10 Celebs Who Tried to Warn Us About Nickelodeon

10 Celebs Who Tried to Warn Us About Nickelodeon

Welcome to MsMojo, and today, we’re taking a look at former Nickelodeon stars who tried to warn us of the network’s shady behavior.

Ashley Argota Torres

In the world of Nickelodeon’s sitcoms, Argota and her costars are typically left out of the conversation. This is partially because the show she starred in, “True Jackson VP”, didn’t run as long as the other shows. Since the show ended in 2011, Argota has found a more successful career between recurring appearances on various Disney projects as well as making a number of music albums and singles. Knowing her past at Nickelodeon, fans have asked her why she never sang on “True Jackson VP”, to which she replied on Twitter, “The other network never gave me the opportunity.” Meanwhile, Nickelodeon Records would get behind Drake Bell, Emma Roberts, Jamie Lynn Spears, The Naked Brothers Band, Big Time Rush, and even Miranda Cosgrove with their potential in music.

Alasdair Gillis

Gillis was one of many actors to appear on “You Can’t Do That On Television” after Nickelodeon picked up the Canadian show to create a version for the US. Many sketches danced around absurdities and the occasional shock humor, but Gillis recounts some instances that may have crossed the line. In the book “Slimed!: An Oral History of Nickelodeon’s Golden Age”, Gillis told author Mathew Klickstein, "There are some things I might question in retrospect -- fat jokes about Lisa… Probably not the healthiest thing for kids…”. Given the new information we know today regarding body weight, many of these jokes come off as insensitive and mean-spirited.

Jhonen Vasquez

The animation side of Nickelodeon has also seen its own pressure from Nickelodeon’s higher ups. Many animators began resenting “SpongeBob SquarePants” as the network kept pushing for shows to be like our favorite sea sponge. One such case was with Jhonen Vasquez, the creator of the notoriously dark cartoon, “Invader Zim”. Former staff of the show have claimed that Nickelodeon executives would constantly pressure them to make “Invader Zim” a brighter, more cheery show. This is likely what spawned the episode “Zim Eats Waffles,” which shows our little Irken attempting to try waffles with his human test subject, Nick. Many believe that Vasquez and his team were taking a jab at their bosses here.

Angelique Bates

One of the most alarming facts about Bates is that she was the first cast member of “All That” to leave the show and one of the first of Nickelodeon’s child actors to speak up about problems occurring at the network. Having only been around for two out of the eleven seasons, one can’t help but wonder what might have caused her departure. In 2022, Bates came out along with several other actors against producer Dan Schneider, recalling an incident where he yelled at her so intensely that she left the set in tears. Not only does this further cement the allegations of Schneider creating a harmful work environment, it also adds to the allegations of discrimination other Black child actors have made against him.

Avan Jogia

Compared to the other Nickelodeon sitcoms, “Victorious” seems to have the most damning evidence of creepy and unsettling treatment taking place both on and off the set. Avan Jogia, who played Beck on the show, specifically revealed in a 2020 Tik Tok post some of the inappropriate behavior that took place: despite having little-to-no memory shooting “Victorious”’s episodes, he does remember drinking and partying every night. Another former child actor also revealed that someone she refers to as “The Creator” would give alcohol to the “Victorious” cast, but we will get to her in a bit.

Daniella Monet

Of the “Victorious” cast, Monet was arguably the loudest of the bunch when Dan Schneider started to come under fire in 2022. Monet went on record to say that she felt there were a few scenes where she felt the cast was being sexualized. One example she recalled involved her putting on makeup while consuming a pickle. Monet reportedly brought up its potentially sexual nature to Nickelodeon, but the network ignored her and aired the episode despite her concerns. She would further point out that some of the clothing choices that cast members would wear were “not age appropriate”.

Devon Werkheiser

Though it doesn’t have anything to do with Schneider, Werkheiser’s problems with Nickelodeon do add to the network’s long list of allegations regarding favoritism. The main lead of “Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide”, Werkheiser has stated he felt like Nickelodeon didn’t give the show as much attention compared to the network’s other massive hits. Along with former co-stars Lindsey Shaw and Daniel Curtis Lee, he has scrutinized Nickelodeon for not paying him any residuals on the show despite the rejuvenated popularity thanks to streaming platforms. Werkheiser even went and protested in front of Paramount, which shares its parent company with Nickelodeon, leading up to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA Strike. Drake Bell has also voiced similar problems regarding residual checks for “Drake & Josh”.

Ariana Grande

The popstar has been noticeably quiet about speaking out against Nickelodeon, which only stirs up more conspiracies. However, Grande has made one comment regarding her time at the network when she played Cat Valentine in both “Victorious” and “Sam & Cat”. Way back in 2014, during the start of her music career, Grande spoke to People Magazine, describing her time at Nickelodeon as “frustrating”. In her eyes, Cat was “a character that was nothing like myself.” Looking back on “Victorious”, there were many, many moments where Cat seemed to be not too bright. Now, after watching “Quiet On Set”, it's disturbing to think about how Schneider and his writers might have seen her.

Alexa Nikolas

While Nikolas has seen continued success in acting, having appeared on shows like “The Walking Dead” and “Mad Men”, she has also used her stardom to put Nickelodeon on blast. In recent years, Nikolas has stated how she felt unsafe during her time at Nickelodeon, particularly when Dan Schneider was around. According to Nikolas, Schneider kept the work environment tense as he yelled at staff and always wanted to be present during her costume fittings. Adding to her unease is the infamous shot where costar Jamie Lynn Spears had green goo shot onto her face. Nikolas recalls people laughing and referring to the shot as one you would see in an adult film.

Jennette McCurdy

McCurdy has long had problems with Nickelodeon and Dan Schneider, so much so that simply hearing the names of the shows she’s worked on and the name of her character cause her to tense up. At first, she spoke up about her experiences in somewhat subtle ways, such as in her web series “What’s Next for Sarah?”, which tells the story of an actress whose life begins to crumble after her show gets canceled. But when she released her book “I’m Glad My Mom Died” in 2022, McCurdy exposed everything. Referring to someone only known as “The Creator”, McCurdy reveals several instances where this person - widely believed to be Schneider - created a toxic work environment and forced her and other actors to drink alcohol. She even claimed that Nickelodeon offered McCurdy three hundred thousand dollars to never speak about her experiences on set. Since the memoir came out, many former Nickelodeon staff have come out to tell their stories, eventually leading up to the biggest disturbance that we now know as “Quiet On Set”. The sad part is that there are likely hundreds more out there waiting to speak up.

Which actor’s story about Nickelodeon shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments.