Drake Bell and fellow Nickelodeon alums defend child star parents
At a panel for Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV, Drake Bell said parents are "learning along with" their children on set
At a recent panel event following a screening of Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV, Drake Bell and All That alums Giovonnie Samuels and Bryan Hearne addressed criticism of the parents of child stars, who ostensibly didn’t protect their children from the “dark side” that the docuseries covered. “We hear a lot ‘Where were their parents? If I was there—where were their parents?’” Bell said (via Entertainment Weekly). “And you have to understand — we’re kids. Some of these were our first jobs. Some of these were our parents’ first time on a set, and they’re just learning along with us.”
Bell (who was convicted of inappropriate conduct with a minor himself) argued that instead of making it the parents’ sole responsibility to navigate an unfamiliar environment, “there should be somebody who’s experienced that can see, oh you know what, this child seems uncomfortable, I’m gonna be able to take him or her with their parent and bring them over here, ‘Do you feel comfortable doing this?’” He continued, “To say ‘Oh it’s the parents’ responsibility’—they’re just learning along with us and don’t have the experience on these movie sets to be able to push and pull their weight.”