speech labored and slowed by deep sighs — says Peck routinely picked him up from auditions and let him spend the night on his couch. (It saved time to stay over at Peck’s Los Angeles home than trek to Orange County where he lived, Bell adds.) “I opened my eyes, I woke up, and he was sexually assaulting me,” Bell says in the series. 

Following the alleged abuse, Bell says he felt helpless, without having a car or the ability to drive himself to and from auditions. Peck would apologize profusely, Bell claims, and convince Bell’s inner circle to trust him. 

“Anytime I had an audition or needed to work on dialogue or anything, I somehow ended up back at Brian’s house,” Bell says. “And it just got worse and worse and worse.”

Bell’s father and manager, Joe Bell, began to grow suspicious of Peck’s relationship with his son. Drake says that Peck would tell him his father was uncooperative and would steal money from him. 

A call between Peck and Bell’s mother where the voice coach alleged Joe was mishandling Peck’s finances led to the Nickelodeon star severing ties with his father on a personal and professional level.

“Our relationship was just completely eviscerated,” Bell says in the docuseries, fighting back tears. “I think he felt like he was going through the divorce with my mom all over again, and fighting for me again just like he did when I was five years old.” (Bell denies that his father had any wrongdoing in the documentary.)

Bell hid the alleged abuse from former cast members and colleagues, fearing that his refusal to go to Peck’s house would raise questions. The situation only worsened, he says. 

“I was just trapped,” Bell says. “I had no way out.”

The Los Angeles police arrested Peck in August 2003 on 11 charges, including lewd acts with a child that occurred about two years prior at Peck’s home, according to a Los Angeles police press release. The family also reported to police that Peck molested the child over a six-month period. 

In May 2004, Peck pleaded no contest to two charges of child sexual abuse: lewd or lascivious acts on a 14- or 15-year-old-child and oral sex on a child under age 16. Five months later, Peck was sentenced to 16 months in jail and ordered to register as a sex offender.

“Now that Drake Bell has disclosed his identity as the plaintiff in the 2004 case, we are dismayed and saddened to learn of the trauma he has endured, and we commend and support the strength required to come forward,” a Nickelodeon spokesperson tells Rolling Stone in a statement.

During his court case, Peck received several letters of support from the likes of Jury Duty’s James Marsden, Saturday Night Live’s Taran Killam, and Boy Meets World actors Will Friedle and Rider Strong, the documentary detailed. Drake & Josh creator and former Nickelodeon producer Dan Schneider did not write a letter. (Representatives for Marsden, Killam, Friedle, and Strong did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone’s requests for comment.)

“The only person I remember being there for me is Dan,” Bell says in the docuseries. 

Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV also examines the alleged toxic work environment within Schneider’s celebrated Nickelodeon shows, including The Amanda Show, Victorious, Zoey 101, and iCarly. In the series, former crew members allege Schneider requested massages, whereas a Zoey 101 cast member claims Schneider hypersexualized scenes. 

“Though we cannot corroborate or negate allegations of behaviors from productions decades ago, Nickelodeon as a matter of policy investigates all formal complaints as part of our commitment to fostering a safe and professional workplace environment free of harassment or other kinds of inappropriate conduct,” wrote a Nickelodeon spokesperson in a statement. “Our highest priorities are the well-being and best interests not just of our employees, casts, and crew, but of all children, and we have adopted numerous safeguards over the years to help ensure we are living up to our own high standards and the expectations of our audience.”

Before becoming a Nickelodeon household name, Bell starred in the rom-com Jerry Maguire and in episodes of Home Improvement, Minor Adjustments, and Seinfeld. 

In the wake of the sexual abuse charges, Bell struggled with mental health issues and substance abuse. In 2010, Bell was convicted of driving under the influence in San Diego; five years later, he was arrested for a second DUI. The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office sentenced the former child star to four days in jail and four years of probation.

In 2021, Bell was sentenced to two years’ probation on attempted child endangerment, after a young fan he met online accused Bell of sending explicit messages and having sexual contact with her when she was 15. Bell has denied the sexual contact and explicit message allegations, and claimed he stopped messaging her when he found out she was a teenager. In April 2023, Daytona Beach police reported that Bell was briefly “considered missing and endangered.” In the docuseries, Bell says he has since taken responsibility for his endangerment charges and self-destructive behavior.

“If I continued down that path, that could very likely be the end of my story,” Bell says.