(Image via max.com)
Staff Writer: Olivia Beaudette
Email: obeaudette@umassd.edu
On April 7, episode 5 of “Quiet on Set” was released. This is the final episode, and it is a follow-up episode for the stars who spoke out during the series.
The first star they talk with is Drake Bell. Drake talks about how when he was approached to do this series, he hadn’t been ready to talk about what had happened. But then, when the show’s directors reached out to Drake, he felt very comfortable, and that made him ready to talk about what had happened.
Drake then talks about how things have been since the series was released. When asked about the celebrities who wrote letters in support of Brian, Drake says that none of them have reached out to him.
He talked about how he believes that Brian’s arrest wasn’t really covered by the media, which is why he feels Brian was able to work on shows again.
Dan Schneider was the only one who supported Drake during this time.
He talks about his journey with therapy and how it has led him to the place he is now. He also has great relationships with his parents as well.
Drake’s mom faced a lot of backlash because of the Brian Peck situation, but Drake said it wasn’t his mom’s fault. Drake said that Brian was “calculated” and that people can’t be upset with his mom for being tricked by Brian.
Then, an unseen clip from the series is shown where Drake talks about how music became therapy to him and how it has all led him to where he is now. After he filmed the series, he wrote a song called I KIND OF RELATE which he says is a song about his life journey.
This then wraps up the talk with Drake Bell and transitions to Giovonnie Samuels and Bryan Hearne.
Giovonnie and Bryan have both had to take a step back from social media since the series was released. While they did receive a lot of support, many people were also saying their childhood was ruined or traumatized, which has become heavy for Giovonnie and Bryan.
When asked why he decided to appear on the show, Bryan said he wanted to ensure that what happened to him didn’t happen again.
After the series was released, Dan Schneider released his video about it, and he also made a short apology in this video.
When Giovannie and Bryan were asked their opinions about the video, they both laughed, and Bryan said that Dan gave a “nice performance.”
Bryan pointed out that when Dan was talking about overlooking kids on set, Dan proceeded to overlook the actual victims who were talking about their experiences, Giovonnie and Bryan being two of them.
Bryan also made the point that after Jennette McCurdy’s book was published and other stars spoke out, he chose not to say anything until now.
Dan claimed that the jokes he wrote on the show were meant for kids and that adults are trying to make them inappropriate now as adults, but Giovonnie said that even back then, she didn’t think the jokes were funny.
She always noticed that her boss would be laughing harder than anyone else.
They both said that many of the jokes went over their heads at the time because they were just children.
Dan claimed he always focused on diversity in his shows, yet Giovonnie and Bryan were the only two black people on set. They were there to represent every person of color across all races, and it was too much pressure for them.
Dan reached out to Giovonnie a week before the series aired, asking for a quote of support from her. Dan knew she was in the series. Giovonnie said that on the phone call between her and Dan, she told him she was terrified and intimidated by him.
Giovonnie and Bryan agreed they would never let their kids be child stars.
The next segment of this episode was with Bryan and his mother.
When Bryan was cut from “All That,” he was extremely upset, and his mother knew she was the reason. The day Bryan found out he wasn’t coming back, his mom talked about how she saw him sitting slouched and that in that moment, she knew she had “lost him.”
Bryan’s mom always spoke up or spoke against anything that she felt was wrong and inappropriate, ultimately leading to Brian being dropped from the show. Bryan talks about how he wouldn’t tell his mom some things to avoid her getting very upset.
Since being dropped from the show Bryan and his mom’s relationship was ruined, he didn’t trust his mom and he resented her. Bryan had run away from home.
But this series brought them back together, and their relationship is getting better.
In the final segment, Shane Lyons, a new child star, is interviewed to talk about his experience.
Shane was on “All That,” and when he was 16, his contract was dropped, and he never knew why.
When asked about Brian Peck, he said that Brian was as charming as everyone said he was. When he found out what had happened between Brian and Drake, Shane said that Drake was very brave for coming forward, and Shane felt lucky that those things didn’t happen to him.
Shane did say that Brian tried making passes on him, for example, Brian would initiate inappropriate conversations with him when he was only 13 years old.
Shane came on the series to continue to talk about these issues; he says that anyone who is a convicted child molester should not be allowed on a Hollywood set again. But right now, there are loopholes around this rule. As long as there is a parent or guardian around, they don’t need to do background checks.
This final episode gave another look into the experiences these stars had. More laws need to be in place to protect kids in Hollywood. These stars’ coming forward is the start of getting these children the protection they need.