Drake Bell has opened up about being sexually assaulted by dialogue and acting coach Brian Peck during his time as an actor at Nickelodeon.
Bell will appear in the upcoming ID documentary Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV (which premieres on March 17-18), a series that dives into alleged emotional abuse by Nickelodeon executive Dan Schneider as well as physical abuse by Peck.
“My name is Drake Bell and I came here today to tell my story,” Bell says during the documentary’s third episode (via Variety), before he goes on to describe his relationship with Peck. According to Bell, issues first arose when his father Joe — who served as his manager at the time — became uncomfortable with how much time Peck was spending with his son, something that production alleged was just homophobia on Joe’s part due to Peck being gay.
Bell would go on to say that he spent nights at Peck’s home and that things changed one morning when Bell awoke to find Peck sexually assaulting him. Bell was 15 at the time of the incident.
“I was sleeping on the couch where I would usually sleep,” said Bell. “I woke up to him — I opened my eyes, I woke up and he was sexually assaulting me. I froze and was in complete shock and had no idea what to do or how to react, and I have no idea how to get out of this situation.”
Bell claims that Peck continued to assault him after initial incident
The actor went on to say that it ended up becoming a “secret” and that Peck was “so apologetic” after the incident, but that afterwards, Peck would continue to find ways to get Bell in his home, and things became “worse and worse and worse.”
“He figured out how to convince my mom and everyone around to, anytime I would have an audition or anytime I needed to work on dialogue or anything, I somehow ended up back at Brian’s house and it just got worse and worse and worse and worse. I was just trapped. I had no way out,” said Bell. “The abuse was extensive and it got pretty brutal. I don’t know how to elaborate on that on camera, really . . . Why don’t you think of the worst stuff that someone could do to somebody as a sexual assault, and then I’ll answer your question. I don’t know how else to put it.”
In a statement to Variety on the nature of Bell’s comments, Nickelodeon said that it could not confirm or deny any allegations, but that it takes any and all concerns seriously at the time. The company also commended Bell for his strength to come forward, adding it is “dismayed and saddened” to learn of the trauma he faced.
“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. 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.
“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.”
