Drake Bell, 2019.Photo:Presley Ann/FilmMagic
Presley Ann/FilmMagic
Drake Bellis speaking out about alleged sexual abuse he endured as a child actor while working for Nickelodeon.
On Tuesday, ID shared a preview of the docuseries on YouTube showing past Nickelodeon cast and crew members discussing their time on the children’s and pre-teen channel before Bell enters at the end of the video and sits down in a chair.
“The clip reveals that former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell will be sharing publicly, for the first time, the story of the abuse he suffered at the hands of Brian Peck, his former dialogue coach who was convicted in 2004 for his crimes against Drake and ordered to register as a sex offender,” Warner Bros. Discovery said in a press release shared with PEOPLE.
‘Drake & Josh’ stars Nancy Sullivan, Miranda Cosgrove, Josh Peck, Drake Bell and Jonathan Goldstein (right to left).SGranitz/WireImage
SGranitz/WireImage
The incidents had happened approximately two years before the arrest was made, and the press release stated that Peck had been “coaching the victim.”
At the time, detectives said they believed there could be more victims who had yet to come forward.
The sexual abuse allegedly happened when Bell was 15 years old.
Drake Bell.Michael Tran/Getty
PEOPLE has reached out to Bell’s former and current representatives for comment, but did not immediately hear back.
On Tuesday,Business Insidershared additional details about Peck’s criminal history as it pertains to the accusations.
According to the outlet, Peck pleaded no contest to performing a lewd act with a 14 or 15-year-old and to oral copulation with a minor under 16 in May 2004.
The dialogue coach was subsequently sentenced to 16 months in prison and registered as a sex offender in October 2004.
Drake Bell, May 2001.Gary Livingston/Getty
Gary Livingston/Getty
Bell appeared on Nickelodeon’sAll ThatandThe Amanda Showfrom 1999 to 2002 before landing his own series with the network,Drake & Josh, in 2004.
“The docuseries reveals an insidious environment” former employees were exposed to, and includes “emotional accounts, chronicling a pattern of gross, abusive, and manipulative behavior that unfolded across decades, as well as exclusive stories about child predators on set.”
The release added that through testimony and archival footage, many moments that were deemed as simply “silly” will be recontextualized.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
source: people.com
