Emma Roberts Is Glad Mom, ‘Unfabulous’ Showrunner Protected Her After Watching ‘Quiet on Set’
Former Nickelodeon star Emma Roberts was “horrified” by the Quiet on Set documentary revelations since she saw a different side of network life.
“I watched [Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV], and I was completely horrified and shocked because that was not my experience,” Roberts, 33, told Variety in an interview published on Friday, July 5. “It made me really, really, really sad that that was happening to people that I literally saw often and had no idea.”
The Space Cadet star continued, “It made me really, really, really sad that that was happening to people that I literally saw often and had no idea. For me, my show, Unfabulous, the showrunner we had was this amazing woman named Sue Rose. I didn’t realize at the time, but a female showrunner back then was not very common. But that was my intro into working on a TV show.”
Roberts starred as Addie Singer on the network’s Unfabulous, which aired between 2004 and 2007, about an embarrassment-prone preteen attempting to fit in during junior high. Roberts was 13 when the show premiered.
“My mom was with me 24/7, and even I would be like, ‘You don’t have to be here all the time,’ she was like, ‘I do actually. I’m not letting you out of my sight. You’re not going to a fitting by yourself when you’re 13 years old,’” Roberts recalled. “It makes me really sad. I just feel like children need to be protected on sets, as do adults, and I feel like we’re working towards a better work environment in that sense.”
According to Roberts, Quiet on Set “really kept [her] up at night.”
The Investigation Discovery docuseries aired in March, revealing bombshell claims that several stars from All That, Drake & Josh and more had been assaulted behind-the-scenes or experienced other misconduct at the hands of crew members.
Drake Bell, for his part, came forward as a survivor of child sexual assault, claiming that was abused by vocal coach Brian Peck. (Peck, now 63, was arrested in August 2003 for sexually abusing a minor and he pleaded no contest to the charges. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison.)
Nickelodeon noted in a statement after that doc’s release that they “cannot corroborate or negate allegations of behaviors” that occurred on set “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,” the statement read. “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.”
The network further expressed their sadness over Bell’s allegations.
Every Nickelodeon Alum Who Weighed In on Quiet on Set’s Revelations About the Toxic Work Environment
“We are dismayed and saddened to learn of the trauma he has endured, and we commend and support the strength required to come forward,” they concluded.
Bell, 38, found the response to be “pretty empty.”
“There’s a very well-tailored response saying, ‘Learning about his trauma,’ because they couldn’t say that they didn’t know about this or what had happened, or anything,” he said on the “Sarah Fraser Show” podcast in March. “So I think that was a really well-tailored response by probably some big attorney in Hollywood.”
He continued, “I mean, they still show our shows, they still put our shows on. And I have to pay for my own therapy, I have to figure out what — I mean if there was anything, if there was any truth behind them actually caring, there would be something more than quotes on a page by obviously a legal representative telling them exactly how to tailor a response.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
